ST. LOUIS (AP) — For the first time in roughly 40 years, the Environmental Protection Agency used its emergency authority to halt the sale of a weed-killing pesticide that harms the development of unborn babies.

Officials took the rare step because the pesticide DCPA, or Dacthal, could cause irreversible damage to fetuses, including impaired brain development and low birthweight. The agency struggled to obtain vital health data from the pesticide’s manufacturer on time and decided it was not safe to allow continued sale, EPA said in an announcement Tuesday.

“In this case, pregnant women who may never know they were exposed could give birth to babies that experience irreversible lifelong health problems,” said Michal Freedhoff, assistant administrator for EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention.

DCPA is mostly used on broccoli, cabbage and certain other crops and about 84,000 pounds were used on average in 2018 and 2020, officials said.

In 2023, the EPA assessed the pesticide’s risks and found it was dangerous even if a worker wore personal protective equipment. The manufacturer had instructed people to stay off fields where the pesticide had been applied for 12 hours, but agency officials said it could linger at dangerous levels for more than 25 days.

The pesticide is made by AMVAC Chemical Corp. The company did not immediately return a request for comment late Wednesday. In comments to the EPA earlier this year, the company said new protocols could help keep people safe. It proposed longer waiting periods before workers enter fields where the pesticide was applied and limits on how much of the chemical could be handled.

Federal officials said the company’s proposed changes weren’t enough. The emergency order was necessary because the normal review process would take too long and leave people at risk, according to the agency’s statement.

The family of a French explorer who died in a submersible implosion has filed a more than $50 million lawsuit, saying the crew experienced “terror and mental anguish” before the disaster and accusing the sub’s operator of gross negligence.

Paul-Henri Nargeolet was among five people who died when the Titan submersible imploded during a voyage to the famed Titanic wreck site in the North Atlantic in June 2023. No one survived the trip aboard the experimental submersible owned by OceanGate, a company in Washington state that has since suspended operations.

Known as “Mr. Titanic,” Nargeolet participated in 37 dives to the Titanic site, the most of any diver in the world, according to the lawsuit. He was regarded as one of the world’s most knowledgeable people about the famous wreck. Attorneys for his estate said in an emailed statement that the “doomed submersible” had a “troubled history,” and that OceanGate failed to disclose key facts about the vessel and its durability.

According to the lawsuit, the Titan “dropped weights” about 90 minutes into its dive, indicating the team had aborted or attempted to abort the dive.

“While the exact cause of failure may never be determined, experts agree that the Titan’s crew would have realized exactly what was happening,” the lawsuit states. “Common sense dictates that the crew were well aware they were going to die, before dying.”

The lawsuit goes on to say: “The crew may well have heard the carbon fiber’s crackling noise grow more intense as the weight of the water pressed on Titan’s hull. The crew lost communications and perhaps power as well. By experts’ reckoning, they would have continued to descend, in full knowledge of the vessel’s irreversible failures, experiencing terror and mental anguish prior to the Titan ultimately imploding.”

A spokesperson for OceanGate declined to comment on the lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in King County, Washington. The defendants must respond to the complaint in the coming weeks, court papers state. The lawsuit describes Nargeolet as an employee of OceanGate and a crew member on the Titan.

The suit also criticizes Titan’s “hip, contemporary, wireless electronics system, and states that none of the controller, controls or gauges would work without a constant source of power and a wireless signal.”

Though OceanGate designated Nargeolet as a member of the crew, “many of the particulars about the vessel’s flaws and shortcomings were not disclosed and were purposely concealed,” the attorneys, the Buzbee Law Firm of Houston, Texas, said in their statement.

Tony Buzbee, one of the attorneys on the case, said one of the suit’s goals is to “get answers for the family as to exactly how this happened, who all were involved, and how those involved could allow this to happen.”

Concerns were raised in the aftermath of the disaster about whether the Titan was doomed due to its unconventional design and its creator’s refusal to submit to independent checks that are standard in the industry. Its implosion also raised questions about the viability and future of private deep-sea exploration.

