Massachusetts surveillance bill written by 3 legislators who attended a cable industry's convention.

[erronis]

How Massachusetts's new surveillance bill came together: I pulled the campaign finance records on the 3 legislators who wrote it. All attend the cable industry's convention, share the same telecom donors, and wrote a bill requiring every user to hand over government ID.

https://www.reddit.com/r/massachusetts/comments/1sjxcuu/how_massachusettss_new_surveillance_bill_came/

This bill is not just about kids. H.5349 requires every person who uses social media in Massachusetts to submit to age verification. In practice, that means handing your government ID or face scan to third-party verification vendors. Here is what has happened to those vendors in the last 18 months:

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Who wrote the bill and who funds them

The bill defines "social media platform" as services displaying content "primarily generated by users," then explicitly excludes "SMS, MMS, RCS or similar text messaging telecommunications services." Social media gets regulated. The telecom industry that funds these legislators doesn't.

The New England Connectivity and Telecommunications Association (NECTA) represents Comcast, Charter, and Cox. Its 2024 Form 990 shows $2.6 million in revenue and $584,093 spent on lobbying and political activity. The 990 states the association "makes various contributions to political action and election committees" and "holds occasional receptions on behalf of individuals who are campaigning for a public office."

All three legislators who shaped H.5349 expensed NECTA conventions to their campaign accounts:

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[TommyT139]

1. Thank you!

When I saw that the bill was as bad as Florida's(!!), I knew something was sketchy.