The Supreme Court ruled Texas' pornography law was constitutional on Friday, June 27, 2025. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)
Lawmakers from the Lone Star State enacted a bill requiring certain commercial websites that publish sexually explicit content to verify the ages of those entering the site, which the justices upheld as constitutional, noting at least 21 other states imposed similar regulations on sexual material that could be harmful to minors.
Those who visit sexually explicit websites will need to use government-issued identification or a "commercially reasonable method that relies on public or private transactional data."
Sites can perform verification themselves or through a third-party service.
"So adults have a constitutional right to view the very same speech that a State may prohibit for children," Kagan wrote. "And it is a fact of life—and also of law—that adults and children do not live in hermetically sealed boxes. In preventing children from gaining access to ‘obscene for children’ speech, States sometimes take measures impeding adults from viewing it too—even though, for adults, it is constitutionally protected expression.
"But what if Texas could do better—what if Texas could achieve its interest without so interfering with adults’ constitutionally protected rights in viewing the speech H. B. 1181 covers? That is the ultimate question on which the Court and I disagree."
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Pornhub and other pornography giants have stopped service in Texas and other states where regulations are in place.
Alexandra Koch is a breaking news writer for Fox News Digital. Prior to joining Fox News, Alexandra covered breaking news, crime, religion, and the military in the southeast.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/supreme-court-upholds-texas-law-requiring-age-verification-porn-websites