HB 1181 (2023), age verification for material harmful to minors
In force
Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code ch. 129B
Effective 2023-09-01 · Applies to private
Requires a commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes material on a website, including a social media platform, more than one third of which is sexual material harmful to minors, to use reasonable age verification methods for Texas visitors and to protect any identifying information it collects.
| Age threshold | 18 |
| Verification methods | gov id, digital id, transactional data |
| Penalties | Civil penalty up to $10,000 per day of noncompliance or improper retention of identifying information, plus up to $250,000 if a minor accesses the material as a result of a violation. |
| Enforcement body | Texas Attorney General |
| Private suits | no |
Litigation: Free Speech Coalition, Inc. v. Paxton, No. 23-1122 (Supreme Court of the United States). The Fifth Circuit had upheld the law applying rational basis review. The Supreme Court affirmed on different reasoning, holding 6 to 3 on June 27, 2025 that intermediate scrutiny, not strict scrutiny, governs age verification laws of this kind, and that HB 1181 survives that standard. Justice Thomas wrote for the majority, Justice Kagan dissented.
Source: Tex. Civ. Prac. & Rem. Code ch. 129B
SB 2420 (2025), App Store Accountability Act
In force
Tex. Bus. & Com. Code ch. 121 (Subtitle C, Title 5)
Effective 2026-01-01 · Applies to private
Requires app store providers to verify a user's age category, link a minor's account to a parent account, and obtain parental consent before a minor can download an app or make an in app purchase, and to share age and consent information with app developers. Violations are deceptive trade practices under Texas consumer protection law.
| Age threshold | 18 |
| Verification methods | device signal, parental consent |
| Enforcement body | Texas Attorney General, and enforceable as a deceptive trade practice under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices-Consumer Protection Act. |
| Private suits | yes |
Litigation: Students Engaged in Advancing Texas v. Paxton, No. 1:25-cv-01662 (W.D. Tex.), and Computer & Communications Industry Association v. Paxton (W.D. Tex.); Supreme Court emergency applications Nos. 25A1389 and 25A1390 (U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas; Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals; Supreme Court of the United States). The district court granted preliminary injunctions on December 23, 2025. The Fifth Circuit stayed the injunctions in late May 2026, granting a full stay pending appeal in early June 2026, and the Supreme Court denied the challengers' emergency applications to vacate the stay on July 6, 2026 in unsigned orders with no noted dissents. The law is enforceable while the Fifth Circuit's merits appeal proceeds, with an expedited hearing expected in early August 2026.
Source: Tex. Bus. & Com. Code ch. 121 (Subtitle C, Title 5)
HB 18 (2023), Securing Children Online through Parental Empowerment (SCOPE) Act
Enjoined
Tex. Bus. & Com. Code ch. 509
Effective 2024-09-01 · Applies to private
Requires digital service providers to determine whether a Texas account holder is a known minor based on self reported age at registration, obtain parental consent for certain data uses, and restrict targeted advertising, data sharing, and specified design features for known minors. Federal courts have enjoined the law's core provisions statewide, including its monitoring and filtering, targeted advertising, and age verification requirements, while Texas appeals.
| Age threshold | 18 |
| Verification methods | self declaration, parental consent |
| Enforcement body | Texas Attorney General |
| Private suits | no |
Litigation: Computer & Communications Industry Association and NetChoice v. Paxton, No. 1:24-cv-00849 (W.D. Tex.), and Students Engaged in Advancing Texas v. Paxton (W.D. Tex.); consolidated appeals Nos. 24-50721 and 25-50096 (5th Cir.) (U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, on appeal to the Fifth Circuit). The district court preliminarily enjoined the monitoring and filtering provisions on August 30, 2024 in the CCIA and NetChoice case, and on February 7, 2025 enjoined additional provisions, including targeted advertising restrictions and the age verification and content monitoring requirement, in the companion Students Engaged in Advancing Texas case, holding them facially invalid under strict scrutiny. Texas's consolidated appeals were briefed in 2025 and remain pending before the Fifth Circuit as of this date.
Source: Tex. Bus. & Com. Code ch. 509