Tech Trade Groups Sue Florida Over Age Verification Law

TALLAHASSEE, Fla.—Two trade organizations representing big tech have sued the state of Florida for implementing an invasive age verification law that targets both social media platforms and adult entertainment platforms, according to press releases from the organizations. The Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and NetChoice sued in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida alleging the age verification law, House Bill (HB) 3, violates the First Amendment rights of adults and minors alike. CCIA and NetChoice represent major technology companies like Meta Platforms, Google, X, and Amazon. "This lawsuit is about two things: safety and speech," said Paul Taske, NetChoice's associate director of litigation, in the group's press release. "Make no mistake, HB 3 is government censorship paired with massive security risks. HB 3 tramples on Floridians’ right to free speech by conditioning access on handing over sensitive documents." CCIA's senior vice president and chief of staff, Stephanie Joyce, echoed similar sentiments in a separate press release.  "Protecting children online is an important goal that CCIA shares with legislators, and the far better way to ensure their protection is to give parents the information and tools they need to shield their children from unsuitable content, as digital services providers already have done for decades," explained Joyce. The complaint seeks declaratory and injunctive relief from the law. The lawsuit reads, "In short, in a nation that values the First Amendment, the preferred response from the government is to let parents decide what speech is appropriate for their minor children, including by using tools that make it easier for them to restrict access should they choose to do so." HB 3 requires most websites with a large portion of content classified as "harmful to minors" to implement so-called reasonable age verification measures to ensure that users logging on from Florida-based IP addresses are 18 years or older. These sites, of course, include adult platforms that deal with sexually explicit material.  The new law is considerably broad in how it would apply to web platforms. According to the bill text, HB 3 enters force on January 1, 2025. Gov. Ron DeSantis, a far-right Republican, adopted House Bill 3 in March 2024. Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody is also on the record as being very anti-porn. CCIA and NetChoice have engaged in crucial First Amendment litigation prior. NetCoice has challenged age verification laws in federal district courts throughout the United States and has been successful. For example, a federal district judge ruled in Arkansas that a social media age verification requirement adopted in that state also violated the First Amendment, granting a preliminary injunction in that NetChoice case.