[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 2889 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 2889
To clarify that a violation of certain terms of service and related
materials is an unfair or deceptive act or practice and subject to
enforcement by the Federal Trade Commission.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
April 10, 2025
Ms. Schakowsky (for herself and Ms. Castor of Florida) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and
Commerce
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To clarify that a violation of certain terms of service and related
materials is an unfair or deceptive act or practice and subject to
enforcement by the Federal Trade Commission.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Online Consumer Protection Act''.
SEC. 2. TERMS OF SERVICE REQUIRED FOR SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS AND ONLINE
MARKETPLACES.
(a) In General.--Each social media platform or online marketplace
shall establish, maintain, and make publicly available at all times and
in a machine-readable format, terms of service in a manner that is
clear, easily understood, and written in plain and concise language.
The terms of service shall meet the following requirements:
(1) The terms of service shall include--
(A) any terms or conditions of use of any service
provided by such person to a consumer;
(B) any policies of such person with regard to such
service or use of such service by a consumer; and
(C) the consumer protection policy consistent with
subsection (b).
(2) The terms of service shall cover issues related to the
behavior of a service or a user of such service, and shall at a
minimum include terms of use related to--
(A) payment methods;
(B) content ownership, including content generated
by a user;
(C) policies related to sharing user content with
third parties;
(D) any disclaimers, limitations, notices of
nonliability, or the consequences of not agreeing to or
complying with the terms of service; and
(E) any other topic the Commission deems
appropriate.
(b) Required Consumer Protection Policy.--
(1) For social media platforms.--For social media
platforms, the consumer protection policy required by
subsection (a) shall include--
(A) a description of the content and behavior
permitted or prohibited on its service both by the
platform and by users;
(B) whether content may be blocked, removed, or
modified, or if service to users may be terminated and
the grounds upon which such actions will be taken;
(C) whether a person can request that content be
blocked, removed, or modified, or that a user's service
be terminated, and how to make such a request;
(D) a description of how a user will be notified of
and can respond to a request that his or her content be
blocked, removed, or modified, or service be
terminated, if such actions are taken;
(E) whether a user who requested content be
blocked, removed, or modified will be notified of
whether action was taken as a result of the request,
the action that was taken, the reason why action was
taken or not taken, and how the user will be notified;
(F) how a person can appeal a decision to block,
remove, or modify content, allow content to remain, or
terminate or not terminate service to a user, if such
actions are taken;
(G) a description of how a user will be notified of
the result of the appeal;
(H) a description of the tools and support
available to users who have experienced cyber
harassment; and
(I) any other topic the Commission deems
appropriate.
(2) For online marketplaces.--For online marketplaces, the
consumer protection policy required by subsection (a) shall
include--
(A) a description of the products, product
descriptions, and marketing material, allowed or
disallowed on the marketplace;
(B) whether a product, product descriptions, and
marketing material may be blocked, removed, or
modified, or if service to a user may be terminated and
the grounds upon which such actions will be taken;
(C) whether users will be notified of products that
have been recalled or are dangerous, and how they will
be notified;
(D) for users--
(i) whether a user can report suspected
fraud, deception, dangerous products, or
violations of the online marketplace's terms of
service, and how to make such report;
(ii) whether a user who submitted a report
will be notified of whether action was taken as
a result of the report, the action that was
taken and the reason why action was taken or
not taken, and how the user will be notified;
(iii) how to appeal the result of a report;
(iv) whether a user who appealed the result
of a report will be notified of whether action
was taken as a result of the appeal, the action
that was taken, the reason why action was taken
or not taken, and how the user will be
notified; and
(v) under what circumstances a user is
entitled to refund, repair, or other remedy and
the remedy to which the user may be entitled,
how the user will be notified of such
entitlement, and how the user may claim such
remedy; and
(E) for sellers--
(i) how sellers are notified of a report by
a user or a violation of the terms of service
or consumer protection policy;
(ii) how to contest a report by a user;
(iii) how a seller who is the subject of a
report will be notified of what action will be
or must be taken as a result of the report and
the justification for such action;
(iv) how to appeal a decision of the online
marketplace to take an action in response to a
user report or for a violation of the terms of
service or consumer protection policy; and
(v) the policy regarding refunds, repairs,
replacements, or other remedies as a result of
a user report or a violation of the terms of
service or consumer protection policy.
