While the law was aimed at social media operators like Meta, TikTok and X, its definition of a social media operator was likely to have lumped in a broad swath of online content platforms.
In a January ruling pausing enforcement of the bill, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio Chief Judge Algenon L. Marbley ruled that the law was a “breathtakingly blunt instrument.”
His ruling Wednesday permanently struck down the law on the grounds that it would have unconstitutionally restricted the First Amendment rights of both minors under 16 and the content platforms themselves.
“This Court lauds the State’s effort through the Act to protect the children of this state,” Marbley wrote. “This Court finds, however, that the Act as drafted fails to pass constitutional muster and is constitutionally infirm.”
The state legislature is in the process of vetting a new bill that would require age verification and parental consent from the app stores, not the platforms themselves. Bill sponsors say they’re confident it could pass constitutional muster.
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Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
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