[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7890 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>






118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7890

   To amend the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 to 
  strengthen protections relating to the online collection, use, and 
disclosure of personal information of children and teens, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 9, 2024

   Mr. Walberg (for himself, Ms. Castor of Florida, Mr. Bucshon, Ms. 
Eshoo, Mr. Carter of Georgia, Mr. Moulton, Mr. Dunn of Florida, and Mr. 
 Auchincloss) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                    Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To amend the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 to 
  strengthen protections relating to the online collection, use, and 
disclosure of personal information of children and teens, and for other 
                               purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Children and 
Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Online collection, use, disclosure, and deletion of personal 
                            information of children and teens.
Sec. 3. Study and reports of mobile and online application oversight 
                            and enforcement.
Sec. 4. Severability.

SEC. 2. ONLINE COLLECTION, USE, DISCLOSURE, AND DELETION OF PERSONAL 
              INFORMATION OF CHILDREN AND TEENS.

    (a) Definitions.--Section 1302 of the Children's Online Privacy 
Protection Act of 1998 (15 U.S.C. 6501) is amended--
            (1) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
            ``(2) Operator.--The term `operator'--
                    ``(A) means any person--
                            ``(i) who, for commercial purposes, in 
                        interstate or foreign commerce operates or 
                        provides a website on the internet, an online 
                        service, an online application, or a mobile 
                        application; and
                            ``(ii) who--
                                    ``(I) collects or maintains, either 
                                directly or through a service provider, 
                                personal information from or about the 
                                users of that website, service, or 
                                application;
                                    ``(II) allows another person to 
                                collect personal information directly 
                                from users of that website, service, or 
                                application (in which case, the 
                                operator is deemed to have collected 
                                the information); or
                                    ``(III) allows users of that 
                                website, service, or application to 
                                publicly disclose personal information 
                                (in which case, the operator is deemed 
                                to have collected the information); and
                    ``(B) does not include any nonprofit entity that 
                would otherwise be exempt from coverage under section 5 
                of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 45).'';
            (2) in paragraph (4)--
                    (A) by amending subparagraph (A) to read as 
                follows:
                    ``(A) the release of personal information collected 
                from a child or teen by an operator for any purpose, 
                except where the personal information is provided to a 
                person other than an operator who--
                            ``(i) provides support for the internal 
                        operations of the website, online service, 
                        online application, or mobile application of 
                        the operator, excluding any activity relating 
                        to individual-specific advertising to children 
                        or teens; and
                            ``(ii) does not disclose or use that 
                        personal information for any other purpose; 
                        and''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (B)--
                            (i) by inserting ``or teen'' after 
                        ``child'' each place the term appears;
                            (ii) by striking ``website or online 
                        service'' and inserting ``website, online 
                        service, online application, or mobile 
                        application''; and
                            (iii) by striking ``actual knowledge'' and 
                        inserting ``actual knowledge or knowledge 
                        fairly implied on the basis of objective 
                        circumstances'';
            (3) by striking paragraph (8) and inserting the following:
            ``(8) Personal information.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `personal information' 
                means individually identifiable information about an 
                individual collected online, including--
                            ``(i) a first and last name;
                            ``(ii) a home or other physical address 
                        including street name and name of a city or 
                        town;
                            ``(iii) an e-mail address;
                            ``(iv) a telephone number;
                            ``(v) a Social Security number;
                            ``(vi) any other identifier that the 
                        Commission determines permits the physical or 
                        online contacting of a specific individual;
                            ``(vii) a persistent identifier that can be 
                        used to recognize a specific child or teen over 
                        time and across different websites, online 
                        services, online applications, or mobile 
                        applications, including but not limited to a 
                        customer number held in a cookie, an Internet 
                        Protocol (IP) address, a processor or device 
                        serial number, or unique device identifier, but 
                        excluding an identifier that is used by an 
                        operator solely for providing support for the 
                        internal operations of the website, online 
                        service, online application, or mobile 
                        application;
                            ``(viii) a photograph, video, or audio file 
                        where such file contains a specific child's or 
                        teen's image or voice;
                            ``(ix) geolocation information;
                            ``(x) information generated from the 
                        measurement or technological processing of an 
                        individual's biological, physical, or 
                        physiological characteristics that is used to 
                        identify an individual, including--
                                    ``(I) fingerprints;
                                    ``(II) voice prints;
                                    ``(III) iris or retina imagery 
                                scans;
                                    ``(IV) facial templates;
                                    ``(V) deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) 
                                information; or
                                    ``(VI) gait; or
                            ``(xi) information linked or reasonably 
                        linkable to a child or teen or the parents of 
                        that child or teen (including any unique 
                        identifier) that an operator collects online 
                        from the child or teen and combines with an 
                        identifier described in this subparagraph.
