COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – While Ohio lawmakers claim an incoming age verification law will help protect minors from pornography, a coalition representing the adult industry is arguing the “vague” statute may expand its reach to social media and music streaming apps.
A provision tucked into the state’s two-year operating budget, signed by Gov. Mike DeWine in June, will require porn websites and any online platforms that host a “significant” amount of content that is “obscene or harmful to juveniles” to verify their visitors are adults. The change will go into effect Tuesday, alongside other policy updates included in the legislation.
Users in Ohio will have to prove their age by uploading a copy of a government-issued photo ID or other personal identification, such as proof of a mortgage or employment. Distributors of online pornography will be required to “immediately” delete such documents after the verification is complete, unless a user maintains an account or subscription. To ensure Ohio users’ ages are verified, adult websites will be responsible for using technology to monitor the location of their visitors.
The provision in the state budget follows multiple failed similar legislative efforts, including a bill introduced in 2024 and another earlier this year called “The Innocence Act.” Rep. Steve Demetriou (R-Bainbridge Twp.), who introduced both previous bills, argued at a hearing in March that age verification measures would protect minors from “harmful” content.
“In Ohio, businesses that primarily sell or rent adult content are legally required to verify the age of their customers,” Demetriou said. “The Innocence Act brings this commonsense safeguard into the 21st century.”
The lawmaker cited multiple studies, including a 2010 study in the scientific journal Aggressive Behavior, that found exposure to violent X-rated content led to an increase in self-reported sexually aggressive behavior. He also pointed to studies that linked pornography to heightened feelings of social isolation and sexist attitudes toward women.
Rep. Josh Williams (R-Sylvania Township), who cosponsored The Innocence Act, has claimed the measure will not affect social media sites like X. However, the Free Speech Coalition, a nonprofit trade association for the adult entertainment industry, disagrees.
Director of Public Policy Mike Stabile argued that Ohio’s law is particularly vague compared with other states and therefore may result in a variety of platforms choosing to enact age verification measures to prevent legal issues.
“It affects not just porn sites, but any site that might have material that is defined as harmful to juveniles,” Stabile said. “Under the law I think that sites like X and Reddit and Bluesky may have to begin age verifying. … As we've seen in other places, services like Spotify may decide to do it as well to avoid potentially triggering the law.”
The statute explicitly exempts news organizations, as well as cable and streaming providers, from age verification measures.
Stabile predicted more Ohioans will turn to VPNs – networks that allow users to mask their location – which have seen increased use in other states with such laws. Residents may also begin using global websites that do not comply with U.S. law, he said.
“It becomes very similar to something like prohibition, where the demand doesn't go away, but it goes to the darker corners of the Internet,” Stabile said. “It goes to places where maybe they're not taking down revenge porn or they're not taking down child sex abuse material or people who are underage.”
Some adult websites, including PornHub, have completely blocked access to regions with age verification laws on the books. However, Stabile said a “significant number” of American sites have complied with similar laws in other states, even though their traffic has dropped drastically upon the use of age verification.
The Ohio Attorney General will hold the sole authority to enforce the new law by filing civil lawsuits against companies that do not comply.
Currently, 22 states have laws in effect that require age verification to access online pornography, according to the Free Speech Coalition. Three more states – including Ohio, Missouri and Arizona – have passed laws that are set to go into effect in the future.
“The law is particularly vague in Ohio, and it encompasses a wide variety of content,” he said. “I don't know who's planning on complying or how they're planning on complying; we'll see on Sept. 30 how these sites try to address the law.”
Demetriou did not make himself available for an interview for this article.
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