A bill from Buckeye's LD25 requiring Arizonans to verify their age before accessing online pornography cleared its first hurdle Wednesday, passing out of the House Judiciary Committee along party lines.
HB2112, sponsored by Rep. Nick Kupper, mandates that users submit a government-issued ID or private transactional data to access adult content. Kupper argues the bill is necessary to “protect children’s development”, citing similar laws in Texas and Louisiana.
But critics, including the ACLU and Free Speech Coalition, warned the bill won’t stop minors from accessing explicit content and could violate First Amendment rights.
“There is a giant internet,” said Mike Stabile, public policy director for the Free Speech Coalition. “There are websites that are outside the compliance of the United States that have grown exponentially.” Stabile noted that similar laws in other states have pushed users toward illegal sites, some of which host child pornography.
Rep. Lupe Contreras opposed the bill, arguing that parental oversight — not government intervention — should be the solution.
“My wife and I, we have parental rights to their devices. We oversee their devices,” he said. “I would hope that most would do that.”
The ACLU’s lobbyist raised concerns that the bill’s language could block minors from accessing non-pornographic resources, such as sex education, LGBTQ+ health information, and HIV/AIDS prevention sites.
Research supports concerns over pornography’s impact on youth. Studies from the Australian Institute of Family Studies and Psychology Today have linked frequent exposure to pornography to early sexual initiation, risky behaviors, and mental health issues like anxiety, depression, and low self-esteem. However, critics argue that age verification laws do little to address these risks and instead push minors toward even more dangerous content.
What’s next? The bill now moves to the full Arizona House for debate, where it will likely face further scrutiny over privacy risks, enforcement, and constitutional concerns.