The U.S. Coast Guard quickly convened a high-level investigation, which is ongoing. A key public hearing that is part of the investigation is scheduled to take place in September.

The Titan made its last dive on June 18, 2023, a Sunday morning, and lost contact with its support vessel about two hours later. After a search and rescue mission that drew attention around the world, the wreckage of the Titan was found on the ocean floor about 984 feet (300 meters) off the bow of the Titanic, about 435 miles (700 kilometers) south of St. John’s, Newfoundland.

OceanGate CEO and cofounder Stockton Rush was operating the Titan when it imploded. The lawsuit describes Rush as “an eccentric and self-styled ‘innovator’ in the deep-sea diving industry” and names his estate as one of the defendants.

In addition to Rush and Nargeolet, the implosion killed British adventurer Hamish Harding and two members of a prominent Pakistani family, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood.

The company that owns the salvage rights to the Titanic is in the midst of its first voyage to the wreckage site in years. Last month, RMS Titanic Inc., a Georgia-based firm, launched its first expedition to the site since 2010 from Providence, Rhode Island.

Nargeolet was director of underwater research for RMS Titanic. He was part of an expedition to visit the Titanic site in 1987, shortly after its location was discovered, and had supervised the salvage of innumerable Titanic artifacts, the lawsuit states. His estate’s attorneys described him as a seasoned veteran of underwater exploration who would not have participated in the Titan expedition if the company had been more transparent.

The lawsuit blames the implosion on the “persistent carelessness, recklessness and negligence” of Oceangate, Rush and others.

“Decedent Nargeolet may have died doing what he loved to do, but his death — and the deaths of the other Titan crew members — was wrongful,” the lawsuit states.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — What should have been a quick trip to the International Space Station may turn into an eight-month stay for two NASA astronauts if they have to switch from Boeing to SpaceX for a ride home.

There’s lingering uncertainty over the safety of Boeing’s new Starliner capsule, NASA officials said Wednesday, and the space agency is split over the risk. As a result, chances are increasing that test pilots Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams may have to watch from the space station as their Starliner is cut loose to return to Earth empty.

If that happens, NASA would leave behind two of four astronauts from the next SpaceX taxi flight in late September, with the vacant seats set aside for Wilmore and Williams on the return trip next February. The pair expected to be gone just a week or two when they launched June 5 as Starliner’s first crew.

NASA is bringing in additional experts to analyze the thruster failures experienced by Starliner before it docked. At the same time, NASA is looking more closely at SpaceX as a backup,

At this point, “we could take either path,” said Ken Bowersox, NASA’s space operations mission chief.

During a recent meeting, “We heard from a lot of folks that had concern, and the decision was not clear,” he said. A final decision is expected by mid-August.

Boeing issued a brief statement following NASA’s news update, repeating its position that the capsule could still safely bring the astronauts home.

“We still believe in Starliner’s capability and its flight rationale.” the company said.

Boeing will need to modify the capsule’s software in case Starliner ends up returning without a crew.

No serious consideration was given to launching a separate SpaceX flight just to retrieve Wilmore and Williams, according to commercial crew program manager Steve Stich.

Tests on the ground have replicated the thrust problems, pointing to seals as one culprit. But it’s still not understood how or why those seals swell when overheated and then shrink back to the proper size, Stich noted. All but one of the Starliner’s five failed thrusters have since been reactivated in orbit.

These thrusters are essential for allowing Starliner to back away from the space station following undocking, and for keeping the capsule in the proper position for the deorbit.

At the same time, engineers are grappling over helium leaks in Starliner’s propulsion system, crucial for maneuvering. The first leak occurred before liftoff, but was deemed isolated and stable. Then more cropped up in flight.

NASA hired Boeing and SpaceX to ferry astronauts to and from the space station, after the shuttles retired in 2011. SpaceX flew its first crew in 2020. Boeing stumbled on its first test flight without a crew and then fell further behind after a repeat demo.

