Bill > HF62

This bill establishes new legal requirements for commercial entities publishing or distributing obscene material on the internet, with a specific focus on protecting minors from accessing such content. Under the proposed law, commercial entities must implement age verification methods to ensure that individuals attempting to access obscene material are not minors, using either a commercial database commonly used for identity verification or another commercially reasonable age verification method. If a commercial entity fails to properly verify ages and a minor gains access to obscene material, the entity can be held civilly liable and may be required to pay damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney fees. Importantly, the bill explicitly states that interactive computer service providers (such as internet platforms) will not be held liable under these provisions. The bill defines key terms by referencing existing legal definitions, including using the definition of "obscene material" from section 728.1 and the definition of "interactive computer service" from federal law (47 U.S.C. §230). The proposed legislation aims to create a legal mechanism to discourage the exposure of minors to inappropriate online content by establishing potential financial consequences for businesses that do not take adequate protective measures.

Justice

https://www.legis.iowa.gov/legislation/BillBook?ga=91&ba=HF62