Florida Lawmakers Advance Reworked AV Proposal to Gov. DeSantis

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—The Florida state legislature has adopted a reworked internet safety bill that implements age verification for pornography platforms and bans the use of social media for minors under 14 years of age.  The bill, House Bill (HB) 3, is poised to be signed into law by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis in the coming days. DeSantis vetoed HB 1, a competing bill with AV requirements and social media bans, in a political bid to adopt a supposedly much more “superior” bill.  The real differences between House Bill 1 and House Bill 3 are small. HB 1 would have covered minors aged 16 and younger, while the purportedly "reasonable" age verification requirements were in fact the same. With DeSantis' presumptive signing of HB 3, Florida will become the next U.S. state to impose a measure restricting access for adults to online porn. “We appreciate the efforts by Florida legislators and [Gov.] DeSantis to protect younger users and promote safety online," said Khara Boender, state policy director for the Computer & Communications Industry Association, speaking on House Bill 3. "The revised bill remains problematic, infringing on minors’ First Amendment rights by creating significant barriers for younger users to access online information that every American, including minors, has a right to see." Tampa Bay Times reports that House Bill 3's potential attraction for legal challenges will emulate what has been seen in Arkansas. There, a federal district judge ruled that an age ban on social media violated minors' First Amendment rights.