                    ``(B) Exclusion.--The term `personal information' 
                shall not include an audio file that contains a child's 
                or teen's voice so long as the operator--
                            ``(i) does not request information via 
                        voice that would otherwise be considered 
                        personal information under this paragraph;
                            ``(ii) provides clear notice of its 
                        collection and use of the audio file and its 
                        deletion policy in its privacy policy;
                            ``(iii) only uses the voice within the 
                        audio file solely as a replacement for written 
                        words, to perform a task, or engage with a 
                        website, online service, online application, or 
                        mobile application, such as to perform a search 
                        or fulfill a verbal instruction or request; and
                            ``(iv) only maintains the audio file long 
                        enough to complete the stated purpose and then 
                        immediately deletes the audio file and does not 
                        make any other use of the audio file prior to 
                        deletion.
                    ``(C) Support for the internal operations of a 
                website, online service, online application, or mobile 
                application.--
                            ``(i) In general.--For purposes of 
                        subparagraph (A)(vii), the term `support for 
                        the internal operations of a website, online 
                        service, online application, or mobile 
                        application' means those activities necessary 
                        to--
                                    ``(I) maintain or analyze the 
                                functioning of the website, online 
                                service, online application, or mobile 
                                application;
                                    ``(II) perform network 
                                communications;
                                    ``(III) authenticate users of, or 
                                personalize the content on, the 
                                website, online service, online 
                                application, or mobile application;
                                    ``(IV) cap the frequency of 
                                advertising;
                                    ``(V) protect the security or 
                                integrity of the user, website, online 
                                service, online application, or mobile 
                                application;
                                    ``(VI) ensure legal or regulatory 
                                compliance, or
                                    ``(VII) fulfill a request of a 
                                child or teen as permitted by 
                                subparagraphs (A) through (C) of 
                                section 1303(b)(2).
                            ``(ii) Condition.--Except as specifically 
                        permitted under clause (i), information 
                        collected for the activities listed in clause 
                        (i) cannot be used or disclosed to contact a 
                        specific individual, including through 
                        individual-specific advertising to children or 
                        teens, to amass a profile on a specific 
                        individual, in connection with processes that 
                        encourage or prompt use of a website or online 
                        service, or for any other purpose.'';
            (4) by amending paragraph (9) to read as follows:
            ``(9) Verifiable consent.--The term `verifiable consent' 
        means any reasonable effort (taking into consideration 
        available technology), including a request for authorization 
        for future collection, use, and disclosure described in the 
        notice, to ensure that, in the case of a child, a parent of the 
        child, or, in the case of a teen, the teen--
                    ``(A) receives direct notice of the personal 
                information collection, use, and disclosure practices 
                of the operator; and
                    ``(B) before the personal information of the child 
                or teen is collected, freely and unambiguously 
                authorizes--
                            ``(i) the collection, use, and disclosure, 
                        as applicable, of that personal information; 
                        and
                            ``(ii) any subsequent use of that personal 
                        information.'';
            (5) in paragraph (10)--
                    (A) in the paragraph header, by striking ``Website 
                or online service directed to children'' and inserting 
                ``Website, online service, online application, or 
                mobile application directed to children'';
                    (B) by striking ``website or online service'' each 
                place it appears and inserting ``website, online 
                service, online application, or mobile application''; 
                and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                subparagraph:
                    ``(C) Rule of construction.--In considering whether 
                a website, online service, online application, or 
                mobile application, or portion thereof, is directed to 
                children, the Commission shall apply a totality of 
                circumstances test and will also consider competent and 
                reliable empirical evidence regarding audience 
                composition and evidence regarding the intended 
                audience of the website, online service, online 
                application, or mobile application.''; and
            (6) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(13) Connected device.--The term `connected device' means 
        a device that is capable of connecting to the internet, 
        directly or indirectly, or to another connected device.
