Supreme Court will hear Texas anti-pornography law that challengers say violates free-speech rights

A view of the Supreme Court building on Capitol Hill in Washington, captured on Dec. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) — A Texas anti-pornography law is heading to the Supreme Court on Wednesday, presenting a clash between free speech rights, online content regulation, and child protection.

Texas is one of more than a dozen states with laws designed to prevent young children and teenagers from accessing pornography. The adult-content site Pornhub has ceased operations in several of these states, citing technical and privacy challenges in complying with the laws.

Texas argues that its law is essential to shield children from the current rapid access to porn, including hardcore obscene material, on smartphones. “Texas seeks to protect kids from some of the most prurient sexual content imaginable,” state attorneys stated in court papers.

The Free Speech Coalition, a trade group for the adult-entertainment industry, contends that the Texas law unfairly impacts adults by requiring them to provide personal identifying information online, which could be susceptible to hacking or tracking.

The group agrees that children should not view pornography but claims the new law is so broadly written that it might also cover sexual education content or simulated sex scenes in films. Furthermore, the law leaves a gap by targeting porn sites rather than the search engines often used to find porn, the group argues in court documents.

“This really concerns how the government can regulate any speech it disfavors,” Vera Eidelman, a staff attorney with the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project, told reporters last week. “Pornography often serves as a warning sign for free speech issues.”

This isn’t the first time the Supreme Court has addressed this issue. In 1996, the court invalidated parts of a law prohibiting explicit material accessible to children online. In 2004, a divided Supreme Court ruled against another federal law intended to prevent children from viewing pornography but stated that less restrictive measures like content filtering are constitutional.

Texas claims that technology has significantly advanced over the last two decades, enabling online platforms to verify users’ ages swiftly and easily with a simple picture, akin to ID checks at traditional stores upheld by the Supreme Court in the 1960s.

The states succeeded in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, where a divided panel reversed a lower court and allowed the age verification requirement to be implemented. The Supreme Court previously denied an emergency appeal seeking to halt the age verification while the legal battle proceeds.

Other states with similar laws include Tennessee, Arkansas, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Oklahoma, Utah, and Virginia.

The Texas law imposes fines of up to $10,000 per violation, which could increase to up to $250,000 per violation by a minor.