03/13/2024 01:00 PM House JUDICIARY

             HB 254-PROHIBIT PORNOGRAPHY TO MINORS                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
1:43:57 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE  announced that the  next order of business  would be                                                               
HOUSE BILL NO. 254, "An  Act relating to liability for publishing                                                               
or distributing pornography to minors on the Internet."                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:44:20 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
The committee took an at-ease from 1:44 p.m. to 1:47 p.m.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
1:47:21 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE passed the gavel to Representative Carpenter.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
1:47:49 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE, prime sponsor, presented HB 254.  She paraphrased                                                                  
the sponsor statement [included in the committee packet], which                                                                 
read as follows [original punctuation provided]:                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
     House  Bill 254  stands  out as  a crucial  legislative                                                                    
     initiative,  addressing   the  growing   public  health                                                                    
     crisis  related  to  the influence  of  pornography  on                                                                    
     minors. It serves  as a proactive measure  to disrupt a                                                                    
     tool  employed by  traffickers, preventing  easy access                                                                    
     to young would-be victims through explicit content.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
     Recent  years have  witnessed an  alarming exposure  of                                                                    
     minors  to  pornography,  facilitated  by  advances  in                                                                    
     technology and the  widespread availability of explicit                                                                    
     content   on   the   internet.  This   early   exposure                                                                    
     contributes to the  hyper-sexualization of young minds,                                                                    
     promoting bullying in  schools and setting unreasonable                                                                    
     self-expectations,  necessitating   urgent  legislative                                                                    
     action.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
     House  Bill 254  recognizes  the disturbing  connection                                                                    
     between pornography  and exploitation.  It acknowledges                                                                    
     that  individuals   involved  in  pornography   may  be                                                                    
     victims  of  exploitation,  blurring the  line  between                                                                    
     consensual  adult  participation and  sex  trafficking.                                                                    
     Some are forced into  participating against their will,                                                                    
     revealing a sinister aspect of the adult industry.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
     The  bill also  addresses the  link between  the demand                                                                    
     for  pornography and  the  demand  for commercial  sex,                                                                    
     including  trafficking  victims. The  normalization  of                                                                    
     explicit content in society is  argued to contribute to                                                                    
     an increased  demand for sexual  services, perpetuating                                                                    
     sex trafficking.  Organized crime networks  profit from                                                                    
     both pornography  and exploitation,  utilizing explicit                                                                    
     content as a lure  to manipulate and control vulnerable                                                                    
     individuals.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
     One  alarming aspect  necessitating urgent  legislative                                                                    
     intervention is the role of  pornography in the tactics                                                                    
     employed by  human traffickers. By  restricting minors'                                                                    
     access to  explicit material, House Bill  254 serves as                                                                    
     a crucial tool in  the fight against human trafficking,                                                                    
     contributing to  the overall  well-being and  safety of                                                                    
     the next generation.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
     In conclusion, passing House Bill  254 is an urgent and                                                                    
     necessary step  in safeguarding the  mental, emotional,                                                                    
     and  physical  health  of  our  youth.  It  reflects  a                                                                    
     collective  responsibility  to   create  a  secure  and                                                                    
     nurturing environment, allowing  minors to develop into                                                                    
     healthy,  well-adjusted   individuals  free   from  the                                                                    
     corrosive influence of explicit material.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  VANCE   concluded  that  HB  254   would  establish  civil                                                               
liability  for the  intentional  publication  or distribution  of                                                               
pornography  without  utilizing  a  commercially  reasonable  age                                                               
verification  method.   In  short,  the  bill would  require  age                                                               
verification before  accessing [pornography] websites.   She said                                                               
passing  HB  265  is  a crucial  step  towards  safeguarding  the                                                               
mental, emotional, and physical health of [Alaska's] youth.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:51:49 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   CARPENTER   cautioned   the  public   that   the                                                               
committee's  conversation  may not  be  appropriate  for all  age                                                               
groups.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:52:19 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GRAY shared  his understanding  that although  [a                                                               
similar]   law  passed   in  Texas,   the   courts  blocked   the                                                               
legislation.    He cited  the  reason  for that  decision,  which                                                               
quoted  Reno v.  American Civil  Liberties Union,  and asked  how                                                             
Alaska  would maneuver  [if the  courts  were to  strike down  HB
].                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:53:25 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
BOB BALLINGER,  Staff, Representative  Sarah Vance,  Alaska State                                                               
Legislature, on behalf of Representative  Vance, prime sponsor of                                                               
HB 265, pointed out that  the Texas ruling was overturned, adding                                                               
that the state  has a legitimate interest  in protecting children                                                               
from pornography.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY asked  how the bill would prevent  the use of                                                               
virtual private networks (VPNs) to circumvent this law.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE  stated that the  bill would  not prevent the  use of                                                               
VPNs and that morality cannot be legislated.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:55:54 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GRAY shared  his  understanding  that the  third-                                                               
party  commercial  software  would  require  users  to  upload  a                                                               
government identification  (ID), credit card information,  or the                                                               
use of  facial recognition to  verify age.  He  expressed concern                                                               
that people who  follow the law could be at  risk of having their                                                               
identities compromised.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR. BALLINGER  said most  of these  websites require  credit card                                                               
information  regardless.   He added  that  the bill  specifically                                                               
prohibits  websites  from  retaining  the  information  used  for                                                               
identity verification.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   GRAY  pointed   out   that   Pornhub  is   free;                                                               
furthermore, he  stated that websites  like X  [formerly Twitter]                                                               
and Reddit  contain graphic pornography.   He asked how  the bill                                                               
