LANSING, Mich.—A bipartisan proposal mandating age verification on adult websites is now before the state legislature, notes a press statement from the Michigan House Republicans published on May 12.
Introduced earlier this month, Republican state Rep. Brad Paquette and Democratic state Sen. John Cherry proposed companion legislation, House Bill (HB) 4429 and Senate Bill (SB) 284, that would require operators of adult websites in Michigan's digital space to confirm the ages of their users.
Dubbed the Digital Age Assurance Act, the bill offers a device-based verification framework that verifies a user's age at the device level. Adult companies, including Pornhub owner Aylo, have expressed tacit support for device-based age verification over site-level verification approaches adopted by other states.
This means that the bill covers all aspects of the device, including the app store installed with the operating system of the device.
Rep. Paquette said, "This legislation will make significant strides to protect children online as both sides of the aisle recognize the urgent priority. ... We are drawing from successful approaches used across the country. Our hope is that our colleagues see this proposal for what it is—model legislation on how to navigate this problem.”
HB 4429 is before the House Communications and Technology Committee. SB 284 is before the Senate Finance, Insurance, and Consumer Protection Committee. Adult industry trade group the Free Speech Coalition has previously confirmed its support for device-based age verification solutions that minimize data collection of users.
A spokesperson for the Free Speech Coalition declined to comment on this legislation but confirmed they are monitoring it moving forward.