Officials repeated their desire for a backup taxi service on Wednesday, A situation like this one could happen again, and “that’s why we want multiple vehicles,” Bowersox said.

The next crew flight will be SpaceX’s 10th for NASA. On Tuesday, it was delayed for a month until late September to allow for extra time to figure out how best to handle Starliner’s return. Three NASA astronauts and one Russian are assigned to the flight, and managers on Wednesday declined to say who might be bumped.

___

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published August 8, 2024 1:15 P.M.

(Aliquippa, Pa) Affordable housing was discussed at the Aliquippa City Council on Wednesday night. Archie Donald, COO of the Donald Group and brother of former LA Rams football player Aaron Donald, came to the meeting and discussed affordable housing with city officials. He said they would like to give back to communities and explained that the group is offering affordable housing to communities that express interest, and currently their project is in Wilkinsburg. He displayed photos of the current apartments available. 1 bedroom apartments are approximately $700 a month, 2 bedrooms approximately $1,000 a month.

FILE – Cars for sale line the road at a used auto dealership in Philadelphia, Thursday, Sept. 29, 2022. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke, FILE)

Harrisburg, PA – Today, the Department of General Services’ Bureau of Vehicle Management (BVM) announced that more than 300 used vehicles, including 30 motorcycles, will be up for public purchase at the August Commonwealth Vehicle Auction. The auction is open to the public and will take place on August 13th at 10 a.m. at Manheim Keystone Pennsylvania, 488 Firehouse Road in Grantville. An in-person preview of vehicles begins on Thursday, August 8^th, and will run through Sunday, August 11th.

Vehicle offerings will include a variety of 4-wheel drive SUVs, utility vehicles and pickup trucks from Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, Nissan, Toyota, GMC, and Jeep as well as motorcycles, front and all-wheel drive sedans and minivans from the previously mentioned manufacturers, and more. This auction will also feature numerous vehicles seized by state law enforcement agencies.

Pre-registration and in-person previewing of the vehicles begins on Thursday, August 8^th. Previews will take place each day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. through Aug. 11th at the Grantville auction site. Pre-registration is mandatory for the auction and must be completed on or before Monday, August 12th at 4 p.m.

There is no registration on the day of the auction.

The auction will begin at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, August 13th. Buyers must make purchases with certified funds in the forms of money order, cashier’s check, or certified check, made payable to “Manheim Keystone PA.” No cash will be accepted.

The August auction is the fourth of six tentatively scheduled to be held throughout 2024. More information on this auction, registration information, payment conditions, and a complete listing of vehicles is available on the DGS Auto Auction Information page.

Story by Sandy Giordano – Beaver County Radio. Published August 8, 2024 11:18 P.M.

(Aliquippa, Pa) Aliquippa Police responded to a call about a bank robbery at the Citizens Bank on 22nd Street on Monday at 3:40pm. PA State Police Troop D Beaver officers responded to assume the responsibility of the investigation about an armed bank robbery. According to the state police report, a black male entered the bank wearing a gator mask and yellow construction helmet with a gun. The robber demanded cash from 2 tellers at gunpoint and then attempted to order a third employee to the vault. The actor failed to locate the vault, and fled the scene on foot. Police say the man also demanded money from a patron who was making a direct deposit. Bank personnel are completing an audit to determine the total monetary loss but it is believed to be around $2,000. The FBI was notified and they assumed the investigation and it is ongoing.

Police say similar incidents with the same motive have taken place at two banks in Canton, Ohio. The man is considered armed and dangerous. Anyone with information is to contact the FBI office in Pittsburgh 412-432-4000.

Kellogg’s Omaha manufacturing plant is shown Tuesday, Aug. 6, 2024, in Omaha, Neb. Kellogg’s announced on Tuesday it would be closing the Omaha manufacturing plant by end of 2026. (Nikos Frazier/Omaha World-Herald via AP)

WK Kellogg Co. is closing one U.S. cereal plant and downsizing another as part of a plan to consolidate its operations in newer facilities.

