The Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA) and NetChoice sued Texas in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas to stop HB 18, defend constitutional rights, keep kids—and all Texans—safe online, and protect parental rights.
HB 18 violates Texans’ fundamental rights, creates a disaster for their online privacy and security, and replaces parents with government bureaucrats. As NetChoice has seen in other states, mandating age verification and parental consent for digital services violates privacy and stifles the free exchange of ideas.
NetChoice has successfully obtained injunctions against four other states for similar laws that create an age-gate for digital services, violating user privacy and stifling the free exchange of ideas. These states include California, Arkansas, Ohio and Mississippi.
Texas, similarly to Mississippi, requires websites to block overly broad, vague speech categories, forcing online businesses to censor speech with unclear compliance standards. The District Court judge in Mississippi found that law’s similar provisions to be vague and deny citizens a constitutionally-protected interest.
Further, by forcing all websites to identify users, every digital service in Texas will need to collect more data and information on their users, including children—putting them at further risk for cybersecurity breaches.
Read NetChoice’s initial complaint, filed July 30 2024, here.
Our Team
Chris Marchese – Director of Litigation
Paul Taske – Associate Director of Litigation
Carl Szabo – Vice President & General Counsel
NetChoice Complaint, filed July 30, 2024, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.
NetChoice’s request for a preliminary injunction (PI) and temporary restraining order (TRO) was filed on July 30, 2024 in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.