A federal judge has temporarily blocked a new Texas law that would have imposed age verification and parental consent requirements on children’s use of app stores, dealing a setback to state lawmakers who have made online safety for minors a legislative priority.
The law, Senate Bill 2420, was scheduled to take effect Jan. 1. It requires app stores to verify users’ ages and obtain parental consent before minors can download apps or make in-app purchases. Supporters argue the measure is a necessary response to the growing influence of social media and digital platforms on children. Opponents contend it places unconstitutional burdens on speech and parental decision-making.
On Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, granted a preliminary injunction blocking the law’s enforcement while legal challenges proceed. In a 20-page ruling, Pitman said key parts of the statute are “unconstitutionally vague” and “exceedingly overbroad,” raising serious First Amendment concerns.
“The Act is akin to a law that would require every bookstore to verify the age of every customer at the door and, for minors, require parental consent before the child or teen could enter and again when they try to purchase a book,” Pitman wrote.
“As set out below, the Court finds a likelihood that, when considered on the merits, SB 2420 violates the First Amendment.”
The lawsuit challenging SB 2420 was filed in October by the Computer & Communication Industry Association, a trade group representing major technology companies. The organization welcomed the ruling, calling it a win for free speech and parental autonomy.
“This Order stops the Texas App Store Accountability Act from taking effect in order to preserve the First Amendment rights of app stores, app developers, parents, and younger internet users,” Stephanie Joyce, director of CCIA’s Litigation Center, said in a news release. “It also protects parents’ inviolate right to use their own judgment in safeguarding their children online using the myriad tools our members provide.”
The law also faces a separate legal challenge from two Texas teenagers and Students Engaged in Advancing Texas, a youth-led advocacy group. Their attorneys argue that the law improperly restricts minors’ access to information and expression.
“App stores allow anyone with a smartphone and an internet connection to access the accumulated sum of virtually all recorded human knowledge and expression,” said Adam Sieff, an attorney representing the teens and the organization. “Banning students like SEAT’s members, M.F., and Z.B., from accessing these massive libraries without parental consent, just because the government thinks that’s what their parents ought to want, has never been a constitutionally permissible way to protect kids or support families.”
Despite the ruling, the bill’s author, state Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, said she remains confident the law will ultimately be upheld.
“We built this bill to equip parents with common sense tools to protect their kids AND to survive court challenges by those who may have lesser priorities,” Paxton said in a written statement.
Under SB 2420, app developers would be required to assign age ratings to their apps, explain the reasons for those ratings, and notify app stores of significant changes. The law includes exemptions for certain emergency and educational applications, such as those that provide access to crisis hotlines.
Gov. Greg Abbott signed the measure into law in May, framing it as part of a broader effort to strengthen online protections for children.
“Safety and online privacy for Texas children remains a priority for Governor Abbott, which is why he signed SB 2420 into law. Texas will empower parents to have more control over the online content their children can access,” his press secretary, Andrew Mahaleris, said earlier this year.
SB 2420 is one of several recent Texas laws aimed at regulating young people’s access to online content. In 2023, the state enacted House Bill 1181, which requires websites with a significant amount of material deemed harmful to minors to implement “reasonable” age verification measures. That law, largely focused on limiting access to pornography, was challenged by adult entertainment websites on free speech and privacy grounds.
Texas defended the measure by arguing it had the authority to protect children, with Solicitor General Aaron Nielson describing the restrictions as “simple, safe and common.” The U.S. Supreme Court ultimately sided with the state, ruling the law constitutional in a significant victory for proponents of stricter online safeguards.
At the same time, courts have signaled limits to such regulations. Federal judges have temporarily blocked parts of another 2023 law, House Bill 18, which restricts certain social media content, advertising, and age verification requirements for minors. Those rulings suggest ongoing legal uncertainty over how far states can go in regulating internet use by young people.
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