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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, First Regular Session
REVISED
explicit content; age verification; internet
Purpose
Requires the provision of government-issued identification before granting access to sexually explicit material on a website and prohibits the identifying information of a website user from being retained, as prescribed.
Background
The internet is collectively the myriad of computer and telecommunications facilities, including equipment and operating software, that comprise the interconnected worldwide network of networks that employ the transmission control protocol or internet protocol, or any predecessor or successor protocols to such protocol, to communicate information of all kinds by wire or radio (A.R.S. § 18-541).
Explicit sexual material is material that depicts human genitalia or that depicts nudity, sexual activity, sexual conduct, sexual excitement or sadomasochistic abuse (A.R.S. § 8-309).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires a person, including an individual or a commercial entity, that publishes or distributes explicit sexual material on the internet from a website that contains a substantial portion of explicit sexual material to require a website user to provide a government-issued identification to verify that the user is at least 18 years old before granting the user access to the website.
2. Prohibits a person, including an individual or a commercial entity, that publishes or distributes explicit sexual material on the internet from a website that contains a substantial portion of explicit sexual material from a website from retaining any identifying information of a website user after access to sexually explicit material has been granted.
3. Defines identifying information as an individual's driver or nonoperating identification license number, date of birth, residential address and unique biometric data.
4. Defines explicit sexual material and internet.
5. Makes conforming changes.
6. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Revisions
1. Includes, in the definition of identifying information, an individual's unique biometric data.
2. Corrects the provisions to reflect that explicit sexual material and internet are defined terms.
Prepared by Senate Research
February 27, 2023
KJA/sr