The SCREEN Act, the federal age-verification legislation introduced by Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) failed to advance out of the Senate Commerce committee today during a mark-up session focused on children’s online safety. Despite a party-line vote in favor of advancing the bill, a number of legislators were not present for the vote. As such, the committee could not meet quorum and the bill was prevented from moving on to a full Senate vote.
“We helped deliver a significant win against censorship and surveillance,” says Alison Boden, Executive Director of Free Speech Coalition. “While we’ve been meeting with Congressional offices and educating committee staff on the issues with this bill, our members and allies have flooded the phone lines and inboxes of legislators. Legislators know that SCREEN is a flawed and unpopular bill, and we will continue our push for better, more effective solutions.”
Boden and other members of the FSC team have been a regular presence on Capitol Hill, meeting with legislators on both sides of the aisle to explain the issues with platform-based verification. After SCREEN was added to the agenda for today’s Commerce Committee mark-up session, FSC sounded the alarm with allies, sent formal opposition letters to committee staff and organized a call-in campaign that resulted in thousands of calls and emails over the past week.
“We want minors off our sites just as much as legislators do,” says Boden. “But we need solutions that actually work, rather than drive users to noncompliant foreign sites. We’re armed with data, real-world experience and solutions that can actually achieve the goal.
“We thank our members, our allies and the community for stepping up and getting involved, for amplifying our message and supporting the work we do. You’re what makes us such a powerful voice, and gives us the energy to keep fighting.”