would restrict access to that.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MR.  BALLINGER  explained  that  if  a  platform  itself  is  not                                                               
creating  [the pornographic  content]  or purposefully  providing                                                               
it, then it would not be held liable.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY  asked whether the  intent of the bill  is to                                                               
catch "bad  guys" or prevent  minors from  viewing [pornographic]                                                               
material.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE  explained that  the bill  would prevent  minors from                                                               
accessing pornography, and by doing  so, act as another roadblock                                                               
to prevent offenders [from accessing children].                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER opened invited testimony.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
2:02:43 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
RICHARD  DARR, Executive  Director,  National Decency  Coalition,                                                               
gave invited testimony  during the hearing on HB 254.   He shared                                                               
a quote  from the  Fifth Circuit Court  of Appeals  and discussed                                                               
similar legislation  enacted in  Louisiana, which resulted  in an                                                               
80  percent decrease  in  access  to Pornhub.    In addition,  he                                                               
discussed  the  technology  used  in Louisiana  that  required  a                                                               
government ID  and a  biometric face  scan.   He stated  that the                                                               
bill would implement "base level"  age verification in Alaska and                                                               
could go further by empowering the enforcement arm of the state.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
2:06:17 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  SUMNER  asked  whether  platforms,  like  [X]  or                                                               
Instagram, could be considered publishers  by engaging in in some                                                               
level of content moderation.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MR.  BALLINGER  directed attention  to  page  2, line  16,  which                                                               
provided  a   carveout  for  certain  Internet   platforms.    He                                                               
reiterated   that  if   the  platforms   are   not  creating   or                                                               
distributing the pornography, they would not be held liable.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  SUMNER asked  whether pornography  websites would                                                               
fall under this exemption.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
MR. BALLINGER answered no.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE SUMNER said he could  see the carveout applying to                                                               
Google  as well  and asked  whether extensive  content moderation                                                               
would  essentially  place  [the  content] under  control  of  the                                                               
entity.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR.  BALLINGER remarked,  "If what  you're doing  is providing  a                                                               
platform, but you're  not distributing it, you have  no intent to                                                               
do  it, you're  not controlling  it to  the point  where you  can                                                               
police all that material, then you wouldn't be liable for it."                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
2:10:39 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE   GROH  requested   further  explanation   of  the                                                               
carveout  for   news  and  journalism  and   asked  whether  this                                                               
particular  provision had  been  raised for  litigation by  other                                                               
states.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE shared  that her intent is not to  interfere with the                                                               
free speech of journalists and  to instead, target those who have                                                               
purposefully made it their business  to provide pornography.  She                                                               
deferred to Mr. Ballinger to  speak to any litigation surrounding                                                               
this issue.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MR. BALLINGER did not know the answer.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER  asked Mr.  Darr whether there  would be                                                               
any legal implications for this kind of legislation.                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
MR. DARR  said subsection  (c) [on page  2, lines  8-10] features                                                               
identical  language to  both the  Utah and  Louisiana bills.   He                                                               
added  that the  challenges brought  against both  the [Louisiana                                                               
and Utah] bills were dismissed.                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
2:13:16 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  SUMNER asked  which of  the categories  listed in                                                               
subsection (d) [on  page 2, lines 16-18]  would capture Instagram                                                               
or [X].                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR.  BALLINGER suggested  that they  could  be considered  search                                                               
engines.     He  offered   to  follow   up  with   the  requested                                                               
information.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE CARPENTER directed the question to Mr. Darr.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MR. DARR shared  his understanding that they  could be considered                                                               
a "provider."                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
2:15:57 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE  highlighted the qualifier  on page 1, line  6, which                                                               
indicated that  a substantial portion  of the  platform's content                                                               
must be pornography to require age verification.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  SUMNER  opined  that  the ability  to  carry  out                                                               
significant and  targeted moderation, while not  moderating other                                                               
content, would establish an intent to publish.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
2:18:15 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GRAY  referenced  a Washington  Examiner  Article                                                               
that  discusses a  spike  in VPN  searches  as pornography  sites                                                               
blocked access in  Virginia.  He noted that per  the article, the                                                               
same  spike  occurred  in Utah  before  similar  legislation  was                                                               
passed.   He asked whether  the bill sponsor would  advise adults                                                               
to use  a VPN  if they  don't want  to share  their ID  or credit                                                               
cards.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE  said she would  advise them not to  view pornography                                                               
and would  not make a  recommendation on  how they can  skirt the                                                               
law.                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY asked whether it is  against the law to use a                                                               
VPN.                                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE said not to her knowledge.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  GRAY   conveyed  the   argument  that   "not  all                                                               
pornography is created  equal."  He suggested that  in an attempt                                                               
to circumvent the age verification,  the bill might inadvertently                                                               
lead minors to view illegal  websites with worse content that may                                                               
not  implement the  same  standards  as mainstream  [pornography]                                                               
websites.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR VANCE said  the same argument is made  for the legalization                                                               
of prostitution, adding that she highly disagreed.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
2:21:47 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE GRAY  asked whether the bill  sponsor would outlaw                                                               
pornography if she could.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR  VANCE acknowledged  that pornography  is protected  by the                                                               
First   Amendment.     She  added   that  while   pornography  is                                                               
inadvisable for anyone's health, she  swore an oath to uphold the                                                               
constitution.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
2:22:42 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  CARPENTER announced  that  HB 254  would be  held                                                               
over.