Texas law requiring parental consent for minors downloading apps blocked days before going into effect

WACO, Texas (KWTX) - Governor Abbott signed Senate Bill 2420 into law, requiring age verification and parental consent for minors downloading apps or making in-app purchases.

Also known as the App Store Accountability Act, it was set to go into effect Jan. 1 along with dozens of other laws.

On Dec. 23, however, U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman blocked SB 2420, citing First Amendment concerns.

According to Texas House Representative Pat Curry, this bill was a bipartisan effort to help protect kids by putting guardrails in place.

“It was voted in unanimously with the intent of dealing with the social media issues that we have today, and online gambling, and all kinds of various different apps and applications,” Curry said.

In his ruling, Judge Pitman argued the law “restricts access to a vast universe of speech by requiring Texans to prove their age before downloading a mobile app or accessing paid content within those apps and requires minors to obtain parental consent.”

On the other hand, Curry argues the law doesn’t violate free speech rights.

“If a parent wants to let their child go do something then they certainly can verify age and go do that but… it’s wrong for them to stop something like this,” he shared.

Kristy Donaldson, a licensed professional counselor, said some apps can have a negative impact on mental health, especially in kids and teens.

“These sites and apps and things weren’t originally created with children in mind, Donaldson said, ”It has algorithm-driven feeds that know and push extremes, and that addictive material to get them to want to see it more often."

She further explained that this can lead to an increase in anxiety, depression, and even addiction.

“I don’t think the judge’s decision means that individuals and lawmakers are not concerned about kids online safety and that that’s not a valid concern, I think it’s very much a valid concern,” Donaldson shared, “I think it just means that the courts are trying to decide how far the government can go into regulating digital spaces.”

Senator Angela Paxton, the author of the law, said in a statement: “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. We are committed to seeing it through.”

Now, Representative Curry says the state will most likely go to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

“It’ll be appealed to try and get that stay lifted and then it’ll be implemented once that stay is lifted,” he explained. .

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