{"id":2407488,"date":"2025-02-27T13:04:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-27T18:04:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/south-dakota-becomes-20th-state-to-pass-pornography-age-verification-law\/"},"modified":"2025-02-27T13:07:01","modified_gmt":"2025-02-27T18:07:01","slug":"south-dakota-becomes-20th-state-to-pass-pornography-age-verification-law","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/south-dakota-becomes-20th-state-to-pass-pornography-age-verification-law\/","title":{"rendered":"South Dakota becomes 20th state to pass pornography age-verification law"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fsouth-dakota-becomes-20th-state-to-pass-pornography-age-verification-law%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2407488&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>South Dakota has recently \u200bpassed\u200d a law that requires online pornography platforms to implement \u2064age\u200c verification measures, making it \u200cthe \u206220th U.S. state to do so. Signed by Governor Larry\u200b Rhoden, the law is notable for being the first to impose \u2063criminal penalties for noncompliance. It mandates\u200d that websites verify users\u200b are at least 18 years old using government-issued IDs or financial\u2063 credentials. Websites that fail \u200dto comply within 90 days risk fines\u2063 and misdemeanor charges, with repeated violations \u200bperhaps leading to felony \u200dcharges. <\/p>\n<p>The law has received \u2063strong legislative support, passing with a 61-5 vote in the\u2062 House and unanimously in the Senate.\u200b Supporters,including Rep. Bethany Soye, highlight it as a crucial step in protecting\u2063 children from\u2063 harmful content,\u2064 while detractors, such as the ACLU, argue it infringes on\u2062 free speech and privacy rights. <\/p>\n<p>As similar laws face legal scrutiny, the\u2062 U.S. Supreme Court is currently considering a\u2062 texas\u200c statute that\u2064 could influence future legislation in other states. The \u2062court&#8217;s\u200c ruling could either support or challenge\u200d such <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pornhub-sues-texas-over-age-verification-law\/\" title=\"Pornhub files ...suit against Texas over age ... ....\">age verification requirements<\/a> in terms of constitutional rights.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">South Dakota becomes 20th state to pass pornography age-verification law<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2020105\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Gov.&nbsp;Larry Rhoden (R-SD) signed a bill into law on Thursday requiring online <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/pornography\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">pornography<\/a> platforms to implement <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/3067095\/supreme-court-to-weigh-porn-site-age-verification-law\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">age verification<\/a> measures, making the state the&nbsp;20th in the United States&nbsp;to enact such legislation.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>The law, which takes effect&nbsp;on July 1, also makes South Dakota the&nbsp;first state to attach criminal penalties&nbsp;for noncompliance, setting a precedent that other states, including Mississippi, are now considering. While Rhoden has not announced the passage of the law, several sources told the <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>it was signed on Thursday, and a <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ManhartLogan\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">notice<\/a> from Republican state Rep. Logan Manhart on X said the law had been signed.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;After two years of hard work, I am proud to see South Dakota pass the strongest law in the nation to protect children from the predatory pornography industry,&rdquo;&nbsp;Republican state Rep.&nbsp;Bethany Soye, the <a href=\"https:\/\/sdlegislature.gov\/Session\/Bill\/25525\/276255\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">bill&rsquo;s lead sponsor<\/a>,&nbsp;told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The bill passed overwhelmingly in the&nbsp;South Dakota legislature, with a&nbsp;61-5 vote in the House&nbsp;and a&nbsp;unanimous 34-0 vote in the Senate.&nbsp;The state&rsquo;s Republican Senate Majority Leader Jim Mehlhaff&nbsp;praised the measure, calling it the toughest of its kind.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I think it&rsquo;s the strongest age verification legislation in the country. And I appreciate the leadership of Representative Soye and the others who worked on this issue,&rdquo;&nbsp;Mehlhaff&nbsp;told the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The law requires websites featuring adult content to&nbsp;verify users are at least 18 years old&nbsp;before granting them access. Unlike similar laws in other states,&nbsp;South Dakota did not adopt the common <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thecentersquare.com\/national\/article_efc6a476-c207-11ef-98ee-ff818571969a.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">&ldquo;33.3% of content&rdquo; <\/a>threshold&nbsp;to define a &ldquo;covered platform.&rdquo; Instead, it applies to any website that hosts pornographic material as part of its&nbsp;&ldquo;regular course of the website&rsquo;s trade or business.&rdquo;&nbsp;Lawmakers believe this definition will stand up better to legal challenges under a&nbsp;strict scrutiny&nbsp;constitutional test.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How the law&rsquo;s enforcement works<\/h2>\n<p>Under the new law, websites must use verification methods such as a&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/kennedy-to-appeal-ruling-keeping-him-off-new-york-ballot-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"Kennedy to appeal ruling keeping him off New York ballot - Washington Examiner\">state-issued driver&#038;rsquo<\/a>;s license, a nondriver identification card, or financial credentials such as a debit or credit card.