TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Tech industry trade groups NetChoice and the Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) filed a lawsuit Monday challenging Florida’s HB 3, which includes a requirement for adult websites to verify the age of site visitors in the state.
Both groups have previously taken stands and participated in litigation against age verification legislation, aligning with Free Speech Coalition (FSC) and its allies on the free speech, privacy and security issues raised by such laws.
In a statement, CCIA noted that HB 3, which is set to take effect Jan. 1, 2025, “would restrict users’ access to lawful content that is protected by the First Amendment.”
The suit, filed with the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, in the Tallahassee Division, argues that “As courts have repeatedly reaffirmed, requiring adults to verify their age before accessing speech significantly burdens First Amendment rights.”
Industry attorney Lawrence Walters, of the Florida-based Walters Law Group, told XBIZ on Tuesday, “Numerous options are widely available for parents to restrict access to content or applications that they believe are inappropriate for their children. These options exist at the network level, carrier level, browser level, and application level, and are far more effective to protect minors from exposure to inappropriate materials without violating constitutional rights.”
The suit also objects to provisions that restrict minors’ access to social media, arguing that those measures also violate First Amendment rights. Walters shed light on that aspect as well.
“Florida has taken it upon itself to decide that minors of a certain age may not use social media,” Walters explained. “The state has also determined that minors of other ages must obtain parental consent before accessing social media services. Denying minors the ability to access and engage in the marketplace of ideas on social media platforms is not the proper role of government and violates the First Amendment under established case law.”
As XBIZ reported in March, when the bill was passed by the Florida legislature, HB 3 is a much expanded version of a bill originally introduced by Rep. Chase Tramont, a politician and ordained clergyman who serves as pastor at Oceanway Church in New Smyrna Beach. Tramont's bill originally only targeted adult websites, but broader regulations about social media were added to it later.
When Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the bill into law shortly thereafter, FSC condemned the measure as “deeply unconstitutional.”
According to the Tallahassee Democrat newspaper, the case has been assigned to Chief U.S. District Judge Mark Walker, an appointee of President Barack Obama.
A representative of Florida Attorney General Ashley Moody told the paper, “As a mother, Attorney General Moody will fight aggressively in court to ensure the ability to protect Florida children.”