ATLANTA—The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit today vacated the preliminary injunction blocking Georgia’s SB 351 in NetChoice v. Carr, our challenge to the state’s law restricting user access to lawful speech online.
“While we are disappointed in the Eleventh Circuit’s ruling, the court notably did not hold that SB 351 is constitutional,” said Paul Taske, Director of the NetChoice Litigation Center.
“As we evaluate our next legal steps, we remain committed to fighting for Georgians’ right to free expression online and ensuring parents, not the government, stay in charge of decisions for their families.”
This means that when the law goes into effect, social media websites will have to verify the ages of all their Georgia users, forcing Georgians of every age to hand over sensitive personal information just to access lawful speech online. Beyond the constitutional concerns of requiring users to submit government-issued identification to exercise First Amendment rights, age-verification mandates could put Georgians’ personal information at risk. SB 351 also bars Georgians under 16 from creating accounts without parental consent and restricts how services can serve ads to younger users.
Rather than promoting unconstitutional legislation, NetChoice urges Georgia to invest in law enforcement to stop predators, implement digital safety education in schools, and create parent education campaigns about the resources already available to help parents guide their children’s online experiences, all solutions that are a part of NetChoice’s Digital Safety Shield for America.
Read the Eleventh Circuit’s ruling today here.
Find case resources for NetChoice v. Carr here.
Please contact press@netchoice.org with inquiries.