Washington – The Computer & Communications Industry Association will testify today before the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Utilities, Technology, and Tourism in opposition to two bills affecting digital services and minors, AB 962/SB 937, legislation regulating app stores and app developers, and AB 963/SB 936, legislation regulating social media accounts for minors.
CCIA supports the goal of improving online safety for young users, and warns that both bills raise significant constitutional, privacy, and compliance concerns. The association will show AB 963/SB 936 includes design mandates and content restrictions that could interfere with established First Amendment protections by regulating how online services display and organize information.
CCIA will also raise concerns that AB 962/SB 937 could require app stores to implement age verification and parental consent requirements that would force companies to collect sensitive personal information from users and parents. These requirements could create new privacy and cybersecurity risks while imposing costly compliance obligations, particularly for smaller companies and digital services.
The following statement can be attributed to Aodhan Downey, Manager of State Policy, West Region at CCIA, who will testify before the Senate Committee on Utilities, Technology, and Tourism:
“Protecting children online is an important goal. Technology companies already provide a wide range of parental controls and safety tools that help families manage young users’ experiences. The bills being considered by the Wisconsin Senate raise serious First Amendment concerns and could require companies to collect additional sensitive data in order to determine users’ ages. To alleviate these concerns policymakers can focus on approaches that empower families and improve digital literacy without undermining privacy or restricting access to lawful information online.”
