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Home > Legislation > 117th Congress > S.1384

All Information (Except Text) for S.1384 - 21st Century FREE Speech Act 117th Congress (2021-2022)

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Sponsor: Sen. Hagerty, Bill [R-TN] (Introduced 04/27/2021)
Committees: Senate - Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Latest Action: Senate - 04/27/2021 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.  (All Actions)
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This bill has the status Introduced

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Titles Actions Overview All Actions Cosponsors Committees Related Bills Subjects Latest Summary All Summaries

Titles (3)

Short Titles

Short Titles - Senate

Short Title(s) as Introduced

21st Century FREE Speech Act
21st Century Foundation for the Right to Express and Engage in Speech Act

Official Titles

Official Titles - Senate

Official Title as Introduced

A bill to repeal section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 and ensure reasonable, non-discriminatory access to online communications platforms.

Actions Overview (1)

Date Actions Overview
04/27/2021 Introduced in Senate

All Actions (1)

Date All Actions
04/27/2021 Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Action By: Senate

Cosponsors (0)

Committees (1)

Committees, subcommittees and links to reports associated with this bill are listed here, as well as the nature and date of committee activity and Congressional report number.

Committee / Subcommittee Date Activity Related Documents
Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation 04/27/2021 Referred to

Related Bills (1)

Bill relationships are identified by the House, the Senate, or CRS, and refer only to same-congress measures. Read more About Related Bills.

Subjects (10)

Latest Summary (1)

There is one summary for S.1384. View summaries

Shown Here:
Introduced in Senate (04/27/2021)

21st Century Foundation for the Right to Express and Engage in Speech Act or the 21st Century FREE Speech Act

This bill makes various changes to liability protections and requirements for providers and users of an interactive computer service (e.g., a social media company).

The bill replaces existing liability protections (sometimes referred to as Section 230 protection) related to content provided by third parties with more limited protections.

The bill provides some liability protection for third-party content, but the protection shall not apply to a provider or user who carries out certain affirmative acts, such as barring users from the service or restricting access to or availability of material. However, the protection shall apply if the action is taken in good faith to restrict access to or availability of obscene, unlawful, or other similarly objectionable material.

Additionally, the bill places specific requirements on common carrier technology companies, defined in the bill as providers that offer services to the public and have over 100 million active monthly users. These companies must

  • furnish their services to all persons upon request and in a manner that does not discriminate against or unfairly advantage any particular persons, class of persons, political or religious groups, or localities; and
  • publicly disclose their practices for moderating content, terminating accounts, and related matters.

Aggrieved individuals and state entities may sue to enforce these requirements, and the Federal Communications Commission must develop best practices for complying with the requirements.

The bill's provisions do not apply to designated areas of law, including criminal law and state law.