            ``(14) Online application.--The term `online application'--
                    ``(A) means an internet-connected software program; 
                and
                    ``(B) includes a service or application offered via 
                a connected device.
            ``(15) Mobile application.--The term `mobile application'--
                    ``(A) means a software program that runs on the 
                operating system of--
                            ``(i) a cellular telephone;
                            ``(ii) a tablet computer; or
                            ``(iii) a similar portable computing device 
                        that transmits data over a wireless connection; 
                        and
                    ``(B) includes a service or application offered via 
                a connected device.
            ``(16) Geolocation information.--The term `geolocation 
        information' means information sufficient to identify a street 
        name and name of a city or town.
            ``(17) Teen.--The term `teen' means an individual over the 
        age of 12 and under the age of 17.
            ``(18) Individual-specific advertising to children or 
        teens.--
                    ``(A) In general.--The term `individual-specific 
                advertising to children or teens' means advertising or 
                any other effort to market a product or service that is 
                directed to a specific child or teen or a connected 
                device that is linked or reasonably linkable to a child 
                or teen based on--
                            ``(i) the personal information from--
                                    ``(I) the child or teen; or
                                    ``(II) a group of children or teens 
                                who are similar in sex, age, household 
                                income level, race, or ethnicity to the 
                                specific child or teen to whom the 
                                product or service is marketed;
                            ``(ii) profiling of a child or teen or 
                        group of children or teens; or
                            ``(iii) a unique identifier of the 
                        connected device.
                    ``(B) Exclusions.--The term `individual-specific 
                advertising to children or teens' shall not include--
                            ``(i) advertising or marketing to an 
                        individual or the device of an individual in 
                        response to the individual's specific request 
                        for information or feedback, such as a child's 
                        or teen's current search query;
                            ``(ii) contextual advertising, such as when 
                        an advertisement is displayed based on the 
                        content of the website, online service, online 
                        application, mobile application, or connected 
                        device in which the advertisement appears and 
                        does not vary based on personal information 
                        related to the viewer; or
                            ``(iii) processing personal information 
                        solely for measuring or reporting advertising 
                        or content performance, reach, or frequency, 
                        including independent measurement.
                    ``(C) Rule of construction.--Nothing in 
                subparagraph (A) shall be construed to prohibit an 
                operator with actual knowledge or knowledge fairly 
                implied on the basis of objective circumstances that a 
                user is under the age of 17 from delivering advertising 
                or marketing that is age-appropriate and intended for a 
                child or teen audience, so long as the operator does 
                not use any personal information other than whether the 
                user is under the age of 17.''.
