On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court gave Texas the green light to continue enforcing a law that requires app stores to have age verification measures and obtain parental consent for minors to download apps and purchase paid content within those apps.
The Tide is Turning on Child Online Safety
The law Texas passed, the Texas App Store Accountability Act, SB 2420, requires that users verify their age when setting up a device, and if the user is a minor, the new law requires a parent to approve app downloads. This comes as another important measure to allow parents to know what their kids are accessing online.
The concept is simple: minors can’t sign contracts.
We don’t let them sign permission slips to go on field trips. We know they’re not old enough to sign waivers and liability contracts. Why should online contracts get exceptions, especially when explicit content is at their fingertips?
Age verification and parental consent for minors has been commonly labelled as impossible to enforce, an infringement of the First Amendment, and unable to withstand a court challenge. But the tide continues to change in our favor, as we seek to protect kids.
South Dakota has seen similar legislation, but has been unsuccessful in getting the votes to pass it. South Dakotan opponents cite the same arguments, claiming that it bars First Amendment rights and wouldn’t withstand a court challenge. Now, we’re seeing those arguments get deconstructed on a national level, hopefully setting the precedent for South Dakota to take the leap.
Texas’ Law Survives Its Biggest Legal Test Yet
Texas passed the App Store Accountability Act in 2025, and was challenged on two separate accounts. The first comes from a group called Students Engaged in Advancing Texas, which claims that its members “use mobile apps to teach other kids how to get involved in policymaking.” The second challenge comes from the Computer and Communications Industry Association, which represents app stores and app developers. In both cases, the First Amendment was cited as being violated by Texas’ law.
Texas was barred from enforcing the bill by District Judge Robert Pitman in December, but last month the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit removed Pitman’s orders, prompting the challengers to bring the case up to the Supreme Court shortly after.
Opponents of the legislation have argued that the legislation restricts free speech and censors content, but this is simply not the case. The bill works to ensure that digital agreements are entered into by adults who are capable of understanding the app’s purpose, content, and age-appropriateness.
Because the intent is for minors to not enter into contracts they aren’t old enough to sign, the bill itself is content-neutral, meaning it is content-neutral, meaning it applies across the board – regardless of the content inside the app.
Contracts, Not Speech
Texas responded to opponent arguments stating that the bill’s jurisdiction regulates commercial transactions rather than speech, specifically, the conditions in which young people can agree to signing contracts required to download an app.
“In the same way that the State can deny drivers’ licenses to children under sixteen, even though some fourteen-year-olds may wish to drive to a bookstore and purchase a book, the State can restrict children’s downloads of software applications to mobile devices as a product category, even if some children may wish to use applications to engage in expressive conduct,” Texas argued.
The state further stated that because SB 2420 regulates all apps “regardless of their content,” the district court applied the wrong constitutional standard in finding that the law violates the First Amendment. Instead, Judge Pitman should have applied a lesser scrutiny standard, the state contended.
According to Texas, SB 2420 satisfies the intermediate scrutiny standard. The court of appeals concluded, “‘Requiring age verification, parental consent, and app-related content ratings likely directly and materially advances Texas’s substantial interest in protecting children’s data, safety, and privacy in a digital world.’”
A Victory That Reaches Beyond Texas
When the U.S. Supreme Court declined to intervene in Texas’ efforts to protect its kids, a signal was sent to all other states, including South Dakota. The signal is clear- this is enforceable. In coming years, this will give another boost to our efforts to protect kids online and empower parents to know what their children are accessing online.
