Committee adopts amendment and advances bill requiring age and consent verification for online adult content and synthetic depictions

The Senate Judiciary and Elections Committee adopted an amendment and advanced House Bill 2133, a measure that would require commercial entities that publish or distribute sexually explicit material to verify that everyone depicted consented and was at least 18 at the time of creation and to retain verification records for inspection.

Representative Kupper (sponsor) told the committee the bill pairs two priorities: treating synthetic depictions in parity with other unlawful image statutes and requiring commercially reasonable age and consent verification similar to protocols used in the adult content industry. "We just didn’t put the same parity into revenge porn that we put into child exploitation," the sponsor said, describing the measure as aligning online practice with established industry safeguards.

Industry representatives, including Mike Stabile of the Free Speech Coalition, said adult‑content platforms already employ identity and age‑assurance processes but raised concerns about mandatory record retention, potential law‑enforcement access without warrants, and constitutional questions about broad definitions. The sponsor acknowledged technical drafting issues around data retention and said he would work on amendments with stakeholders.

The committee adopted a five‑page amendment and, after recorded explanations and debate, gave HB 2133 a due‑pass recommendation (4 ayes, 3 noes).