A new Texas law aimed at protecting children can now take effect while it is challenged in court. The U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted an injunction against the Texas App Store Accountability Act, which was originally set to take effect at the start of the year before a district judge blocked it. The law, passed by last year's legislature, requires app stores to verify the age of users and get parental approval before minors can download apps or make in-app purchases. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who championed the law, says "Texas has not only the right, but the duty, to protect children from the harms of our modern digital space."
Legal challenges to the law were brought by groups representing the tech industry and students in Texas, claiming the law violates the First Amendment by censoring lawful speech and shutting out young people from app stores entirely. The district judge agreed with those concerns, but the appeals court's action signals the law may ultimately be upheld. "This shows they are gonna take a serious look at this and possibly overturn the lower court's ruling," says Travis Crabtree, attorney specializing in online issues. "If they felt strongly that the district court got it right, they probably would not have overturned the injunction."
That said, free speech cases like this are always tricky, as seen in states like Florida which banned social media for young people. At issue is balancing the state's interest in protecting children with the Constitution's protection of free speech. In this case, Crabtree says Texas lawmakers have to thread the needle to pass First Amendment scrutiny. "The more they select what type of content is acceptable, the more it becomes content-based and goes up into a strict scrutiny standard," he tells KTRH. "So it's a difficult ask of our legislature to craft a law that does protect our children, and abides by the First Amendment."
Most Texans are on board with the law, as evidenced by a poll last year from the Texas Public Policy Foundation that found 75% of Texas parents support requiring parental approval for teen app use. But regardless of public support, the courts must consider legitimate Constitutional concerns. "The First Amendment is there to protect speech that you don't like," says Crabtree. "Just because you don't like it, that doesn't mean the First Amendment shouldn't apply and shouldn't protect speech."
"So there are serious competing interests here---the safety of our kids versus the First Amendment of the Constitution," he continues. "And that's why this case is likely headed to the Supreme Court."
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