First Amendment challenge; law in force while the appeal continues
Texas App Store Accountability Act (SB 2420)
100%became law
Bad for your rightsLaw
- Introduced
- Passed Senate
- Passed House
- Became Law
In force; Supreme Court declined to block, July 2026
Makes Apple and Google age-check every Texan who opens an app store account. In force after the Supreme Court declined to block it.
Latest update
Fifth Circuit heard argument, according to CCIA
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Read the full billOfficial bill recordKey facts
- Where
- Texas, United States
- Bill number
- Texas SB 2420
- Status
- Law
- June 4, 2026
- Threat
- High
- Last update
- August 4, 2026
Topics
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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.
What’s at stake
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.
Timeline
Fifth Circuit heard argument, according to CCIALatest
Supreme Court declined to block the law while the appeal continues
Fifth Circuit paused the injunctions while the appeal runs
Fifth Circuit lifted the district court injunction; law took effect
Federal judge blocked the law in CCIA v. Paxton
Signed by Governor Abbott
The record
Votes
- Senate: Final passage (30 to 1)
- House: Final passage (120 to 9), May 9, 2025
Legal challenges
District court injunction stayed by the Fifth Circuit on June 4, 2026 pending appeal; Supreme Court declined to block, July 2026. CCIA says the Fifth Circuit heard argument on August 4, 2026. No decision yet.
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