    (b) Online Collection, Use, Disclosure, and Deletion of Personal 
Information of Children and Teens.--Section 1303 of the Children's 
Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (15 U.S.C. 6502) is amended--
            (1) by striking the heading and inserting the following: 
        ``online collection, use, disclosure, and deletion of personal 
        information of children and teens.'';
            (2) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as follows:
            ``(1) In general.--It is unlawful for an operator of a 
        website, online service, online application, or mobile 
        application directed to children or for any operator of a 
        website, online service, online application, or mobile 
        application with actual knowledge or knowledge fairly implied 
        on the basis of objective circumstances that a user is a child 
        or teen--
                    ``(A) to collect personal information from a child 
                or teen in a manner that violates the regulations 
                prescribed under subsection (b);
                    ``(B) except as provided in subparagraphs (B) and 
                (C) of section 1302(18), to collect, use, disclose to 
                third parties, or maintain personal information of a 
                child or teen for purposes of individual-specific 
                advertising to children or teens (or to allow another 
                person to collect, use, disclose, or maintain such 
                information for such purpose);
                    ``(C) to collect the personal information of a 
                child or teen except when the collection of the 
                personal information is--
                            ``(i) consistent with the context of a 
                        particular transaction or service or the 
                        relationship of the child or teen with the 
                        operator, including collection necessary to 
                        fulfill a transaction or provide a product or 
                        service requested by the child or teen; or
                            ``(ii) required or specifically authorized 
                        by Federal or State law; or
                    ``(D) to store or transfer the personal information 
                of a child or teen outside of the United States unless 
                the operator provides direct notice to the parent of 
                the child, in the case of a child, or to the teen, in 
                the case of a teen, that the child's or teen's personal 
                information is being stored or transferred outside of 
                the United States; or
                    ``(E) to retain the personal information of a child 
                or teen for longer than is reasonably necessary to 
                fulfill a transaction or provide a service requested by 
                the child or teen except as required or specifically 
                authorized by Federal or State law.''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in the header, by striking ``parent'' 
                        and inserting ```parent or teen'''
                            (ii) by striking ``Notwithstanding 
                        paragraph (1)'' and inserting ``Notwithstanding 
                        paragraph (1)(A)'';
                            (iii) by striking ``of such a website or 
                        online service''; and
                            (iv) by striking ``subsection 
                        (b)(1)(B)(iii) to the parent of a child'' and 
                        inserting ``subsection (b)(1)(B)(iv) to the 
                        parent of a child or under subsection 
                        (b)(1)(C)(iv) to a teen'';
            (3) in subsection (b)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1)--
                            (i) in subparagraph (A)--
                                    (I) by striking ``operator of any 
                                website'' and all that follows through 
                                ``from a child'' and inserting 
                                ``operator of a website, online 
                                service, online application, or mobile 
                                application directed to children or 
                                that has actual knowledge or knowledge 
                                fairly implied on the basis of 
                                objective circumstances that a user is 
                                a child or teen'';
                                    (II) in clause (i)--
                                            (aa) by striking ``notice 
                                        on the website'' and inserting 
                                        ``clear and conspicuous notice 
                                        on the website'';
                                            (bb) by inserting ``or 
                                        teens'' after ``children'';
                                            (cc) by striking ``, and 
                                        the operator's'' and inserting 
                                        ``, the operator's''; and
                                            (dd) by striking ``; and'' 
                                        and inserting ``, the rights 
                                        and opportunities available to 
                                        the parent of the child or teen 
                                        under subparagraphs (B) and 
                                        (C), and the procedures or 
                                        mechanisms the operator uses to 
                                        ensure that personal 
                                        information is not collected 
                                        from children or teens except 
                                        in accordance with the 
                                        regulations promulgated under 
                                        this paragraph;'';
                                    (III) in clause (ii)--
                                            (aa) by striking 
                                        ``parental'';
                                            (bb) by inserting ``or 
                                        teens'' after ``children'';
                                            (cc) by striking the 
                                        semicolon at the end and 
                                        inserting ``; and''; and
                                    (IV) by inserting after clause (ii) 
                                the following new clause:
                            ``(iii) to obtain verifiable consent from a 
                        parent of a child or from a teen before using 
                        or disclosing personal information of the child 
                        or teen for any purpose that is a material 
                        change from the original purposes and 
                        disclosure practices specified to the parent of 
                        the child or the teen under clause (i);'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (B)--
                                    (I) in the matter preceding clause 