(c) Standard Short-Form Statements and Graphic Icons for Consumer
Protection Practices.--
(1) Study and report.--Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall conduct
a study to determine the most effective method of communicating
common consumer protection practices in short-form consumer
disclosure statements or graphic icons that disclose the
consumer protection and content moderation practices of social
media platforms and online marketplaces. The Commission shall
submit a report to the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the
House of Representatives and the Committee on Commerce,
Science, and Transportation of the Senate with the results of
the study. The report shall also be made publicly available on
the website of the Commission.
(2) Regulations.--Except as provided in paragraph (3),
after completion of the study and not later than 1 year after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall
finalize regulations based on the results of such study that
require social media platforms and online marketplaces to
communicate their consumer protection and content moderation
practices, and any other information as the Commission may
determine, in a clear and conspicuous manner.
(3) Exception.--If the Commission determines, by a majority
vote of the Commissioners, that short-form consumer disclosure
statements or graphic icons will not advance consumer
understanding of consumer protection and content moderation
practices of social media platforms and online marketplaces,
the Commission shall include its reasoning for making that
determination in the report to Congress required by paragraph
(1) and shall not finalize the rulemaking until it determines
such rules would advance consumer understanding of consumer
protection and content moderation practices of social media
platforms and online marketplaces.
SEC. 3. CONSUMER PROTECTION PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--Each social media platform and online marketplace
shall establish and implement a consumer protection program that
includes policies, practices, and procedures regarding consumer
protection and content moderation--
(1) to--
(A) ensure compliance with applicable Federal,
State, and local consumer protection laws;
(B) develop, implement, and ensure compliance with
the terms of service required by section 2;
(C) develop and implement policies regarding the
content and behavior permitted on its service both by
the platform and users, and ensure compliance with such
policies, practices and procedures;
(D) mitigate risks that could be harmful to
consumers' safety, well-being, and reasonable
expectations of users of the social media platform or
online marketplace, including cyber harassment;
(E) implement reasonable safeguards within, and
training and education of employees and contractors of,
the social media platform or online marketplace to
promote compliance with all consumer protection laws
and the consumer protection program; and
(F) disclose any other requirement the Commission
deems appropriate; and
(2) taking into consideration--
(A) the size of, and the nature, scope, and
complexity of the activities engaged in by the social
media platform and online marketplace;
(B) the activities engaged in by users on the
social media platform or online marketplace; and
(C) the cost of implementing the program.
(b) Additional Requirements.--As part of the consumer protection
program, a social media platform or online marketplace shall--
(1) establish processes to monitor, manage, and enforce the
social media platform's or online marketplace's consumer
protection program, and demonstrate the covered entity's
compliance with Federal, State, and local consumer protection
laws;
(2) establish processes to assess and mitigate the risks to
individuals resulting from the social media platform's or
online marketplace's amplification of content or products not
in compliance with its terms of service;
(3) establish a process to periodically review and update
the consumer protection program;
(4) appoint a consumer protection officer, who reports
directly to the chief executive officer; and
(5) establish and implement controls to monitor and
mitigate known or reasonably foreseeable risks to consumers
resulting from hosting content or products.
(c) Annual Filings to the FTC.--
(1) Filing requirements.--Each social media platform or
online marketplace that either has annual revenue in excess of
$250,000 in the prior year or that has more than 10,000 monthly
active users on average in the prior year, shall be required to
submit to the Commission, on an annual basis, a filing that
includes--
(A) a detailed and granular description of each of
the requirements in section 2 and this section;
(B) the name and contact information of the
consumer protection officer required under subsection
(b)(4); and
(C) a description of any material changes in the
consumer protection program or the terms of service
since the most recent prior disclosure to the
Commission.
