Three Bills

This month we’re praying about three bills addressing concerns about AI, big tech, and apps. We’ll take a brief look at each bill then head to the prayer room. 

App Store Accountability Act

With all the news and concern generated over childrens’ online activity, Congress has not passed online safety legislation for 25 years. Looks like it’s overdue. Teens reportedly access 80% of information through apps on their phone. Some congressmen have responded. 

Senator Mike Lee and Representative John James have introduced the App Store Accountability Act in congress. They are putting kids safety ahead of technologies profits. 

We can help them by contacting our representatives and senators to support this legislation. 

Meanwhile at the state level, two states have passed the App Store Accountability Act—Texas and Utah. Some other states have introduced it, while quite a few still need to start the process.

The bill will establish three things: 

• App Store Age Verification
• Accurate and Transparent Age Ratings—apps must not misrepresent or downplay mature content or appropriateness for children. This gives parents the right to sue if ratings are incorrect.
• Parental Consent for Minors—Before minors can download an app or make app purchases, parents must give verifiable consent to protect children.

A big thank you to the Digital Childhood Alliance for supporting this legislation.

AI Child Safety Bills

HB 286, the Utah AI Transparency Act would require AI developers to prepare a public safety plan for catastrophic risks and prepare a child protection plan. According to Axios, The White House is opposed to this bill, apparently siding with business instead of the needs of families. This legislation applies to big developers of frontier AI models. 

Let’s pray safety is prioritized in this case. 

The Guard Act

Introduced by Senators Josh Hawley and Richard Blumenthal, The Guard Act intends to protect children from interactions with chatbots. After hearing of the harms caused by AI chatbots from parents in the Senate Judiciary Committee, a number of senators have supported the Guard Act. These are the main points of the Act:

• Bans AI companies from providing AI companions to minors.
• Bill requires AI chatbots to remind all users they are not human and do not have professional credentials.
• Create new crimes for companies which knowingly make available to minors AI companions that solicit or produce sexual content.

Senator Chris Murphy said, “You can’t overstate the harm these AI companion chatbots pose to our kids. Nearly 70 percent of teenagers are turning to chatbots as a substitute for friendship, making them more isolated and disconnected, but what’s even scarier are the stories of chatbots encouraging young people to hurt themselves or others. Big Tech companies are fighting regulation because they want to maximize their profits by addicting our kids to their technology, no matter the cost.”  

This bill would hold these companies criminally accountable when their product pushes self harm, suicide, and engages youth in sexual conversations. Congress needs to protect our children. I am grateful for all the bills coming forth to help families and children navigate the digital world. Better late than never.

See an earlier springup blog titled For Real? about the problem with chatbots.

Let’s Pray

Father, we bring this legislation before you today. Continue to stir up creativity and well written bills to guard children against the advance of harmful uses of technology. We pray congress would get onboard and in a bipartisan manner pass these and other bills forthcoming in order to safeguard children. 

Thank you for groups like Childhood Digital Alliance, Enough is Enough, and Shared Hope, who support sound legislation to help protect our youth. Continue to prosper their efforts going forward.

We call for the dismantling of forces of darkness that are behind the aggressive advance of AI used for harm. Wake up our leaders to make wise choices to safeguard children. Let them not be blinded by the enemy. Help them to understand children and AI chatbots do not belong together. In the same way we don’t sell minors cigarettes, drugs, and alcohol, we call for protection from digital harms.

Let App stores, AI developers, and companies using AI chatbots be aware and accountable for harm they may cause to minors in particular. They must stay within boundaries or face consequences. Let these common sense bills pass. We ask this in your name, Jesus.

Decree

We declare this nation will have good laws to help protect children. 

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” Matthew 7:24

picture by Heiko on Pixabay