Madison – Today, Representative Lindee Brill (R-Sheboygan Falls), Chair of the Speaker’s Task Force on Protecting Kids, sent a joint letter on behalf of the task force, signed on to by all the members, asking Wisconsin’s Federal Delegation to work to raise the age under which the protections of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act apply from 13 to 16. The task force heard extensive testimony emphasizing that adolescents remain highly susceptible to online data collection, targeted advertising, and other forms of exploitation well into their mid-teens, and that online engagement can have significant mental health impacts, including increased anxiety and depression, which are closely connected to data-driven content targeting teens. Representative Brill offered the following remarks:
“By raising the age under which COPPA protections apply from 13 to 16, the federal government would be taking a meaningful step towards keeping our kids safe online, protecting millions of adolescents from the privacy, mental health, and, most especially, exploitation risks of unrestricted internet access. I am profoundly grateful for the resounding bipartisan support both in and beyond our task force for protecting kids both in Wisconsin and nationwide.”
All the members of the Speaker’s Task Force on Protecting Kids signed on to the bipartisan letter. The members are Representative Alex Joers, Vice-Chair of the task force (D-Waunakee), Representative Jill Billings (D-La Crosse), Representative Barbara Dittrich (R-Oconomowoc), Representative Benjamin Franklin (R-De Pere), Representative Joy Goeben (R-Hobart), Representative Chanz Green (R-Grand View), and Representative Renuka Mayadev (D-Madison).
The full text of the letter can be read here, and details about the work of the task force can be found in the linked report and on Representative Brill’s website.
The Representative’s office is located in Room 409 North at the Wisconsin State Capitol. She may be reached at (608) 237-9127 or by email at Rep.Brill@legis.wisconsin.gov.
Representative Lindee Brill (R-Sheboygan Falls) serves the 27th Assembly District which includes portions of Sheboygan, Fond du Lac, Calumet, and Manitowoc counties.
