Senate Judiciary advances child online safety measures

Senators came together across the aisle Thursday to move legislation meant to address gaps in the law around abuse and exploitation of children online.

The Senate Judiciary Committee by voice vote approved a package related to crimes against children, including sections on sentencing guidelines for child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, threats to distribute such material and schemes to coerce children into violence. The panel combined three Senate bills as a manager’s amendment, adopted by unanimous consent, to a House-passed bill that would criminalize threats to distribute sexual depictions of a minor. The new package carries the name of James T. Woods, a teenager who died by suicide in 2022 after being the victim of online sexual extortion.

Committee Chair Charles E. Grassley, R-Iowa, lauded the bipartisan nature of the package. Grassley sponsored the original bills, which were co-sponsored by the committee’s ranking member, Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill. Grassley also thanked Woods’ mother, Tamia Woods, who testified at a committee hearing in December.

Read more at Roll Call