House Bill 498 Summary

• Creates a new civil cause of action allowing minors and their parents/guardians to sue commercial entities that knowingly publish material harmful to minors on the internet without implementing reasonable age verification.

• Defines "material harmful to minors" using a three-part test based on contemporary community standards, including depictions of sexual acts or genitals that lack serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors.

• Provides for injunctive relief, nominal and compensatory damages, statutory damages of at least $10,000, and court costs/attorney's fees for successful plaintiffs; establishes a 4-year statute of limitations for civil actions.

• Exempts internet service providers, search engines, web browsers, and other infrastructure providers from liability unless they knowingly benefit from or are in a venture with entities publishing such material; news-gathering organizations are also exempted.

• Establishes exclusive private civil enforcement with no state enforcement authority; grants sovereign immunity to the state and its political subdivisions; takes effect July 1, 2024.