                                (i), by striking ``website or online 
                                service'' and inserting ``operator'';
                                    (II) in clause (i), by inserting 
                                ``and the method by which the operator 
                                obtained the personal information, and 
                                the purposes for which the operator 
                                collects, uses, discloses, and retains 
                                the personal information'' before the 
                                semicolon;
                                    (III) in clause (ii)--
                                            (aa) by inserting ``to 
                                        delete personal information 
                                        collected from the child or 
                                        content or information 
                                        submitted by the child to a 
                                        website, online service, online 
                                        application, or mobile 
                                        application and'' after ``the 
                                        opportunity at any time''; and
                                            (bb) by striking ``; and'' 
                                        and inserting a semicolon;
                                    (IV) by redesignating clause (iii) 
                                as clause (iv) and inserting after 
                                clause (ii) the following new clause:
                            ``(iii) the opportunity to challenge the 
                        accuracy of the personal information and, if 
                        the parent of the child establishes the 
                        inaccuracy of the personal information, to have 
                        the inaccurate personal information 
                        corrected;''; and
                                    (V) in clause (iv), as so 
                                redesignated, by inserting ``, if such 
                                information is available to the 
                                operator at the time the parent makes 
                                the request'' before the semicolon;
                            (iii) by redesignating subparagraphs (C) 
                        and (D) as subparagraphs (D) and (E), 
                        respectively;
                            (iv) by inserting after subparagraph (B) 
                        the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(C) require the operator to provide, upon the 
                request of a teen under this subparagraph who has 
                provided personal information to the operator, upon 
                proper identification of that teen--
                            ``(i) a description of the specific types 
                        of personal information collected from the teen 
                        by the operator, the method by which the 
                        operator obtained the personal information, and 
                        the purposes for which the operator collects, 
                        uses, discloses, and retains the personal 
                        information;
                            ``(ii) the opportunity at any time to 
                        delete personal information collected from the 
                        teen or content or information submitted by the 
                        teen to a website, online service, online 
                        application, or mobile application and to 
                        refuse to permit the operator's further use or 
                        maintenance in retrievable form, or online 
                        collection, of personal information from the 
                        teen;
                            ``(iii) the opportunity to challenge the 
                        accuracy of the personal information and, if 
                        the teen establishes the inaccuracy of the 
                        personal information, to have the inaccurate 
                        personal information corrected; and
                            ``(iv) a means that is reasonable under the 
                        circumstances for the teen to obtain any 
                        personal information collected from the teen, 
                        if such information is available to the 
                        operator at the time the teen makes the 
                        request;'';
                            (v) in subparagraph (D), as so 
                        redesignated--
                                    (I) by striking ``a child's'' and 
                                inserting ``a child's or teen's''; and
                                    (II) by inserting ``or teen'' after 
                                ``the child''; and
                            (vi) by amending subparagraph (E), as so 
                        redesignated, to read as follows:
                    ``(E) require the operator to establish, implement, 
                and maintain reasonable security practices to protect 
                the confidentiality, integrity, and accessibility of 
                personal information of children or teens collected by 
                the operator, and to protect such personal information 
                against unauthorized access.'';
                    (B) in paragraph (2)--
                            (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph 
                        (A), by striking ``verifiable parental 
                        consent'' and inserting ``verifiable consent'';
                            (ii) in subparagraph (A)--
                                    (I) by inserting ``or teen'' after 
                                ``collected from a child'';
                                    (II) by inserting ``or teen'' after 
                                ``request from the child''; and
                                    (III) by inserting ``or teen or to 
                                contact another child or teen'' after 
                                ``to recontact the child'';
                            (iii) in subparagraph (B)--
                                    (I) by striking ``parent or child'' 
                                and inserting ``parent or teen''; and
                                    (II) by striking ``parental 
                                consent'' each place the term appears 
                                and inserting ``verifiable consent'';
                            (iv) in subparagraph (C)--
                                    (I) in the matter preceding clause 
                                (i), by inserting ``or teen'' after 
                                ``child'' each place the term appears;
                                    (II) in clause (i)--
                                            (aa) by inserting ``or 
                                        teen'' after ``child'' each 
                                        place the term appears; and
                                            (bb) by inserting ``or 
                                        teen, as applicable,'' after 
