Compromise Seen Distant on Senate Anti-Sex Trafficking Bill as Tech, Other Groups Remain Firm

Lawmakers and tech and civil liberties groups appear to have dug in their heels, possibly putting compromise out of reach on a Senate bill that would amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act in an effort to curb online sex trafficking. "We did our due diligence, met with the tech community on a bipartisan basis for months and yet they offered no constructive feedback. We’re happy to continue the dialogue, but the claims we’ve heard from some in the tech community about this narrowly-crafted bill are absurd," said a spokesman for Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio., who introduced the Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA) last week. He said more co-sponsors are expected after the August break. Nineteen Republicans, including Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., and eight Democrats, including Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., are signed onto S-1963.

An Internet Association spokesman countered the claim from Portman's office that the industry didn’t offer constructive feedback. IA offered solutions to help curb online sex trafficking that strengthened the criminal code without amending Section 230, he said. The association has been working with policymakers and the broader tech community, he added, on measures to strengthen the criminal code and give federal prosecutors more leeway in going after bad actors. The proposal will be unveiled in the fall, he said. The tech and civil society communities, careful to say they're not against the goal of curbing sex trafficking, say the Senate bill is overbroad (see 1708010011, 1708020019 and 1708030014) and wouldn't meaningfully curb the problem.

Many consider Section 230, which largely shields website operators that host third-party content from lawsuits, a foundation that helped the internet flourish. Emma Llansó, director-Free Expression Project at the Center for Democracy & Technology, said if SESTA's sponsors make big changes, it will open up potential federal, state, criminal and civil liability for website operators. "It's hard to find compromise there because that is ... in such direct conflict" to the tech community's message, she said. She said tech and civil society organizations fear the legislation is gaining momentum, without it being fully discussed and understood. Computer and Communications Industry Association Vice President-Law and Policy Matthew Schruers also told us he didn't see any compromise on the Senate bill.

Portman's spokesman said SESTA preserves CDA's "Good Samaritan" provision, which protects website operators that proactively block and screen for offensive content. The proposed narrow exception is "simply common-sense," he said. "It’s sad that these folks would oppose a bipartisan, two-page bill to help stop online sex trafficking."

TechFreedom President Berin Szoka said bill supporters want to attach it to a must-pass bill like the FY 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, which the Senate intends to take up after recess. It's "absolutely what they're doing," he said, saying it's "outrageous" because they're trying to bypass the Senate Commerce Committee hearing. The committee has no plans to announce a hearing, a spokesman said.

Santa Clara University law professor Eric Goldman said there's a "mismatch" between the lawmakers' goal and solution in this bill -- whether lawmakers want to prosecute just Backpage.com (see 1701100001) or tackle the larger issue of sex trafficking. Not everyone agrees the solution is the best or even helpful in addressing the goal and that makes compromise difficult, he said. He said the Stop Advertising Victims of Exploitation Act, passed in 2015, should be given a chance to work and if it doesn't, it should be fixed.