RICHMOND, Va. (WWBT) – A bill passed overwhelmingly by both houses of the General Assembly could allow parents to take legal action against porn sites if their child can easily access them.
Republican Senator Bill Stanley, who sponsored SB 1515, after reviewing research and articles on the subject, believes that not much is being done to discourage children from accessing these sites.
“A remarkable and truly disturbing fact was that at least 15% of children under the age of 10 were able to access and be exposed to pornography on pornography websites,” Stanley said.
He said his concern is how watching this content will affect a child’s mental health as they grow up.
Wanting to see more barriers, Stanley said he found a state where a similar law went into effect earlier this year.
“One state, Louisiana, has actually done this by creating civil liability for children who may have been exposed to and harmed by pornography,” Stanley said.
So does his bill: make sure pornography sites take advanced steps to verify a person’s age, which in the case of Louisiana could mean requiring a user to show a driver’s license.
In a digital age where submitting personal information online can be risky, this poses privacy concerns for some, like Democratic Senator John Edwards, who was one of three senators to vote against the bill.
“A person’s age needs to be verified, and we know there are a lot of hackers out there,” Senator Edwards said. “So if you can verify someone’s age, chances are they can be hacked.”
Senator Stanley isn’t as concerned about hackers, however, as he says many companies can safely use identity verification systems online.
“There are companies that use very effective filters for identity verification systems,” Senator Stanley said. “The question of whether their privacy is compromised or hacked or obtained, but those trying to impersonate them isn’t really an issue.”
Edwards also said he voted against the law because it was unconstitutional.
“The Interstate Commerce Clause states that states cannot regulate interstate commerce. Only the federal government can do this,” Senator Edwards said.
Senator Stanley argues that pornographic material sold in public businesses is censored and age verification is required before you purchase that material, which is not unconstitutional.
“These adult magazines are produced in another state and shipped to Virginia,” Stanley said. “They are sold in stores like Barnes and Noble. They put a blanket over it and verify the person’s age before calling them. This does not violate the Interstate Commerce Clause.”
Senator Stanley acknowledges there may be ways to circumvent what may be a new rule, but said at least something has been put in place to try to protect children.
“You can use techniques or tactics to get around that, but that’s at least a roadblock that makes it a lot harder,” Stanley said. “If it is not impossible for a child to access pornography on the Internet.”
Stanley is confident that Governor Youngkin will sign the law into law, while Edwards believes legal action will be taken if it passes.
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