FAYETTEVILLE, Ark.—Today, NetChoice is urging the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas–Fayetteville Division to stop Arkansas’ unconstitutional social media age verification law from going into effect on September 1 while our case, NetChoice v. Griffin, moves through the legal system.
The hearing begins at 10:00 AM CT, and it will not be livestreamed.
“We filed this lawsuit to uphold the First Amendment and keep online speech accessible,” said Chris Marchese, NetChoice Director of Litigation. “Privacy, security, parental rights and access to information hang in the balance. We implore the Court to halt this unconstitutional law as our case moves ahead.”
Marchese continued: “The law decides for Arkansans of all ages what types of information they’re allowed to access online, forces them to hand over their most sensitive documents to use the internet and usurps the role of parents and families in deciding what’s best for themselves and their kids. That’s wrong, and we’re trying to stop it.”
Our case argues that in passing SB 396, Arkansas has:
- Conditioned Arkansans’ First Amendment right to share and receive information online on their willingness to hand over their most sensitive, personal data to third-party age-verification companies.
- Ignored existing federal law to protect kids online, violating the Supremacy Clause.
- Regulated the internet beyond Arkansas’ borders, violating the Commerce Clause.
- Jeopardized the security of all Arkansans, especially minors, by requiring them to surrender sensitive, personal information to third-parties they don’t know or trust.
- Deprived parents and guardians of the freedom to decide how their families will interact with online services.
Our motion received a supporting brief from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF).
You can find our request for a preliminary injunction here and a web page detailing our resources for NetChoice v. Griffin here.
Please contact Krista Chavez at press@netchoice.org with inquiries.