Ohio's social media parental consent law blocked by judge as likely unconstitutional

Watch a previous report on the lawsuit against Ohio's social media law in the video player above.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A new Ohio law limiting children's access to social media will be blocked for the foreseeable future.

A federal judge indefinitely blocked the state's social media parental consent law Monday while a lawsuit challenging the statute's constitutionality proceeds. The lawsuit, filed by internet company association NetChoice in early January, argues the law violates companies' and internet users' First Amendment rights and will cause undue economic harm to social media platforms if allowed to go into effect.

Judge Algenon Marbley mostly agreed with NetChoice, writing in his opinion that the trade association that represents TikTok, X and other media companies is likely to succeed in its attempt to strike the law down permanently.

The “Parental Notification by Social Media Operators Act,” which lawmakers passed as part of the budget in July, requires social media companies to verify the age of users and seek parental consent before allowing children under 16 on the platforms. It would have gone into effect Jan. 15 but was temporarily blocked while the judge mulled over NetChoice's request for a preliminary injunction.

Social media companies would have to develop methods to verify users’ ages, whether by asking for government identification, credit or debit card information, or using a digital consent form. For users under 16, companies must get “verifiable parental or legal guardian consent” and send written confirmation to parents.

"Foreclosing minors under sixteen from accessing all content on websites that the Act purports to cover, absent affirmative parental consent, is a breathtakingly blunt instrument for reducing social media’s harm to children," Marbley wrote.

NetChoice contends that the law violates free speech rights in multiple ways, including by being written so broadly as to improperly restrict access to entire sites regardless of their content. The law carves out exceptions for news media and product review websites, but the state argues that supporting children's mental health and safety requires restricting them from accessing the potentially harmful or obscene content more likely to appear on social media platforms.

NetChoice has successfully sued other states for similar social media laws, including California and Arkansas. A bipartisan bill to require parental consent for those under 18 to use social media was introduced at the federal level last April, one of many attempts by state and federal lawmakers to curb children’s access to potentially harmful material.

“We appreciate the district court’s thoughtful opinion upholding the First Amendment and decision to prevent regulators from violating the free speech and online privacy rights of Ohioans and their kids as our case proceeds," NetChoice's litigation director, Chris Marchese, said in a statement.

Read Marbley's full ruling below.