Coalition of Conservative Groups Urges Senate Passage of Pornography Age-Verification Bill

U.S. senators urging passage of legislation that would require pornography websites to implement age verification before granting access to sexually explicit content. The groups are supporting the SAFE for Kids Act, introduced Tuesday by Republican Indiana Sen.

Jim Banks. The letter states that nearly 80 percent of children ages 12 to 17 have been exposed to sexually explicit material. It adds that the average age of first exposure is 12 years old, with 54 percent of children ages 13 and younger and 80 percent of children ages 12-17 having viewed such content.

More than 90 percent of parents worry about their children’s online safety, and more than half agree that politicians are not taking the issue seriously enough, according to the letter. It also notes that 81 percent of voters support a federal age verification law. The bill would require commercial entities that distribute pornography on the internet to verify users' ages.

It would give the Federal Trade Commission enforcement authority through consumer protection law and allow the Department of Justice to investigate platforms that intentionally violate the requirements. Individuals, including parents and legal guardians, would be permitted to sue companies that violate the law.

The letter reports that nearly 25 percent of children own a smartphone by age 8 and nearly 40 percent of children ages 8-12 use social media.

18 billion by 2032. Signers include Kevin Roberts, president of Heritage Action; Victoria Cobb, president of The Family Foundation of Virginia; Penny Nance, president and CEO of Concerned Women for America Legislative Action Committee; Craig DeRoche, president and CEO of the Family Policy Alliance; Melissa McKay, president of the Digital Childhood Institute; and Katy Faust, founder and president of ThemBeforeUs.