S. 3170: CyberTipline Modernization Act of 2018

115th Congress · introduced 2018-06-28 · Crime and Law Enforcement · Latest: Became Public Law No: 115-395.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2018-06-28 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Became Public Law No: 115-395. (final step reached)
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

CyberTipline Modernization Act of 2018

Plain summary

CyberTipline Modernization Act of 2018 (Sec. 2) This bill revises reporting requirements for electronic communication service providers and remote computing service providers (providers) who report information to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC) on crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children. Currently, providers must report the facts and circumstances of incidents of apparent child pornography, of which they become aware, to NCMEC via the CyberTipline. This bill retains the existing reporting requirement and provides new authority for providers to also report the facts and circumstances that indicate a child pornography violation is imminent. Additionally, it makes various procedural changes to the reporting requirements, including to do the following: grant discretion to providers to determine what information to include in a report; permit (currently, require) the Department of Justice (DOJ) to designate foreign law enforcement agencies to receive CyberTipline reports from NCMEC; allow NCMEC to forward a report to a foreign law enforcement agency in certain circumstances, even if the foreign law enforcement agency has not been designated by DOJ; and provide explicit permission for a provider to disclose the contents of a report, including visual depictions, to law enforcement agencies, to NCMEC, or as necessary to respond to legal process. Finally, the bill revises and updates various statutory references, including to replace references to “images” with “visual depictions” to make reporting requirements applicable to videos, in addition to images.

Congressional Research Service summary (Public Law), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

CyberTipline Modernization Act of 2018

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Public Law)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX] · 12 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: S. 3170, CyberTipline Modernization Act of 2018 (2018-09-26)

Cosponsors on this site

Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Richard J. Durbin (D-IL)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Cornyn, John [R-TX] reported raising $8.6 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (2)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Statute: A written law passed by a legislature. A statute can be changed by a later law; changing a constitution needs an amendment.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Public Law)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-115s3170.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/115/s>

Record fed-us-cong115-s3170 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115