The company said Tuesday it will close its Omaha, Nebraska, plant by the end of 2026. It also plans to scale back production at its plant in Memphis, Tennessee, starting next year.

WK Kellogg said it will increase production and invest in new infrastructure, equipment and technology at its plants in Battle Creek, Michigan; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Belleville, Ontario. The company said it plans to invest $390 million in new technology and infrastructure and will incur a one-time charge of $110 million in restructuring costs.

Battle Creek-based WK Kellogg said the plan will result in a net loss of 550 jobs, a number that includes hirings at the plants that will increase production. The company didn’t immediately respond when asked Tuesday how many workers would lose their jobs in Omaha and Memphis.

In a statement, Omaha Mayor Jean Stothert said she didn’t learn of the planned closure until Tuesday morning.

“I’m certainly disappointed that Kellogg’s would make such a significant announcement this way,” Stothert said. “After more than 75 years in Omaha, Kellogg’s will leave a big void.”

WK Kellogg’s Omaha plant was the epicenter of a strike against the company in 2021, when workers walked off the job for two months to protest a two-tier wage structure and other issues. At one point, Kellogg sued its union, saying striking workers were blocking entrances to the Omaha plant.

The strike ended in late 2021 when the company agreed to raises and other benefits.

The reorganization comes amid a decline in U.S. demand for cereal. Cereal sales boomed during the pandemic, when families were home and eating breakfast together. But they have struggled since then. Unit sales of cereal have fallen 4.2% over the last year and fell 3.6% the year before that, according to Nielsen IQ, a market researcher.

WK Kellogg Co. was formed last year when its former parent the Kellogg Co. — which was founded in 1906 — split into two companies. WK Kellogg retained the cereal business, including brands like Frosted Flakes, Fruit Loops, Rice Krispies and Raisin Bran. Kellanova, based in Chicago, houses many of the company’s best-sellers, including Pop-Tarts, Pringles, Eggo waffles and Cheez-Its.

WK Kellogg said Tuesday its net sales fell 4% to $672 million in the April-June period. The company got some boost from higher pricing and growing sales of premium products like Special K Zero. But its overall sales volumes fell by 4.8%, and the company said it felt some pressure from store-brand cereals as customers sought better value.

WK Kellogg shares dropped more than 7% Tuesday.

Appearing at a news conference in Philadelphia on March 15, 2022. Photo courtesy of Pa Media Services.

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris’ choice of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate disappointed fans of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who was one of Harris’ finalists for the job and seen as someone who could help Democrats win a key swing state and make history by electing the first Jewish vice president.

With his history of winning three statewide elections in Pennsylvania, Shapiro was seen as someone with particular appeal to moderate voters. His state’s 19 votes in the Electoral College have long been critical for candidates trying to reach the necessary 270 to win.

But the same things about Shapiro that appealed to moderates angered some on the left in his party: his support for a private school voucher program and natural gas infrastructure as well as particularly his support for Israel’s war in Gaza after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack.

Some Democrats lamented what they said was a missed opportunity by bypassing Shapiro. Republicans, meanwhile, tried to paint Harris’ choice as a snub to Jewish voters, a traditionally Democratic constituency that former President Donald Trump has tried to court in this year’s race.

“Not only is he exceptionally smart and capable, but, in my opinion, he brought the math to the path of 270,” said Ryan Bizzarro, 38-year-old Democratic state lawmaker from Erie, Pennsylvania, said of Shapiro.

Shapiro spoke at a rally in Philadelphia Tuesday night before the new Democratic ticket took the stage, with the Pennsylvania governor receiving big applause from thousands of attendees.

“I love you Philly. You know what else I love, I love being your governor,” Shapiro said.

He added, “I am going to continue pouring my heart and soul into continuing to serve you every single day as your governor.”