                                        ``parent'' each place the term 
                                        appears; and
                                    (III) in clause (ii)--
                                            (aa) by striking ``without 
                                        notice to the parent'' and 
                                        inserting ``without notice to 
                                        the parent or teen, as 
                                        applicable,''; and
                                            (bb) by inserting ``or 
                                        teen'' after ``child'' each 
                                        place the term appears; and
                            (v) in subparagraph (D)--
                                    (I) in the matter preceding clause 
                                (i), by inserting ``or teen'' after 
                                ``child'' each place the term appears;
                                    (II) in clause (ii), by inserting 
                                ``or teen'' after ``child''; and
                                    (III) in the flush text following 
                                clause (iii)--
                                            (aa) by inserting ``or 
                                        teen, as applicable,'' after 
                                        ``parent'' each place the term 
                                        appears; and
                                            (bb) by inserting ``or 
                                        teen'' after ``child'';
                    (C) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4) 
                and inserting after paragraph (2) the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(3) Application to operators acting under agreements with 
        educational agencies or institutions.--The regulations may 
        provide that verifiable consent under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) is 
        not required for an operator that is acting under a written 
        agreement with an educational agency or institution (as defined 
        in section 444 of the General Education Provisions Act 
        (commonly known as the `Family Educational Rights and Privacy 
        Act of 1974')) (20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(3)) that, at a minimum, 
        requires the--
                    ``(A) operator to--
                            ``(i) limit its collection, use, and 
                        disclosure of the personal information from a 
                        child or teen to solely educational purposes 
                        and for no other commercial purposes;
                            ``(ii) provide the educational agency or 
                        institution with a notice of the specific types 
                        of personal information the operator will 
                        collect from the child or teen, the method by 
                        which the operator will obtain the personal 
                        information, and the purposes for which the 
                        operator will collect, use, disclose, and 
                        retain the personal information;
                            ``(iii) provide the educational agency or 
                        institution with a link to the operator's 
                        online notice of information practices as 
                        required under subsection (b)(1)(A)(i); and
                            ``(iv) provide the educational agency or 
                        institution, upon request, with a means to 
                        review the personal information collected from 
                        a child or teen, to prevent further use or 
                        maintenance or future collection of personal 
                        information from a child or teen, and to delete 
                        personal information collected from a child or 
                        teen or content or information submitted by a 
                        child or teen to the operator's website, online 
                        service, online application, or mobile 
                        application;
                    ``(B) representative of the educational agency or 
                institution to acknowledge and agree that they have 
                authority to authorize the collection, use, and 
                disclosure of personal information from children or 
                teens on behalf of the educational agency or 
                institution, along with such authorization, their name, 
                and title at the educational agency or institution; and
                    ``(C) educational agency or institution to--
                            ``(i) provide on its website a notice that 
                        identifies the operator with which it has 
                        entered into a written agreement under this 
                        subsection and provides a link to the 
                        operator's online notice of information 
                        practices as required under paragraph 
                        (1)(A)(i);
                            ``(ii) provide the operator's notice 
                        regarding its information practices, as 
                        required under subparagraph (A)(ii), upon 
                        request, to a parent, in the case of a child, 
                        or a parent or teen, in the case of a teen; and
                            ``(iii) upon the request of a parent, in 
                        the case of a child, or a parent or teen, in 
                        the case of a teen, request the operator 
                        provide a means to review the personal 
                        information from the child or teen and provide 
                        the parent, in the case of a child, or parent 
                        or teen, in the case of the teen, a means to 
                        review the personal information.'';
                    (D) by amending paragraph (4), as so redesignated, 
                to read as follows:
            ``(4) Termination of service.--The regulations shall permit 
        the operator of a website, online service, online application, 
        or mobile application to terminate service provided to a child 
        whose parent has refused, or a teen who has refused, under the 
        regulations prescribed under paragraphs (1)(B)(ii) and 
        (1)(C)(ii), to permit the operator's further use or maintenance 
        in retrievable form, or future online collection of, personal 
        information from that child or teen.''; and
                    (E) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraphs:
            ``(5) Continuation of service.--The regulations shall 
        prohibit an operator from discontinuing service provided to a 
        child or teen on the basis of a request by the parent of the 
        child or by the teen, under the regulations prescribed under 
        subparagraph (B) or (C) of paragraph (1), respectively, to 
        delete personal information collected from the child or teen, 
        to the extent that the operator is capable of providing such 
        service without such information.
