Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed a bill that would require all mobile phones and tablets sold in the state to automatically block pornography, The Associated Press reports.
The measure will not go into effect unless five other states approve similar laws, a provision that was added over concerns that the requirement would be hard to implement if a single state went at it alone.
Rights groups warned that the bill was unconstitutional and a violation of free speech rights while Cox said he isn’t worried about constitutionality because the bill will not be immediately enacted.
Cox touted it as an “important message” about preventing children from accessing pornography.
Bill sponsor Rep. Susan Pulsipher said she was “grateful” Cox signed the measure and hopes it will help parents prevent their kids from accessing pornography. She argued that the bill is constitutional because the filter can be turned off.
ACLU threatens lawsuit:
The ACLU of Utah said the bill is likely to be challenged in court.
“This is another example of the Legislature dodging the constitutional impacts of the legislation they pass,” ACLU attorney Jason Groth told the AP.
The bill has drawn a wide range of critics, including adult film star Cherie DeVille, who had called on Cox to veto the bill because it violated First Amendment rights.
Utah continues anti-porn crusade:
The porn filter bill is the latest in a series of anti-porn measures in the conservative state where members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints make up a majority of the population.
State legislators previously declared pornography a “public health crisis.”
Another bill required print and online pornography to contain a warning label.
Since Utah passed its bill declaring a “public health crisis,” more than a dozen states have advanced similar legislation.