Shapiro also praised Walz as a great man with strong midwestern values, calling him a friend he said he couldn’t wait for Pennsylvanians to get to know.

Walz returned the compliment when he took the stage later with Harris in Philadelphia.

“My God, what a treasure you have in Josh Shapiro,” he said. “Holy hell, can this guy bring the fire.”

Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker, who advocated fiercely but unsuccessfully for Shapiro, also spoke at the event and said Democrats should not let Republicans and detractors divide them over the pick.

“Our Democratic nominee has spoken and that’s it. Period. End of story,” Parker said.

Republicans try to ta

ke advantage of Shapiro not being picked

A number of high-profile Republicans sought to seize on the liberal pushback Shapiro faced over his stance on Israel, suggesting Tuesday that Shapiro was not picked as Harris’ running mate because of antisemitic attitudes in the Democratic Party.

Trump, the Republican nominee, has been sharply criticized for his record on antisemitism, notably his suggestion that there were “fine people on both sides” of an antisemitic march in Charlottesville, Virginia, and his dinner with white nationalist Nick Fuentes at his Mar-a-Lago residence in 2022.

The former president recently suggested Harris “doesn’t like Jewish people” even though her husband, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, is Jewish, and seemed to agree with a radio host who called Emhoff “a crappy Jew.”

Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the Republican vice-presidential candidate, told reporters in Philadelphia on Tuesday that it seemed Harris didn’t pick Shapiro because Democrats feared “grassroots activists in their party wouldn’t take a Jewish nominee.”

Michigan state Sen. Jeremy Moss, who is Jewish and was excited at the prospect of a Jewish vice president, praised Walz and criticized Republicans for framing her decision as a slight against Jewish Democrats.

“I’ve seen the discourse on the right saying that there’s clearly no room for Jews in Democratic politics,” said Moss. “I defy any one of them to name a single Jewish Republican governor or a single Jewish Republican U.S. senator. They can’t, because there are none.”

The last Jewish Republican senator was former Sen. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, who left office in 2009. Missouri’s former Republican Gov. Eric Greitens is Jewish, but he resigned in 2018.

Arab American leaders who had publicly cautioned against picking Shapiro countered claims that the opposition was based on the governor’s Jewish background and said his positions on Israel and statements on campus protests went further than other candidates, particularly Walz.

Abdullah Hammoud, the mayor of Dearborn, Michigan, noted that the Arab American community overwhelmingly voted for Jewish politicians in the past, backing former Democratic Rep. Andy Levin and twice supporting former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders, the independent Vermont senator.

“It’s certainly not antisemitic to critique somebody’s position on Israeli policy,” Hammoud said. “That’s just called stewardship and accountability.”

Most Jewish Americans vote Democratic and are still poised to rally around the Democratic ticket, even without Shapiro.

Only 30% of Jewish voters supported Trump in 2020, while 69% supported Biden, according to AP VoteCast, a sweeping survey of the electorate. That made Jewish voters one of the religious groups where support for Biden was strongest.

The Jewish Democratic Council of America, which held an online rally for Harris last week, issued a statement in support of Walz on Tuesday, calling him “an exceptional choice” and noting he and Harris “align with the vast majority of Jewish voters on every key issue, including Israel and antisemitism.”

Shapiro remains a key Democratic asset for this year’s campaign

Shapiro is a popular first-term governor who two years ago was elected in a battleground state that is seen as critical to Democrats’ path to win the White House. The 51-year-old emerged in recent days as a finalist on Harris’ speedy search for a running mate, winning fans in the party for his speaking style that evoked former President Barack Obama.

With his background as a former state attorney general, like Harris, he also stood out for his forceful defenses of the White House and critiques of Trump.

He is a staunch proponent of abortion rights but is also seen as a moderate on energy policy, a significant issue in his natural gas producing state.

