TOPEKA, Kan. —Kansas Republican State Senator Mark Steffen introduced a bill this week he hopes will address free speech issues on social media platforms.
In an email obtained by Hutch Post, he notes that the bill will not allow any contract between an interactive computer service that allows for the service to restrict speech other than that of an obscene, lewd, excessively violent or objectionable matter. If a person's political speech is censored, the service could be fined.
A person who felt they were being censored could also sue for statutory damages, a minimum of $75,000 per instance.
Steffen said that social media platforms have used Section 230 of the federal code to hide from liability. This enforcement would come under the Kansas Consumer Protection Act.
The bill also allows for the Kansas Attorney General to address the issue even if an individual does not choose to do so.
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