# 119-s-188: Free Speech Protection Act

119-s-188, Free Speech Protection Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Paul, Rand [R-KY] (R-KY); status introduced (as of 2025-12-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-188
- As of: 2025-12-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-188
- Congress: 119
- Title: Free Speech Protection Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-01-22
- Sponsor: Sen. Paul, Rand [R-KY] (R-KY)
- Cosponsors: 3
- Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
- Touches household money: no
- Last recorded action: 2025-12-21

## Summary

**Restricts federal pressure on platform content moderation.** This bill would ban federal employees and contractors from directing online platforms to remove, suppress, limit, label, or otherwise block speech protected by the First Amendment and add reporting, penalties, and a private right of action to enforce those limits. - Families and users: It would make it harder for federal agencies to push platforms to take down or hide speech, while keeping court warrants as a narrow exception to the ban. - Platform providers: Agencies would have to publish and report communications with platform providers and face stronger Freedom of Information Act disclosure rules for those records, with protections for user-identifying data. - Federal agencies and employees: The bill would create disciplinary and financial penalties and allow private lawsuits against the government or offending employee. It would also end a Department of Homeland Security advisory board on disinformation and bar federal grants tied to misinformation programming.

## Cosponsors (3)

- Sen. Lee, Mike [R-UT] (R-UT), 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Schmitt, Eric [R-MO] (R-MO), 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Lummis, Cynthia M. [R-WY] (R-WY), 2025-01-22T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- More reporting on agency-platform contacts: benefit, medium. If enacted, each Executive agency would have to report to a Director and key congressional leaders within 90 days and then at least every 90 days about communications with covered platforms. The Director would assign tracking numbers and publish report details on a public website within 5 days, and…
- Stop federal platform censorship: benefit, medium. If enacted, the bill would bar Executive-branch employees and contractors from asking or pressuring online platforms to remove, suppress, label, demote, or ban speech protected by the First Amendment. It would also bar agencies from asking for users’ covered information, except when a court warrant…
- Limits federal misinformation funding and boards: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would bar Executive agencies from awarding grants for misinformation or disinformation programming. For grants made after enactment, recipients must certify that neither they nor subgrantees will label any news content creator as misinformation during the grant term. The agency…
- New penalties for federal employees and contractors: mixed, medium. If enacted, agency heads would have to discipline employees who violate the Act. Discipline could include removal, suspension, reduced grade, debarment, loss of annuity eligibility, and permanent security clearance revocation. The bill would require a civil penalty of at least $10,000, and contract…
- Change broadcast communications law: mixed, low. If enacted, the bill would amend the Communications Act by removing subsections (c) through (g) of Section 706 and redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (c). It would also make small conforming edits to Section 309(h) so the section ends with "Act." These are statutory edits to broadcast and c…

## Related bills

- 119-s-3752: SAVE America Act
- 119-s-485: Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2025
- 119-s-6: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act
- 119-s-100: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act
- 119-s-9: Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025
- 119-s-128: SAVE Act

## Sources
- [119-s-188 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/188)

## Related
- [119-s-3752: SAVE America Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3752)
- [119-s-485: Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-485)
- [119-s-6: Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-6)
- [119-s-100: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-100)
- [119-s-9: Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-9)
- [119-s-128: SAVE Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-128)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-188 (as of 2025-12-21).