&nbsp;The measure also prohibits platforms from&nbsp;storing or selling&nbsp;identifying information collected during verification to protect privacy.<\/p>\n<p>Websites that fail to comply will receive a&nbsp;warning letter from the state attorney general. If they do not implement the required verification measures within&nbsp;90 days, they could face&nbsp;fines of up to $5,000&nbsp;and be charged with a&nbsp;class one misdemeanor. Repeat violations could result in&nbsp;class six felony charges &mdash; a first for any age verification law in the country.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">&lsquo;Stay away from our kids&rsquo;<\/h2>\n<p>Outside groups in support of the bill argue that it is necessary to protect minors from easy access to explicit content.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;After a multi-year battle, the bill has passed with overwhelming support &mdash; this sends a powerful message to the industry: stay away from our kids,&rdquo;&nbsp;Norman Woods, Director of SD Family Voice, told the <em>Washington Examiner.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Civil liberties groups already battling similar laws at Supreme Court<\/h2>\n<p>The bill, however, has drawn criticism from civil liberties advocates. The&nbsp;American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota&nbsp;has warned that the law infringes on&nbsp;free speech and privacy rights&nbsp;while failing to safeguard children effectively.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Is there harmful content on the internet for young viewers? Undoubtedly. But not every societal ill requires a solution from the government,&rdquo;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.aclu-wy.org\/en\/news\/age-verification-bill-will-not-keep-your-kids-safer-will-risk-privacy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">said<\/a>&nbsp;ACLU-SD Advocacy Manager Samantha Chapman, pointing to existing tools such as &ldquo;built-in parental controls&rdquo; on devices to limit app permissions.<\/p>\n<p>The passage of the 20th state law for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/new-virginia-laws-include-bans-on-china-buying-farmland-and-protections-for-worship-centers\/\" title=\"New Virginia ...s: No farmland sales to China, worship centers protected.\">pornography age verification<\/a> comes as the&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Supreme Court<\/a>&nbsp;considers a case challenging a&nbsp;similar <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/texas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Texas<\/a> statute. The outcome of the case could pave the way for more states to enact similar laws without legal entanglements if the justices rule to uphold the state&rsquo;s measure.<\/p>\n<p>The&nbsp;Free Speech Coalition, which represents the adult entertainment industry against Texas&rsquo;s law, has argued that these laws violate the&nbsp;First Amendment&nbsp;by imposing broad restrictions on content access.<\/p>\n<p>During oral arguments last month,&nbsp;several Supreme Court justices <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3287327\/pornography-age-verification-laws-get-warm-reception-at-supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">appeared sympathetic<\/a> to Texas&rsquo; efforts to shield children from online pornography&nbsp;but also wrestled with the&nbsp;constitutional limits on state regulation of speech. Chief Justice&nbsp;John Roberts&nbsp;acknowledged the&nbsp;rapid evolution of online access, noting that explicit material is now available to minors &ldquo;at the push of a button.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/supreme-court\/3287327\/pornography-age-verification-laws-get-warm-reception-at-supreme-court\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"PORNOGRAPHY AGE-VERIFICATION LAWS GET WARM RECEPTION AT SUPREME COURT\">PORNOGRAPHY AGE-VERIFICATION LAWS GET WARM RECEPTION AT SUPREME COURT<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Justices&nbsp;Brett Kavanaugh&nbsp;and Samuel Alito&nbsp;pressed attorneys on whether existing parental controls were sufficient, with Alito&nbsp;dismissing industry claims&nbsp;that content filters effectively block children from explicit material, saying,&nbsp;&ldquo;Come on, be real.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>However, justices across the ideological spectrum, including&nbsp;Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, raised concerns that&nbsp;Texas&rsquo; approach may <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">unduly burden adult users<\/a> and content creators, signaling the possible need for a narrower legal framework.<\/p>\n<p>The Supreme Court is slated to rule on the case <em>Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton <\/em>by the end of June.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_2020105\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"2020105\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>South Dakota is the 20th state to enact a pornography age-verification law<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2633,"featured_media":2407489,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/IMG_9632-1024x591.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[51239,4762,9963,40710,38638],"class_list":["post-2407488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-age-verification-2","tag-legislation","tag-pornography","tag-south-dakota","tag-state-law"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/IMG_9632-1024x591.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2407488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2633"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2407488"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2407488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2407492,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2407488\/revisions\/2407492"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2407489"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2407488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2407488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2407488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}