Texas App Store Accountability Act (SB 2420)
What it does
New app store accounts in Texas start with an age check. The store sorts users into brackets: under 13, 13 to 15, 16 to 17, adult. Anyone under 18 must have an account linked to a verified parent, and the parent has to approve each app download and each in-app purchase. Developers face fines up to $10,000 per violation.
Why it matters
Texas moved the age gate from individual websites to the account you need before you can install anything. A federal judge blocked the law in December 2025 on First Amendment grounds, the Fifth Circuit lifted that block in June, and on July 6 the Supreme Court let the law stay in force while the appeal runs. So the checks are happening now, statewide, with the constitutional question still open.
Our take
This is the app store version of carding everyone at the door. Texas already age-gates porn sites and social media. Now the phone itself asks who you are before you can download a weather app. Utah, Louisiana, and Alabama have passed the same law, and Congress has a federal copy waiting.
Votes
- Senate — Final passage (30 to 1)
- House — Final passage (120 to 9) · May 9, 2025
Timeline
- May 27, 2025Signed by Governor Abbott
- June 4, 2026Fifth Circuit lifted the district court injunction; law took effect
- July 6, 2026Supreme Court declined to block the law while the appeal continues
Legal challenges
First Amendment challenge; law in force while the appeal continues
District court injunction stayed by the Fifth Circuit; Supreme Court declined to block, July 2026
Related bills
Our coverage: all age-verification stories