Shapiro has professed solidarity with Israel in its campaign to eliminate Hamas and has aggressively confronted what he saw as antisemitism appearing at pro-Palestinian demonstrations. In recent days, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported on a column he wrote for his college newspaper saying Palestinians were “too battle-minded” to coexist with Israel.

Jonathan Sarna, professor of American Jewish history at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, said that as the opposition to Shapiro over his position on Israel became more vocal, “suddenly this decision took on new significance.”

Nathan Diament, the executive director of public policy for the Orthodox Union, an umbrella group of Orthodox Jews in the U.S., said “It’s a bit disappointing” a Jewish candidate won’t be on the ticket.

“Certainly, it would have been exciting if that had happened for a second time,” he said, referencing Joseph Lieberman’s run with Al Gore in 2000.

Amy Spitalnick, the CEO of the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, said in a post on X that it was “ridiculous” for people to claim Harris, whom she noted was married to a Jewish man, second gentleman Doug Emhoff, didn’t pick Shapiro because of antisemitism.

“There are two crowds using Jews as political footballs here: The far-left that singled out Shapiro (despite Israel policies largely aligned with Walz and others) AND the swarm of right-wingers now claiming Harris/Dems are antisemitic,” she wrote. “Neither is credible.”

State Sen. Sharif Street of Philadelphia said that Walz’s values, including on abortion and gun control, align more with Philadelphians than those of Vance or Trump. And he believes his retail political skills will help carry the state, even without Shapiro on the ticket.

“Look, Gov. Shapiro’s a rockstar in this state. People love him,” said Street, Pennsylvania’s Democratic Party chair and the son of former Mayor John Street.

“But he will still be out there campaigning for this ticket. They haven’t lost Josh Shapiro.”

___

Associated Press reporters Tiffany Stanley in Washington, Peter Smith in Pittsburgh, Meg Kinnard and Will Weissert in Philadelphia and Joey Cappelletti in Lansing, Michigan, contributed to this report.

Gas prices are three cents lower in Western Pennsylvania this week at $3.713 per gallon, according to AAA East Central’s Gas Price Report.

This week’s average prices: Western Pennsylvania Average                         $3.713
Average price during the week of July 29, 2024                                               $3.742
Average price during the week of August 7, 2023                                            $3.909

The average price of unleaded self-serve gasoline in various areas:      

$3.537      Altoona
$3.805      Beaver
$3.854      Bradford
$3.466      Brookville
$3.618      Butler
$3.616      Clarion
$3.676      DuBois
$3.640      Erie
$3.715      Greensburg
$3.784      Indiana
$3.727      Jeannette
$3.834      Kittanning
$3.821      Latrobe
$3.687      Meadville
$3.822      Mercer
$3.669      New Castle
$3.544      New Kensington
$3.833      Oil City
$3.743      Pittsburgh
$3.686      Sharon
$3.773      Uniontown
$3.843      Warren
$3.698      Washington

Trend Analysis:
The national average for a gallon of gas dipped three cents since last week to $3.47.  The drop comes as Hurricane Debby has made landfall today in Florida but so far, has had no significant impact on oil production. Today’s national average is four cents less than a month ago and 36 cents less than a year ago.

According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gas demand slid from 9.45 million barrels per day to 9.25 last week. Meanwhile, total domestic gasoline stocks fell from 227.4 to 223.8 million barrels. Gasoline production decreased last week, averaging 10.0 million barrels per day.

At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, West Texas Intermediate rose by $3.18 cents to settle at $77.91 a barrel. The EIA reports that crude oil inventories decreased by 3.4 million barrels from the previous week. At 433.0 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about 4% below the five-year average for this time of year.

FILE – The icon for the video sharing TikTok app is seen on a smartphone, on Feb. 28, 2023. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)

The Justice Department sued TikTok on Friday, accusing the company of violating children’s online privacy law and running afoul of a settlement it had reached with another federal agency.

The complaint, filed together with the Federal Trade Commission in a California federal court, comes as the U.S. and the prominent social media company are embroiled in yet another legal battle that will determine if – or how – TikTok will continue to operate in the country.

