By Julie Kerr Smith
COLOMBUS, Ohio (AP) — A federal judge permanently terminated Ohio’s law on Thursday, demanding that children and teens under the age of 16 obtain parental consent to use the social media app.
The decision of U.S. District Court Judge Algiano Marble has been caught up in a lawsuit filed by Netchoice, a trade group representing Tiktok, Snapchat, Meta and other major high-tech companies. The organization’s appeal argued that the law was unconstitutional and hindered freedom of speech and was overly broad and vague.
The state argues that laws are necessary to protect children from the harm of social media. Marbury said the state’s efforts were praiseworthy, but they went too far.
“However, the court found that the drafted act failed to pass a constitutional convened and was constitutionally frail,” he wrote.
“We’ll review the decision and decide on the next step,” said Bethany McCaulkle, a spokesman for Republican Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost.
The law was originally set to come into effect on January 15, 2024, but Marbleley immediately retained that he would enforce what he later expanded. This is similar to those enacted in other states, including California, Arkansas and Utah. Net Choice lawsuits have been successful in blocking such laws forever or temporarily.
The law attempts to require businesses to obtain permission from parents on social media and gaming apps, provide privacy guidelines, and require families to know which content will be censored or mitigated in their child’s profiles.
The Social Media Practice Notification Act was part of a $86.1 billion state budget bill that Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed the law in July 2023. The administration has promoted measures as a way to protect children’s mental health.
Marbley says that the law “is at the intersection of two unquestionable rights. The rights of children are “an important measure of freedom of speech and expression under the first amendment and the rights of parents to guide the child upbringing from unnecessary government invasions.”
However, his opinion cited court precedents that such laws do not enforce parental authority over children’s speeches.
NetChoice praised Thursday’s ruling.
“This decision confirms that the initial amendment protects the rights of content and Americans to spread the rights of Americans to engage in protected speeches online and that policymakers must respect their constitutional rights when they legislate,” said Chris Marchez, head of litigation at NetChoice in a statement.
Original issue: April 17, 2025, 5:23pm EDT