(2) Officer certification.--For each entity that submits an
annual filing under paragraph (1), the entity's principal
executive officer and the consumer protection officer required
under subsection (b)(4), shall be required to certify in each
such annual filing that--
(A) the signing officer has reviewed the filing;
(B) based on such officer's knowledge, the filing
does not contain any untrue statement of a material
fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make
the statements, in light of the circumstances under
which such statements were made, not misleading;
(C) based on such officer's knowledge, the filing
fairly presents in all material respects the consumer
protection practices of the social media platform or
online marketplace; and
(D) the signing consumer protection officer--
(i) is responsible for establishing and
maintaining safeguards and controls to protect
consumers and administer the consumer
protection program; and
(ii) has provided all material conclusions
about the effectiveness of such safeguards and
controls.
(3) Public availability.--The Commission shall make
publicly available on the website of the Commission the filings
submitted under paragraph (1). The Commission may withhold
information included in such a filing if the Commission
determines such information should not be public. If the
Commission withholds any information, the Commission shall make
publicly available on the website the category of information
withheld and the reasons for withholding it.
SEC. 4. ENFORCEMENT.
(a) Enforcement by Federal Trade Commission.--
(1) Unfair or deceptive acts or practices.--Any violation
of this Act shall be treated as a violation of a regulation
under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act
(15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)) regarding unfair or deceptive acts or
practices.
(2) Powers of commission.--The Commission shall enforce
this Act in the same manner, by the same means, and with the
same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all applicable
terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15
U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were incorporated into and made a part of
this Act. Any person who violates this Act shall be subject to
the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immunities
provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act.
(b) Regulations.--The Commission shall promulgate regulations under
section 553 of title 5, United States Code, to carry out the purposes
of this Act.
(c) Private Right of Action.--
(1) Enforcement by individuals.--
(A) In general.--An individual alleging damages as
a result of a violation of this Act may bring a civil
action in any court of competent jurisdiction, State or
Federal.
(B) Relief.--In a civil action brought under
subparagraph (A) in which the plaintiff prevails, the
court may award--
(i) damages as provided in subparagraph
(C);
(ii) reasonable attorney's fees and
litigation costs; and
(iii) any other relief, including equitable
or declaratory relief, that the court
determines appropriate.
(C) Damages.--A prevailing plaintiff is entitled to
actual damages as a result of the violation of this
Act.
(2) Invalidity of pre-dispute arbitration agreements and
pre-dispute joint-action waivers.--
(A) In general.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, no pre-dispute arbitration agreement
or pre-dispute joint-action waiver shall be valid or
enforceable with respect to a dispute arising under
this Act.
(B) Applicability.--Any determination as to whether
or how this paragraph applies to any dispute shall be
made by a court, rather than an arbitrator, without
regard to whether such agreement purports to delegate
such determination to an arbitrator.
(C) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
(i) Pre-dispute arbitration agreement.--The
term ``pre-dispute arbitration agreement''
means any agreement to arbitrate a dispute that
has not arisen at the time of making the
agreement.
(ii) Pre-dispute joint-action waiver.--The
term ``pre-dispute joint-action waiver'' means
an agreement, whether or not part of a pre-
dispute arbitration agreement, that would
prohibit, or waive the right of, one of the
parties to the agreement to participate in a
joint, class, or collective action in a
judicial, arbitral, administration, or other
forum, concerning a dispute that has not yet
arisen at the time of making the agreement.
(iii) Dispute.--The term ``dispute'' means
any claim related to an alleged violation of
this Act and between an individual and a
covered organization.
