SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Free Speech Coalition Executive Director Alison Boden testified Tuesday against AB 3080, California’s version of the age verification bills being sponsored around the country by anti-porn religious conservative activists.
AB 3080 was introduced in the California Assembly by Republican Assemblymember Juan Alanis, a former law enforcement officer representing Modesto, and was heard in the Assembly’s Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection.
The bill would require sites with more than one-third of “material harmful to minors” to scan government IDs or otherwise verify the identity of the user.
The bill was originally drafted by the socially conservative Citizens for Renewing America and is supported by religious groups including the California Catholic Conference and California Baptists for Biblical Values.
Despite widespread opposition from groups including Electronic Frontier Foundation, Woodhull Action Fund, Netchoice and an array of sex ed, LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights advocates, a motion to pass the bill out of committee succeeded. AB 3080 will next be heard by the Judiciary Committee.
Testifying before the Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection, Boden explained the technological, constitutional and privacy-related issues inherent in online age verification.
According to an FSC statement, proponents of the bill also “came out in force” to testify in favor of it, among them the Age Verification Providers Association, Exodus Cry and Concerned Women for America.
Boden described AB 3080 as “a terribly flawed bill that never should have advanced out of committee, especially not one focused on consumer privacy.”
“If we’re going to defeat these dangerous, unconstitutional bills, we’re going to need to be there to make sure all of our voices are heard,” she added. “We have a strong base in this state, and we need all Californians to reach out to their legislators to let them know the issues with AB 3080.”
The FSC has set up a page for those who want to speak out against age verification in California.
For more information, visit FreeSpeechCoalition.com.