ALEXANDRIA, Va.—A trade group representing some of the largest companies in the technology industry announced on Monday that it has sued the state of Virginia in a bid to block a social media law requiring both age verification and restricting usage to one hour per day for users under the age of 16.
The trade group, NetChoice, filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, located in Alexandria. Claims made in the lawsuit that names the state's outgoing attorney general, Jason Miyares, a Republican, allege that Senate Bill (SB) 854 violates the First Amendment rights of both adult users and minors.
"Virginia must leave the parenting decisions where they belong: with parents," said Paul Taske, co-director of NetChoice's Litigation Center, in a statement. "By asserting that authority for itself, Virginia not only violates its citizens’ rights to free speech but also exposes them to increased risk of privacy and security breaches."
Taske adds, "We look forward to defending Virginians’ First Amendment rights in court."
Signed into law by lame-duck Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin in May, SB 854 is set to enter force on January 1, 2026. When it enters force, Virginians will be unable to access speech protected by the First Amendment unless they verify that they are over a prescribed age. This requires parents and adult users to verify their ages.
But the law also imposes a one-hour, government-regulated time limit on social media use. Adults have to verify further that they are the ones requesting more time.
