Fifth Circuit ruled July 24, 2026 that Section 230 preempts the monitoring-and-filtering mandate. Age-registration duties still stand. Both sides claimed a partial win.
Texas SCOPE Act (HB 18)
BadLawTexas HB 18 (SCOPE Act)
Texas, United States
Texas, United StatesIn force in part; Fifth Circuit blocked the filter mandate under Section 230High threat
- Introduced
- Passed House
- Passed Senate
- Became Law
Requires parental consent and content controls for under-18s on digital services, partly blocked by the courts. Separate from the Texas porn-site law.
Latest update
Fifth Circuit held Section 230 bars the content-filtering mandate; age registration left standing.
Current position
In force in part; Fifth Circuit blocked the filter mandate under Section 230
What it does
The SCOPE Act makes online services get a parent's consent before a minor under 18 can use them, and imposes duties to filter content and limit data collection for young users. Knowing who is a minor means checking ages, and parts of it have been enjoined on First Amendment grounds.
Why it matters
This is the social media half of Texas's push, alongside the adult-content law the Supreme Court upheld. Together they show one state building age gates across both porn sites and mainstream platforms.
Our take
Texas is running two age-verification laws at once. The porn-site one won at the Supreme Court; this one is stuck in the courts. The direction is the same: prove who you are before you go online.
Timeline
Fifth Circuit held Section 230 bars the content-filtering mandate; age registration left standing.
LatestVotes
- House — Final passage (125 to 20) · April 26, 2023
- Senate — Final passage (31 to 0) · May 23, 2023