Legislative Update: 9/25/23

After a relatively sleepy August, the onslaught of age verification bills being pushed by a right-wing hate group started right back up with three new states introducing legislation in September.

State House members in Delaware and Michigan introduced slight variations on the law originally passed in Louisiana last year. One difference of note is that in Delaware, the state’s Attorney General is able to enforce the requirement (making the law easier to challenge in court).

More importantly, in North Carolina, “Republican state senators added the requirement to House Bill 8, a previously unrelated measure that would add a computer science class to the state’s high school graduation requirements,” according to a local news report. The measure passed both chambers and is currently awaiting Democratic Governor Roy Cooper’s signature. The Free Speech Coalition is calling on Gov. Cooper to veto the amended bill. If it passes, it will take effect on January 1, 2024.