H.R. 6266 — Algorithm Accountability Act

This section amends Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230)—which generally immunizes providers and users of interactive computer services from liability for third-party content—by redesignating subsection (f) as subsection (g) and inserting new subsection (f). New subsection (f) establishes a duty of care requiring providers of social media platforms (i.e., for-profit interactive computer services with at least 1,000,000 registered users that enable user-generated content sharing and interaction, excluding email, direct messaging, private enterprise platforms, video conferencing, and similar services) to exercise reasonable care in designing, training, testing, deploying, operating, and maintaining recommendation-based algorithms (i.e., automated systems curating content based on user data). This duty applies to prevent reasonably foreseeable bodily injury or death to a platform user or inflicted by a user on another person that is attributable to the algorithm, excluding chronological sorting or initial user-initiated search results. For violations, the section denies Section 230(c)(1) liability protection and authorizes a private right of action in federal district court by injured persons (or their legal representatives, including for minors, disabled persons, or decedents) for compensatory and punitive damages. It invalidates predispute arbitration agreements and joint-action waivers for such claims (with courts, not arbitrators, determining applicability); preserves more protective state or federal laws; includes severability; and protects First Amendment rights.