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In a shock last-minute ruling, a US federal judge shot down a Texas bill to enforce child safety filters online. The Securing Children Online Through Parental Empowerment (SCOPE) Act was submitted to the Texas House Committee on Youth Health and Safety last year and expected to go into effect earlier this week before a last-minute ruling that called the act a “significant threat to online speech.”
What are the SCOPE requirements? The act would have compelled some web services to identify users registered under the age of 18 and filter the content they receive or are able to view, limit data collection, ban targeted advertising, and block any financial transactions without parental consent.
The target: SCOPE’s main concern is large social media platforms like Meta and TikTok, specifically those with “ harmful or obscene ” content that exceeds a third of all output. This includes content that “glorifies [suicide], self-harm, substance abuse, and grooming.” Any violators would have been required to provide an age verification method approved by the committee.
Three separate groups filed motions to prevent the law. NetChoice, the Communications Industry Association (CCIA), and the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) claimed that the act was an unconstitutional violation of freedom of expression, which ultimately prompted action by Judge Robert Pitman to halt its application.
Some provisions will still be taking effect. The judge ruled that limiting data collection and requiring age verification were not a threat to the First Amendment, but believes that the definition of content that warrants restriction would be up to interpretation and “politically charged.”
This isn’t the first (or the last) bill of its kind, nor the first (or the last) to face judicial scrutiny. California’s Age-Appropriate Design Code has been introduced to and blocked by courts in Arkansas, Ohio, and Mississippi. Congress is currently working on the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), which sparked backlash from high school students, prompting 300 of them to protest at the congressional hearing. The bill passed with 91 votes in favor.
