SB 603 — An Act amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, in computer offenses, providing for Internet protections for minors.

PRINTER'S NO.   611

                     THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA



                        SENATE BILL
                        No. 603
                                                 Session of
                                                   2025

     INTRODUCED BY DUSH, J. WARD, FONTANA AND STEFANO, APRIL 9, 2025

     REFERRED TO JUDICIARY, APRIL 9, 2025


                                     AN ACT
 1   Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania
 2      Consolidated Statutes, in computer offenses, providing for
 3      Internet protections for minors.
 4      The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
 5   hereby enacts as follows:
 6      Section 1.    Chapter 76 of Title 18 of the Pennsylvania
 7   Consolidated Statutes is amended by adding a subchapter to read:
 8                                SUBCHAPTER F
 9                      INTERNET PROTECTIONS FOR MINORS
10   Sec.
11   7671.   Definitions.
12   7672.   Age verification for certain publicly accessible Internet
13               websites.
14   § 7671.   Definitions.
15      The following words and phrases when used in this subchapter
16   shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
17   context clearly indicates otherwise:
18      "Commercial entity."     A corporation, limited liability
19   company, partnership, sole proprietorship or other legally
 1   recognized entity that has a publicly accessible Internet
 2   website on which the publicly accessible Internet website has a
 3   substantial portion of material that is harmful to minors.
 4      "Distributes."      To issue, sell, give, provide, deliver,
 5   transfer, transmute, circulate or disseminate by any means.
 6      "Internet."       The term shall mean the same as in section 7621
 7   (relating to definitions).
 8      "Material harmful to minors."          The following:
 9          (1)     material that the average person, applying
10      contemporary community standards, would find, taking the
11      material as a whole and with respect to minors, is designed
12      to appeal to, or is designed to pander to, the prurient
13      interest;
14          (2)     material that exploits, is devoted to or principally
15      consists of descriptions of actual, simulated or animated
16      display or depiction of any of the following, in a manner
17      patently offensive with respect to minors:
18                 (i)    pubic hair, anus, vulva, genitals or nipple of
19          the female breast;
20                 (ii)    touching, caressing or fondling of nipples,
21          breasts, buttocks, anuses or genitals; and
22                 (iii)    sexual intercourse, masturbation, sodomy,
23          bestiality, oral copulation, flagellation, excretory
24          functions, exhibitions or any other sexual act; or
25          (3)     material that taken as a whole lacks serious
26      literary, artistic, political or scientific value for minors.
27      "Minor."    An individual under 18 years of age.
28      "News-gathering organization."          One of the following:
29          (1)     an employee of a newspaper, news publication or news
30      source, printed or on an online or mobile platform, of

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 1      current news and public interest while operating as an
 2      employee who can provide documentation of employment with the
 3      newspaper, news publication or news source; or
 4             (2)   an employee of a radio broadcast station, television
 5      broadcast station, cable television operator or wire service
 6      while operating as an employee who can provide documentation
 7      of employment.
 8      "Publish."      To communicate or make information available to
 9   another person on a publicly accessible Internet website.
10      "Reasonable age verification method."      The following:
11             (1)   verification through an independent, third-party age
12      verification service that compares the personal information
13      entered by the individual who is seeking access to the
14      material that is available from a commercially available
15      database or aggregate of databases that is regularly used by
16      government agencies and businesses for the purpose of age and
17      identity verification; or
18             (2)   any commercially reasonable method that relies on
19      public or private transactional data to verify the age of the
20      person attempting to access the material.
21      "Substantial portion."      More than 33.3% of total material on
22   the publicly accessible Internet website is material harmful to
23   minors.
24      "Transactional data."      A sequence of information that
25   documents an exchange, agreement or transfer between an
26   individual, commercial entity or third party used for the
27   purpose of satisfying a request or event. The term includes
28   records from mortgage, education and employment entities.
29   § 7672.    Age verification for certain publicly accessible
30                   Internet websites.

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 1      (a)   Duty of commercial entity.--A commercial entity that
 2   knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes material
 3   harmful to minors on a publicly accessible Internet website that
 4   contains a substantial portion of material that is harmful to
 5   minors on the website shall perform reasonable age verification
 6   methods to verify the age of an individual accessing the
 7   publicly accessible Internet website. A commercial entity or
 8   third party that performs the required age verification shall
 9   not retain identifying information of the individual accessing
10   the publicly accessible Internet website that contains material
11   harmful to minors.
12      (b)   Violations.--
13            (1)   A commercial entity that is found to have violated
14      this section shall be liable to an individual for damages
15      resulting from a minor accessing material harmful to minors
16      on the publicly accessible Internet website, including court
17      costs and reasonable attorney fees as ordered by the court.
18            (2)   A commercial entity that is found to have knowingly
19      retained identifying information of an individual after
20      access has been granted to the individual shall be liable to
21      the individual for damages resulting from retaining the
22      identifying information, including court costs and reasonable
23      attorney fees as ordered by the court.
24      (c)   Exception.--
25            (1)   This section shall not apply to a bona fide news or
26      public interest broadcast, website video, report or event and
27      shall not be construed to affect the rights of news-gathering
28      organizations.
29            (2)   No Internet service provider, affiliate or
30      subsidiary of an Internet service provider, search engine or

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 1    cloud service provider shall be liable for a violation of
 2    this section solely for providing access or connection to or
 3    from a website or other information or content on the
 4    Internet, or a facility, system or network not under that
 5    Internet service provider's control, including transmitting,
 6    downloading, storing or providing access, to the extent that
 7    the provider is not responsible for the creation of the
 8    content of the communication that constitutes material
 9    harmful to minors.
10    Section 2.    This act shall take effect in 90 days.




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