Age Verification Bill Introduced in Oklahoma Legislature

OKLAHOMA CITY—A Republican lawmaker in the Oklahoma state legislature has introduced an age verification proposal targeting adult entertainment websites. The proposal comes weeks after a state senator introduced a proposed total ban on porn statewide. Rep. Randy Randleman introduced House Bill 3008 to prevent minors from accessing age-restricted content online. Randleman's bill gained traction after it was passed through the House Judiciary Committee on a vote of 8-1. The lone "nay" vote came from Democratic Rep. Jason Lowe, who expressed concerns that the age verification bill could violate the First Amendment. Tulsa World reports that Rep. Randleman admitted that an age verification measure could lead adults of legal age to decline to submit their government-issued identification or other personally verifiable information in order to access adult content online. House Bill 3008 is considered a "copycat" proposal to age verification legislation first introduced and implemented in Louisiana. Oklahoma made national headlines in recent weeks with another state lawmaker, Republican Sen. Dusty Deevers, introducing a total ban on pornography in the state. Deevers was the subject of punchlines from late-night television hosts like Jimmy Fallon and Taylor Tomlinson and the target of a series of columns examining the lawmaker's far-right ties to the Southern Baptist Church. AVN reported on the Deevers proposal, Senate Bill 1976, and how the bill is a political statement with little chance of becoming law.