South Carolina H 3424 (Child Online Safety Act)
What it does
South Carolina's Child Online Safety Act makes it unlawful for a commercial site more than a third harmful to minors to reach state residents without a reasonable age check confirming a visitor is 18. A minor, through a parent, can sue for damages, and a site that keeps a user's identifying data after granting access faces separate liability. It took effect on signing.
Why it matters
With more than fifty House cosponsors and near-unanimous votes, this passed as a formality, and it went live with no runway for sites to adapt. South Carolina now runs this alongside its Age-Appropriate Design Code, covering adult sites and mainstream services at once.
Our take
South Carolina passed the porn-site check almost unanimously and made it effective the day it was signed. A vote that lopsided on ID-to-view shows the age-verification fight is not close in most statehouses anymore.
Votes
- House — Passed (113 to 1) · February 1, 2024
- Senate — Passed (43 to 0) · May 8, 2024
- House — Concurred (100 to 1) · May 9, 2024
Timeline
- May 21, 2024Signed into law and took effect (Act 198)
Our coverage: all age-verification stories · Status checked July 19, 2026