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A bill that would require porn websites to verify the age of viewers advances in the Iowa House

An Iowa House panel unanimously advanced a bill Wednesday that would require porn sites to verify the age of viewers. Websites could face lawsuits if they allow minors to view obscene materials.

Lobbyist Logan Murray says the Technology Association of Iowa supports the general concept of the bill, but has some concerns about how it’s written. He says the bill doesn’t specify how websites should verify the age of users.

“The way this is drafted, websites with legitimate content could be at risk of being held liable or requiring age verification — medical publications, things along those lines. Additionally, this would require a lot of data collection, which puts Iowans at risk for data breaches.”

Christian groups spoke in support of the bill, saying it’s needed to protect young kids from accessing obscene content on the internet.