The latest lawsuit focuses on allegations that TikTok, a trend-setting platform popular among young users, and its China-based parent company ByteDance violated a federal law that requires kid-oriented apps and websites to get parental consent before collecting personal information of children under 13. It also says the companies failed to honor requests from parents who wanted their children’s accounts deleted, and chose not to delete accounts even when the firms knew they belonged to kids under 13.

“This action is necessary to prevent the defendants, who are repeat offenders and operate on a massive scale, from collecting and using young children’s private information without any parental consent or control,” Brian M. Boynton, head of the Justice Department’s Civil Division, said in a statement.

TikTok said it disagreed with the allegations, “many of which relate to past events and practices that are factually inaccurate or have been addressed.”

“We offer age-appropriate experiences with stringent safeguards, proactively remove suspected underage users and have voluntarily launched features such as default screentime limits, Family Pairing, and additional privacy protections for minors,” the company said in a statement.

The U.S. decided to file the lawsuit following an investigation by the FTC that looked into whether the companies were complying with a previous settlement involving TikTok’s predecessor, Musical.ly.

In 2019, the federal government sued Musical.ly, alleging it violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, by failing to notify parents about its collection and use of personal information for kids under 13.

That same year, Musical.ly — acquired by ByteDance in 2017 and merged with TikTok — agreed to pay $5.7 million to resolve those allegations. The two companies were also subject to a court order requiring them to comply with COPPA, which the government says hasn’t happened.

In the complaint, the Justice Department and the FTC allege TikTok has knowingly allowed children to create accounts and retained their personal information without notifying their parents. This practice extends to accounts created in “Kids Mode,” a version of TikTok for children under 13. The feature allows users to view videos but bars them from uploading content.

The two agencies allege the information collected included activities on the app and other identifiers used to build user profiles. They also accuse TikTok of sharing the data with other companies – such as Meta’s Facebook and an analytics company called AppsFlyer – to persuade “Kids Mode” users to be on the platform more, a practice TikTok called “re-targeting less active users.”

The complaint says TikTok also allowed children to create accounts without having to provide their age, or obtain parental approval, by using credentials from third-party services. It classified these as “age unknown” accounts, which the agencies say have grown into millions.

After parents discovered some of their children’s accounts and asked for them to be deleted, federal officials said TikTok asked them to go through a convoluted process to deactivate them and frequently did not honor their requests.

Overall, the government said TikTok employed deficient policies that were unable to prevent children’s accounts from proliferating on its app and suggested the company was not taking the issue seriously. In at least some periods since 2019, the complaint said TikTok’s human moderators spent an average of five to seven seconds reviewing accounts flagged as potentially belonging to a child. It also said TikTok and ByteDance have technology they can use to identify and remove children’s accounts, but do not use them for that reason.

The alleged violations have resulted in millions of children under 13 using the regular TikTok app, allowing them to interact with adults and access adult content, the complaint said.

In March, a person with the matter had told the AP the FTC’s investigation was also looking into whether TikTok violated a portion of federal law that prohibits “unfair and deceptive” business practices by denying that individuals in China had access to U.S. user data.

Those allegations were not included in the complaint, which is asking the court to fine the companies and enter a preliminary injunction to prevent future violations.

Other social media companies have also come under fire for how they’ve handled children’s data.

In 2019, Google and YouTube agreed to pay a $170 million fine to settle allegations that the popular video site had illegally collected personal information on children without their parents’ consent.

And last fall, dozens of U.S. states sued Meta Platforms Inc., which owns Facebook and Instagram, for harming young people and contributing to the youth mental health crisis by knowingly and deliberately designing features on Instagram and Facebook that addict children to its platforms. A lawsuit filed by 33 states claims that Meta routinely collects data on children under 13 without their parents’ consent, in violation of COPPA. Nine attorneys general are also filing lawsuits in their respective states, bringing the total number of states taking action to 41 plus Washington, D.C.