United States of America: Introduction of the Accountability for Online Firearms Marketplaces Act of 2021 in the US Senate

On 13 September 2021, Sen. Richard Blumenthal alongside Sen. Feinstein and Sen. Whitehouse introduced the Accountability for Online Firearms Marketplaces Act of 2021, which aims to amend the Communications Decency Act in order to remove immunity for online firearms marketplaces. The bill revises Section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 and adds under Section 3, entitled Protection of Victims of Gun Violence, that the “treatment of publisher or speaker does not apply to online firearms marketplace”. In addition, the amendment provides a definition for Online Firearms Marketplace and the criteria to be met in order for a platform to be classified as such, and a definition for the term firearm.