(d) Enforcement by State Attorneys General.--
(1) In general.--If the chief law enforcement officer of a
State, or an official or agency designated by a State, has
reason to believe that any person has violated or is violating
this Act, the attorney general, official, or agency of the
State, in addition to any authority it may have to bring an
action in State court under its consumer protection law, may
bring a civil action in any appropriate United States district
court or in any other court of competent jurisdiction,
including a State court, to--
(A) enjoin further such violation by such person;
(B) enforce compliance with this Act;
(C) obtain civil penalties; and
(D) obtain damages, restitution, or other
compensation on behalf of residents of the State.
(2) Notice and intervention by the ftc.--The attorney
general of a State shall provide prior written notice of any
action under paragraph (1) to the Commission and provide the
Commission with a copy of the complaint in the action, except
in any case in which such prior notice is not feasible, in
which case the attorney general shall serve such notice
immediately upon instituting such action. The Commission shall
have the right--
(A) to intervene in the action;
(B) upon so intervening, to be heard on all matters
arising therein; and
(C) to file petitions for appeal.
(3) Limitation on state action while federal action is
pending.--If the Commission has instituted a civil action for
violation of this Act, no State attorney general, or official
or agency of a State, may bring an action under this subsection
during the pendency of that action against any defendant named
in the complaint of the Commission for any violation of this
Act alleged in the complaint.
(4) Relationship with state-law claims.--If the attorney
general of a State has authority to bring an action under State
law directed at acts or practices that also violate this Act,
the attorney general may assert the State-law claim and a claim
under this Act in the same civil action.
SEC. 5. RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER LAWS.
(a) Effect of Other Laws.--Section 230 of the Communications Act of
1934 (47 U.S.C. 230) shall not apply to any violation of this Act.
(b) Effect on State Laws.--Nothing in this Act or any regulation
promulgated under this Act shall preempt or otherwise affect any State
or local law.
(c) Severability.--If any provision of this Act, or the application
thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder
of this Act and the application of such provision to other persons not
similarly situated or to other circumstances shall not be affected by
the invalidation.
SEC. 6. FTC ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY.
(a) In General.--Section 230(e) of the Communications Act of 1934
(47 U.S.C. 230(e)) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(6) No effect on ftc enforcement.--Nothing in this
section shall be construed to impair the enforcement by the
Federal Trade Commission of any provision of law enforced by
the Federal Trade Commission.''.
(b) Applicability.--The amendment made by this section shall apply
with respect to any action or proceeding that is commenced on or after
the date of the enactment of this Act.
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.
As used in this Act, the following definitions apply:
(1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal
Trade Commission.
(2) Consumer product.--The term ``consumer product'' has
the meaning given such term in section 3(a) of the Consumer
Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2052(a)).
(3) Cyber harassment.--The term ``cyber harassment'' means
electronic communication that harasses, torments, threatens, or
terrorizes a target.
(4) Online marketplace.--The term ``online marketplace''
means a website or web application, that--
(A) includes features that allow for, facilitate,
or enable third-party sellers to engage in the sale,
purchase, payment, storage, shipping, or delivery of a
consumer product in the United States; and
(B) hosts one or more third-party sellers.
(5) Seller.--The term ``seller'' means a person or entity
that sells, offers to sell, or contracts to sell a consumer
product through an online marketplace's platform.
(6) Social media platform.--The term ``social media
platform'' means a website or mobile web application that--
(A) permits a person to become a registered user,
establish an account, or create a profile for the
purpose of allowing the user to create, share, and view
user-generated content through such an account or
profile;
(B) enables one or more users to generate content
that can be viewed by other users of the platform; and
(C) primarily serves as a medium for users to
interact with content generated by other users of the
medium and for the platform to deliver ads to users.
(7) User.--The term ``user'' means a person or entity that
uses a social media platform or online marketplace for any
purpose, including advertisers and sellers, regardless of
whether that person has an account or is otherwise registered
with the platform.
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