Durbin, Grassley Pass Bipartisan Online Child Safety Package Through Senate Judiciary Committee

Durbin, Grassley Pass Bipartisan Online Child Safety Package Through Senate Judiciary Committee

The James T. Woods Act, comprised of three Grassley-Durbin bills, revamp key sentencing laws regarding crimes committed against children online

WASHINGTON -Today, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee advanced a bipartisan legislative package led by U.S. Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin (D-IL), Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-IA) to address disturbing developments in online child exploitation.

Passed by voice vote, the James T. Woods Act is a widely supported legislative package composed of three bills: the Sentencing Accountability for Exploitation (SAFE) Act, the Ending Coercion of Children and Harm Online (ECCHO) Act, and the Stop Sextortion Act. The package would address gaps in federal law to protect kids online by prohibiting sextortion, combating violent online criminal networks, like 764, who coerce children into harming themselves or others, and directing the Sentencing Commission to update its child sexual abuse material (CSAM) sentencing guideline.

The package is named in honor of James Woods, a high school student who tragically lost his life after experiencing sextortion.

"In the digital age, predators can target our kids from anywhere. As online predators' tactics evolve, so must our tools to combat their depravity. This package of bills revamps key sentencing laws, targets online criminal networks, and cracks down on offenders using sexual abuse material to take advantage of children. I'm proud to partner with Senator Grassley on this bipartisan issue, and I won't stop until these bills-and other key measures to protect children online-are signed into law," Durbin said.

"Iowans at my county meetings often ask me, 'Why can't Republicans and Democrats get along?' The news media only likes to report on partisan conflicts, but I remind Iowans real bipartisanship happens, and that's how things get done in the United States Senate. Today is a great example of that bipartisan work in action. The James T. Woods Act, named in honor of a young man who tragically lost his life as a result of online harassment, would protect American children from the darkest corners of the internet. American families have suffered unthinkable pain at the hands of evil online criminals. I'm proud to work alongside Senator Durbin to bring these individuals to justice," said Grassley.

Durbin has used his role on the Senate Judiciary Committee to prioritize child safety online through hearings, legislation, and oversight efforts.

On January 31, 2024, while Durbin was serving as Chair, the Committee held a hearing featuring testimony from the CEOs of social media companies Discord, Meta, Snap, TikTok, and X (formerly known as Twitter). This hearing highlighted the ongoing risk to children and the immediate need for Congress to act on the bipartisan bills reported by the Committee.

Durbin and U.S. Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO) joined forces to reintroduce the bipartisan STOP CSAM Act, which would combat online child sexual abuse material. The bill passed the Judiciary Committee unanimously and awaits action on the Senate floor.

In addition, Durbin's bipartisan Disrupt Explicit Forged Images and Non-Consensual Edits Act of 2024 (DEFIANCE Act) passed the Senate in July 2024 and again in January 2026. The legislation would hold accountable those responsible for the proliferation of nonconsensual, sexually-explicit "deepfake" images and videos. The volume of "deepfake" content available online is increasing exponentially as the technology used to create it has become more accessible to the public. The overwhelming majority of this material is sexually explicit and produced without the consent of the person depicted.

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