The Supreme Court has allowed a Texas law mandating age verification for app downloads to take effect while a lower court case proceeds. The order, issued Monday, lifts a previous hold on the Texas App Store Accountability Act (TASAA).
The law, enacted in May 2025, requires app developers and app stores to implement age verification measures to prevent individuals under 18 from downloading apps without parental consent. It also mandates that developers assign age ratings to their applications. The Computer and Communications Industry Association (CCIA), representing companies such as Google, Meta, and Apple, has described the age-rating requirement as "burdensome."
The constitutionality of the TASAA has been a subject of legal dispute. Initially, a Texas federal judge placed a hold on its enforcement in December. However, an appeals court reinstated the law last month. Arguments in the case are scheduled to be heard by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in August.
The CCIA intends to argue that the TASAA infringes upon First Amendment rights. The organization stated that requiring users to submit personal data for internet access is comparable to needing government identification to enter a bookstore. Both youth advocates and technology companies have raised concerns that the law violates children's First Amendment rights to free speech.
A coalition of over two dozen state attorneys general from both major political parties filed a brief in support of the TASAA last month. Their filing highlighted the documented issues with current controls, particularly on social media platforms, noting that existing parental controls have not effectively addressed child addiction, either due to non-use by parents or their inherent ineffectiveness.
This development follows a previous Supreme Court decision last year that upheld another Texas law aimed at restricting children's access to pornography websites through age verification.