            ``(6) Rule of construction.--A request made pursuant to 
        subparagraph (B) or (C) of paragraph (1) to delete or correct 
        personal information of a child or teen shall not be 
        construed--
                    ``(A) to limit the authority of a law enforcement 
                agency to obtain any content or information from an 
                operator pursuant to a lawfully executed warrant or an 
                order of a court of competent jurisdiction;
                    ``(B) to require an operator or third party delete 
                or correct information that--
                            ``(i) any other provision of Federal or 
                        State law requires the operator or third party 
                        to maintain; or
                            ``(ii) was submitted to the website, online 
                        service, online application, or mobile 
                        application of the operator by any person other 
                        than the user who is attempting to erase or 
                        otherwise eliminate the content or information, 
                        including content or information submitted by 
                        the user that was republished or resubmitted by 
                        another person; or
                    ``(C) to prohibit an operator from--
                            ``(i) retaining a record of the deletion 
                        request and the minimum information necessary 
                        for the purposes of ensuring compliance with a 
                        request made pursuant to subparagraph (B) or 
                        (C);
                            ``(ii) preventing, detecting, protecting 
                        against, or responding to security incidents, 
                        identity theft, or fraud, or reporting those 
                        responsible for such actions;
                            ``(iii) protecting the integrity or 
                        security of a website, online service, online 
                        application or mobile application; or
                            ``(iv) ensuring that the child's or teen's 
                        information remains deleted.
            ``(7) Common verifiable consent mechanism.--
                    ``(A) In general.--
                            ``(i) Feasibility of mechanism.--The 
                        Commission shall assess the feasibility, with 
                        notice and public comment, of allowing 
                        operators the option to use a common verifiable 
                        consent mechanism that fully meets the 
                        requirements of this title.
                            ``(ii) Requirements.--The feasibility 
                        assessment described in clause (i) shall 
                        consider whether a single operator could use a 
                        common verifiable consent mechanism to obtain 
                        verifiable consent, as required under this 
                        title, from a parent of a child or from a teen 
                        on behalf of multiple, listed operators that 
                        provide a joint or related service.
                    ``(B) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
                of enactment of this paragraph, the Commission shall 
                submit a report to the Committee on Commerce, Science, 
                and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on 
                Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives 
                with the findings of the assessment required by 
                subparagraph (A).
                    ``(C) Regulations.--If the Commission finds that 
                the use of a common verifiable consent mechanism is 
                feasible and would meet the requirements of this title, 
                the Commission shall issue regulations to permit the 
                use of a common verifiable consent mechanism in 
                accordance with the findings outlined in such 
                report.'';
            (4) in subsection (c), by striking ``a regulation 
        prescribed under subsection (a)'' and inserting ``subparagraph 
        (B), (C), (D), or (E) of subsection (a)(1), or of a regulation 
        prescribed under subsection (b),''; and
            (5) by striking subsection (d) and inserting the following:
    ``(d) Relationship to State Law.--The provisions of this title 
shall preempt any State law, rule, or regulation only to the extent 
that such State law, rule, or regulation conflicts with a provision of 
this title. Nothing in this title shall be construed to prohibit any 
State from enacting a law, rule, or regulation that provides greater 
protection to children or teens than the provisions of this title.''.
    (c) Safe Harbors.--Section 1304 of the Children's Online Privacy 
Protection Act of 1998 (15 U.S.C. 6503) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting ``and teens'' after 
        ``children''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(d) Publication.--
            ``(1) In general.--Subject to the restrictions described in 
        paragraph (2), the Commission shall publish on the internet 
        website of the Commission any report or documentation required 
        by regulation to be submitted to the Commission to carry out 
        this section.
            ``(2) Restrictions on publication.--The restrictions 
        described in section 6(f) and section 21 of the Federal Trade 
        Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 46(f), 57b-2) applicable to the 
        disclosure of information obtained by the Commission shall 
        apply in same manner to the disclosure under this subsection of 
        information obtained by the Commission from a report or 
        documentation described in paragraph (1).''.
    (d) Actions by States.--Section 1305 of the Children's Online 
Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (15 U.S.C. 6504) is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)(1)--
                    (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by 
                inserting ``section 1303(a)(1) or'' before ``any 
                regulation''; and
                    (B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting ``section 
                1303(a)(1) or'' before ``the regulation''; and
            (2) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) by inserting ``section 1303(a)(1) or'' before 
                ``any regulation''; and
                    (B) by inserting ``section 1303(a)(1) or'' before 
                ``that regulation''.
