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Read. Follow. Verify.The CHATBOT Act
Last action · August 5, 2026: Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.Sponsors: Ted Cruz and 3 others
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What This Bill Would Do
The CHATBOT Act proposes new federal rules for AI companies to protect children and teens. It would require parental consent for teens to use AI chatbots and mandate 'family accounts' for children under 13, while requiring companies to delete data from accounts that do not meet these new standards.
If passed, this bill would force AI companies to terminate existing accounts for users under 18 unless they obtain or establish new family-linked accounts, impacting how families access and manage AI tools.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
AI Chatbot Providers
Companies must implement new account verification systems, parental consent workflows, and data deletion protocols.
Parents and Legal Guardians
Parents gain the legal right to provide consent for teen access and must manage family accounts for children under 13.
Children and Teens
Users under 18 face potential account termination and new requirements for parental involvement to access AI services.
Key Facts
- Requires 'covered entities' (AI chatbot providers) to mandate family accounts for users under 13.
- Requires verifiable parental consent before teens (ages 13-17) can create or maintain an AI chatbot account.
- Mandates the termination of existing accounts for children without family accounts and teens without parental consent upon the bill's effective date.
- Requires companies to immediately delete all personal data collected from terminated accounts.
Show all 9 facts
- Grants users or parents a 90-day window to request a portable, readable copy of their personal data after an account is terminated.
- Defines 'artificial intelligence chatbot' to exclude scripted customer service, business operational tools, or educational instruction software.
- Requires a 'transparency label' to be displayed to users, disclosing that the chatbot is AI and not a human.
- Prohibits targeted advertising to children and teens based on personal data collected through the chatbot.
- Allows companies to retain minimal information necessary to prove compliance with the law.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does this apply to all AI software?
What happens to my child's existing AI account?
Can I get my data back if an account is closed?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
3 actions- Aug 5, 2026SenateCommittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- Apr 28, 2026SenateCommitteeRead twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Apr 28, 2026SenateIntroducedIntroduced in Senate
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Expansion of COPPA-style regulation
The bill extends the regulatory framework established by the 1998 Children's Online Privacy Protection Act specifically to the emerging field of generative AI chatbots.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.congress.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance85How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy65Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment20Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz50Current news / social attention level
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