SACRAMENTO – California’s version of the age verification bills sponsored by anti-porn activists across the country passed a unanimous bipartisan vote in the state Assembly on Thursday and are now being considered by the Senate.
As XBIZ reported, AB 3080 was introduced by Republican Assemblymember Juan Alanis, a former Modesto police officer, and would require all adult websites to take “reasonable steps” to ensure only adults view them.
Alanis told the General Assembly that the bill aimed to “protect children.”
“We know that there are serious negative consequences for young people who are exposed to this type of material, who consume it regularly and who become addicted to it at far too young an age,” Alanis claimed.
According to news from Modesto reportsWhen confronted with concerns about privacy and free speech, Alanis “pointed to the Supreme Court’s most recent decision denying emergency relief against a much broader and restrictive age verification law in Texas, which was recently upheld by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. ”
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, a notoriously conservative court that has been reprimanded by the state Supreme Court for eccentric, politicized positions, has no jurisdiction over California. The U.S. Supreme Court has not yet decided whether it will rule on the text of the Texas law.
A California-flavored age verification law
“I understand that California is different from other states and may not benefit from one-size-fits-all legislation,” Alanis also told the General Assembly. “I believe California needs its own approach that upholds our values and diversity. That’s why I’ve committed to my colleagues to continue working on this bill to ensure protections for the LGBTQ+ community and to further address privacy concerns.”
According to local press reports, Alanis “has pledged to continue working in good faith with opposition groups in an effort to craft a final piece of legislation that suits California.”
“I am very serious about working with the opposition to find consensus, if possible,” Alanis said at the time of the vote in the General Assembly. “We will hold serious working discussions with them next week. However, it is unacceptable to do nothing on this issue and allow the status quo to continue.”
Alanis also stated “that he has no desire to harm the adult entertainment industry or those who work in it.”
Free Speech Coalition (FSC) executive director Alison Boden told XBIZ that the industry trade group was having “constructive discussions” with Alanis.
“We hope he will take seriously the data we have presented on the dangers of website-based age verification and its serious harm to both children and adults,” Boden said. “I have presented the Assembly Member with several proposals that would achieve his stated goals – protecting children without harming the adult industry – and I look forward to continuing the dialogue. At this time, we remain opposed to the bill and will mobilize against any further progress.”
Burdensome and invasive ID requirements
As XBIZ reported, Boden testified before the California Assembly Judiciary Committee last month in opposition to AB 3080.
Boden told lawmakers that Alanis’ bill will not survive judicial review and is “completely impractical for Californians to have to verify their age multiple times on individual websites instead of doing so once on their device.”
Boden also noted that in the 16 months that the current set of age verification laws have been in effect in other states, we have learned that the methods available to verify someone’s age online are “so cumbersome and invasive that consumers refuse to undergo the process.” For example, authenticating using a government ID is so complicated that it took one reporter 52 steps to complete. Estimating facial age requires the entity performing the verification to access your computer’s webcam or your phone’s camera, which may be why less than 1% of users actually complete the process.
Data shows that what users do instead, she added, is “hit the back button and find a non-compliant site.”
“We must protect children online and not send adults to dangerous websites with illegal content,” she concluded.