(The Center Square) – An internet free speech group filed a lawsuit in federal court on Tuesday trying to strike down Louisiana’s age verification law for social media platforms.
NetChoice, an association founded in 2001 with members that include YouTube, Google, Reddit and others, filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana.
The plaintiffs are seeking the overturn of Senate Bill 162 passed in 2023 and in effect since July 1. They’re also seeking attorney’s fees.
According to the lawsuit, NetChoice says the state is “attempting to unconstitutionally restrict minors’ access to protected online speech – impairing adults’ access along the way.
“Louisiana Senate Bill 162’s restrictions violate bedrock principles of constitutional law and precedent from across the nation,” the complaint said.
The bill’s passage was overwhelming in the Senate (37-0) and House of Representatives (73-16). According to the legislation, age verification is required for social media sites and bans those younger than 16 from having an account without parental permission.
It also requires social media platforms to make “commercially reasonable efforts” to verify the age of users, which the complaint says is an abrogation of the First Amendment.
Act 456 also restricts advertising on social media platforms to minors, which the lawsuit says federal law, known as Section 230, preempts.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs say the law’s restrictions on advertising are unconstitutional and cannot survive any form of First Amendment scrutiny.
“Louisiana’s SB162 is a fiasco for free speech and online safety,” said Paul Taske, NetChoice Associate Director of Litigation, in a release. “Forcing citizens to hand over sensitive documents just to access lawful content online is a gift to hackers and a nightmare for cybersecurity. Worse, it sidelines parents and lets the government decide how families use the internet. Bad laws don’t protect families – strong, constitutional ones do. NetChoice is suing to confirm Louisiana’s government upholds freedom and the Constitution and to ensure families and their digital safety are protected.”
