S. 539 119th Congress Senate

PROTECT Our Children Reauthorization Act of 2025

Official title: A bill to reauthorize the PROTECT Our Children Act of 2008, and for other purposes.

Introduced: February 12, 2025 Introduced by: John Cornyn Republican · Texas See on congress.gov

Crime and Law Enforcement Child safety and welfareCivil actions and liabilityComputers and information technologyCrime prevention

More subjectsShow fewer subjects

Crimes against childrenCriminal investigation, prosecution, interrogationCriminal justice information and recordsDomestic violence and child abuseHuman traffickingIntergovernmental relationsInternet, web applications, social mediaLaw enforcement administration and fundingMissing personsPornographySex offensesSmuggling and trafficking

Everywhere this bill has been 5 steps

Introduced

In committee

Reported out

Passed House

Passed Senate

To President

Became law

May 20, 2025

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 80.

May 20, 2025

Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Grassley with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.

May 15, 2025

Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.

Feb 12, 2025

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

Feb 12, 2025

Introduced in Senate

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What's happening now May 20, 2025

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 80.

Plain-English summary Congressional Research Service

PROTECT Our Children Reauthorization Act of 2025

This bill reauthorizes through FY2028 and updates (1) the National Strategy for Child Exploitation Prevention and Interdiction (National Strategy), and (2) the National Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program.

With respect to the National Strategy, current law requires the Department of Justice (DOJ) to update the strategy every two years and include 19 specific elements in the strategy (e.g., long-range goals, annual measurable objectives, and future trends). This bill requires DOJ to update the National Strategy every four years. The bill also revises and consolidates the 19 required elements into 9 required elements, including an analysis of current trends and challenges as well as the overall magnitude of the threat of child exploitation.

The ICAC Task Force Program is a national network of task forces that support state and local efforts to investigate and prosecute the online sexual exploitation of children. This bill requires ICAC task forces to increase the investigative capacity of law enforcement to identify child victims and report the number of child victims identified in their annual reports. The bill also limits the liability of ICAC task forces for civil claims or criminal charges in federal or state court arising from decisions with respect to leads related to internet crimes against children.

Finally, the bill requires the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children to provide additional information to law enforcement agencies when it refers a report of online sexual exploitation of children for investigation.

Hearings & markups 1

Business meeting to consider S.180, to amend the Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act of 1968 to authorize the us…
Meeting May 15, 2025 · 1:30 PM EDT · Judiciary Committee

Related & companion bills 4

Bill text 2 versions

Introduced in Senate Formatted Text PDF Formatted XML
Reported to Senate Formatted Text PDF Formatted XML

Source documents hosted by congress.gov.

Committees of jurisdiction 1

Judiciary Committee
Senate

Lobbying activity 12

Registered lobbyists who named this bill in their disclosure filings. Source: federal Lobbying Disclosure Act filings.

KLEIN/JOHNSON GROUP
for RAVEN · Colorado · 3rd Quarter 2026 (July 1 - Sep 30)
KLEIN/JOHNSON GROUP
for RAVEN · Colorado · 2nd Quarter 2026 (Apr 1 - June 30)
KLEIN/JOHNSON GROUP
for RAVEN · Colorado · 1st Quarter 2026 (Jan 1 - Mar 31)
KLEIN/JOHNSON GROUP
for RAVEN · Colorado · 4th Quarter 2025 (Oct 1 - Dec 31)
STEPTOE LLP
for PEACE OFFICERS RESEARCH ASSOCIATION OF CALIFORNIA · California · 4th Quarter 2025 (Oct 1 - Dec 31)
LONGBOW PUBLIC POLICY GROUP, LLC
for SERGEANTS BENEVOLENT ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK CITY · New York · 4th Quarter 2025 (Oct 1 - Dec 31)

Bodies those filers lobbied

A filing lists the bills it worked on and the parts of government it contacted in separate sections, so these are the bodies those filers named anywhere in the filing, not a per-bill breakdown.

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Cosponsors 12

Cortez Masto, Catherine

Nevada · Jul 29, 2025

Cassidy, Bill

Louisiana · Jul 21, 2025

Ossoff, Jon

Georgia · Jul 21, 2025

Hirono, Mazie K.

Hawaii · May 20, 2025

Coons, Christopher A.

Delaware · May 19, 2025

Grassley, Chuck

Iowa · May 19, 2025

Moody, Ashley

Florida · May 13, 2025

Blackburn, Marsha

Tennessee · Feb 12, 2025

Blumenthal, Richard

Connecticut · Feb 12, 2025

Durbin, Richard J.

Illinois · Feb 12, 2025

Hawley, Josh

Missouri · Feb 12, 2025

Klobuchar, Amy

Minnesota · Feb 12, 2025

Cite this page click to expand

APA

U.S. Congress. (2026). S. 539: PROTECT Our Children Reauthorization Act of 2025. 119th Congress. Open America. https://openamerica.io/bill/119-S-539/

MLA

"S. 539: PROTECT Our Children Reauthorization Act of 2025." 119th Congress, 2026, Open America, https://openamerica.io/bill/119-S-539/.

Bluebook (legal)

S. 539, 119th Cong. (2026), https://openamerica.io/bill/119-S-539/.

Markdown link

[S. 539: PROTECT Our Children Reauthorization Act of 2025](https://openamerica.io/bill/119-S-539/)