Please vote against S. 3062, the GUARD Act. Narrowing the bill's scope to "AI companions" is a step forward, but the core problems remain — and the revised version actually makes some of them worse.
The mandatory age verification requirement forces companies to collect sensitive financial records or government ID data from users just to access a chatbot. Millions of Americans lack those credentials entirely, meaning this bill doesn't just restrict minors — it locks out adults too. Meanwhile, the penalty increase to $250,000 per violation gives small developers every incentive to over-restrict or abandon these tools altogether rather than risk liability under vague legal standards. Parents who want their teenagers to use AI companions for legitimate purposes — practicing social skills, staying connected with a deployed parent — would still face invasive identity checks tied to personal financial data.
Congress should pursue targeted enforcement against genuinely harmful actors and pass comprehensive privacy legislation instead of building a surveillance infrastructure around an unclear definition. The GUARD Act trades real privacy and access harms for the appearance of protecting kids. Vote no.
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