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COPPA 2.0 Passes US Senate Unanimously, Heads to House for Third Time

Canopy Policy

The US Senate unanimously passed COPPA 2.0 — the Children and Teens' Online Privacy Protection Act — on March 5, 2026, advancing a modernized version of the 1998 COPPA law that extends children's online data protections to anyone under 17 and restricts targeted advertising directed at minors. The bill has previously cleared the Senate but stalled in the House of Representatives, where industry groups including NetChoice — representing Google, Meta, TikTok, Reddit, and X — have lobbied against it. If passed by the House and signed into law, COPPA 2.0 would require platforms to obtain consent before collecting personal data from users under 17 and would prohibit platforms from using minors' data for targeted advertising.

Key Takeaways

  • COPPA 2.0 passed the US Senate unanimously on March 5, 2026 — third attempt to pass this bipartisan bill; extends data protections to users under 17 (up from 13 under 1998 COPPA)
  • Bill bans platforms from collecting personal data from under-17 users without consent and restricts targeted advertising aimed at minors; NetChoice (Google, Meta, TikTok, X, Reddit) has opposed it
  • Bill now heads to the House, where it has failed to pass in prior sessions; several US states (Utah, California, Washington) have already enacted similar age-verification and data protection laws

Original source: Engadget