    (e) Administration and Applicability of Act.--Section 1306 of the 
Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (15 U.S.C. 6505) is 
amended--
            (1) in subsection (d)--
                    (A) by inserting ``section 1303(a)(1) or'' before 
                ``a rule''; and
                    (B) by striking ``such rule'' and inserting 
                ``section 1303(a)(1) or a rule of the Commission under 
                section 1303''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following new subsections:
    ``(f) Determination of Whether an Operator Has Knowledge Fairly 
Implied on the Basis of Objective Circumstances.--
            ``(1) Rule of construction.--For purposes of enforcing this 
        title or a regulation promulgated under this title, in making a 
        determination as to whether an operator has knowledge fairly 
        implied on the basis of objective circumstances that a specific 
        user is a child or teen, the Commission or State attorneys 
        general shall rely on competent and reliable evidence, taking 
        into account the totality of the circumstances, including 
        whether a reasonable and prudent person under the circumstances 
        would have known that the user is a child or teen. Nothing in 
        this title, including a determination described in the 
        preceding sentence, shall be construed to require an operator 
        to--
                    ``(A) affirmatively collect any personal 
                information with respect to the age of a child or teen 
                that an operator is not already collecting in the 
                normal course of business; or
                    ``(B) implement an age gating or age verification 
                functionality.
            ``(2) Commission guidance.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Within 180 days of enactment, 
                the Commission shall issue guidance to provide 
                information, including best practices and examples for 
                operators to understand the Commission's determination 
                of whether an operator has knowledge fairly implied on 
                the basis of objective circumstances that a user is a 
                child or teen.
                    ``(B) Limitation.--No guidance issued by the 
                Commission with respect to this title shall confer any 
                rights on any person, State, or locality, nor shall 
                operate to bind the Commission or any person to the 
                approach recommended in such guidance. In any 
                enforcement action brought pursuant to this title, the 
                Commission or State attorney general, as applicable, 
                shall allege a specific violation of a provision of 
                this title. The Commission or State attorney general, 
                as applicable, may not base an enforcement action on, 
                or execute a consent order based on, practices that are 
                alleged to be inconsistent with any such guidance, 
                unless the practices allegedly violate this title.
    ``(g) Additional Requirement.--Any regulations issued under this 
title shall include a description and analysis of the impact of 
proposed and final Rules on small entities per the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act of 1980 (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.).''.

SEC. 3. STUDY AND REPORTS OF MOBILE AND ONLINE APPLICATION OVERSIGHT 
              AND ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) Oversight Report.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Federal Trade Commission shall submit to the 
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and 
the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a 
report on the processes of platforms that offer mobile and online 
applications for ensuring that, of those applications that are 
websites, online services, online applications, or mobile applications 
directed to children, the applications operate in accordance with--
            (1) this Act, the amendments made by this Act, and rules 
        promulgated under this Act; and
            (2) rules promulgated by the Commission under section 18 of 
        the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 57a) relating to 
        unfair or deceptive acts or practices in marketing.
    (b) Enforcement Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
enactment of this Act, and each year thereafter, the Federal Trade 
Commission shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
of the House of Representatives a report that addresses, at a minimum--
            (1) the number of actions brought by the Commission during 
        the reporting year to enforce the Children's Online Privacy 
        Protection Act of 1998 (15 U.S.C. 6501) (referred to in this 
        subsection as the ``Act'') and the outcome of each such action;
            (2) the total number of investigations or inquiries into 
        potential violations of the Act; during the reporting year;
            (3) the total number of open investigations or inquiries 
        into potential violations of the Act as of the time the report 
        is submitted;
            (4) the number and nature of complaints received by the 
        Commission relating to an allegation of a violation of the Act 
        during the reporting year; and
            (5) policy or legislative recommendations to strengthen 
        online protections for children and teens.

SEC. 4. SEVERABILITY.

    If any provision of this Act, or an amendment made by this Act, is 
determined to be unenforceable or invalid, the remaining provisions of 
this Act and the amendments made by this Act shall not be affected.
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