U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff’s bipartisan bill to protect children from online sexual abuse and exploitation was signed into law.
Sens. Ossoff and Chuck Grassley (R-IA)’s bipartisan Preventing Child Sex Abuse Act of 2023 will strengthen Federal protections against the sexual abuse of children, including online exploitation.
The law would also crack down on predators who travel across state or international lines with the intent to sexually exploit children, such as in the case of former USA Olympics doctor Larry Nassar.
Sen. Ossoff’s bill became law as part of this year’s National Defense Authorization Act.
“Parents across Georgia are increasingly worried about online sexual predators who are targeting children. Our bipartisan law will help keep kids safer online and crack down on predators and abusers to the fullest extent of the law,” Sen. Ossoff said.
Sen. Ossoff continues working to protect children from online exploitation.
Last month, Sens. Ossoff and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN)’s bipartisan REPORT Act passed the U.S. Senate. The bill would strengthen the national tipline run by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) to collect reports of online exploitation and would require evidence to be preserved for a longer period, giving law enforcement more time to investigate and prosecute crimes.
Last month, in a U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Sen. Ossoff pressed FBI Director Christopher Wray to address schemes targeting children online amidst a reported 700% increase in their frequency since 2021 in Georgia.
In September, Sens. Ossoff and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) launched an inquiry with Attorney General Merrick Garland about the FBI’s capacity to investigate and respond to crimes involving child sexual abuse and exploitation, highlighting a June 2023 report to Congress in which the DOJ cited an international threat assessment demonstrating that “the growth in online child sexual exploitation is outpacing our ability to respond.”
