Steube Introduces Bill Limiting Section 230 Immunity for Big Tech Companies
WASHINGTON, D.C.—Today, U.S. Representative Greg Steube (R-Fla.) introduced the Curbing Abuse and Saving Expression In Technology Act, or the CASE-IT Act. This legislation amends Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 in an effort to promote free speech online, while protecting kids from dangerous content. The CASE-IT Act makes Section 230 immunity conditional for market-dominant Big Tech companies — in order to receive the special government protection, these platforms would be required to adhere to a First Amendment standard for their content moderation practices.
“Unelected Big Tech CEOs should not be able to abuse the protections granted to them by Section 230 to block speech and withhold information from the public, just because it doesn’t suit their political beliefs,” Steube said. “Their censorship has gone beyond simply acting as publishers and has reached the point of active and intentional election interference. They will be held accountable.”
Recently, the New York Post obtained evidence that Hunter Biden introduced his father, then-Vice President Joe Biden, to Ukrainian executives in 2015. Facebook and Twitter censored the news about Hunter Biden’s business dealings in Ukraine. Twitter even suspended the New York Post’s Twitter account and removed all mentions of their breaking story about Biden.
This legislation leaves the primary language of Section 230 intact but distinguishes between “Big Tech” and “Small Tech” by employing a market dominance test. This legislation still protects Section 230 immunity for innovators, market disruptors, and users — but leaves no room for Big Tech abuse.
The full text of the legislation can be found here.
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