The law, meant to shield minors from sexual materials on the internet by requiring adults to prove they are at least 18, was challenged on First Amendment grounds.
The Supreme Court on Friday rejected a challenge to a Texas law that seeks to limit minors’ access to pornography on the internet, ruling that it does not violate the First Amendment to require people to verify their age through measures like the submission of government-issued IDs.
The vote was 6 to 3, with the court’s three liberal members in dissent.
Justice Clarence Thomas, writing for the majority, said the law’s age restriction was needed in the internet era.
“Unlike a store clerk,” he wrote, “a website operator cannot look at its visitors and estimate their ages. Without a requirement to submit proof of age, even clearly underage minors would be able to access sexual content undetected.”
The Texas law applies to any commercial website “more than one-third of which is sexual material harmful to minors.” It requires such sites to use one of several methods to verify that users are 18 or older. It does not allow companies to retain the information their users submit. But the challengers said adults would be wary of supplying personal information for fear of identity theft, tracking and extortion.
More than 20 other states have enacted similar laws.
A trade group representing companies that produce sexual materials, along with an adult performer, challenged the Texas law, saying that it violated the First Amendment rights of adults.
Judge David Alan Ezra of the Western District of Texas blocked the law, saying it would have a chilling effect on speech protected by the First Amendment.
