Text of IA HF 864 (2026)

House File 864 - Introduced HOUSE FILE 864 BY COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY (SUCCESSOR TO HF 62) A BILL FOR An Act relating to certain commercial entities who publish or 1 distribute obscene material on the internet, and providing 2 civil penalties. 3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 4 TLSB 1466HV (4) 91 dg/jh H.F. 864 Section 1. NEW SECTION . 554I.1 Definitions. 1 For purposes of this chapter: 2 1. a. “Covered platform” means a commercial entity for 3 which it is in the regular course of the trade or business of 4 the entity to create, host, or make available, on the internet, 5 obscene material provided by the entity, a user, or other 6 information content provider. 7 b. For purposes of this subsection, the presence alone of 8 obscene material on a commercial entity’s internet site shall 9 not be construed to mean that the commercial entity’s regular 10 course of trade or business is creating, hosting, or making 11 available obscene material on the internet. When determining 12 whether a commercial entity’s regular course of trade or 13 business is creating, hosting, or making available obscene 14 material on the internet, a court shall consider all of the 15 following: 16 (1) The amount of data that constitutes obscene material on 17 the commercial entity’s internet site. 18 (2) The amount of data that constitutes obscene material 19 on the commercial entity’s internet site in proportion to the 20 total amount of data on the commercial entity’s internet site. 21 (3) The amount of user traffic to obscene material on the 22 commercial entity’s internet site. 23 (4) The amount of user traffic to obscene material on the 24 commercial entity’s internet site in proportion to all user 25 traffic on the commercial entity’s internet site. 26 (5) The amount of revenue the commercial entity obtains from 27 obscene material on the commercial entity’s internet site. 28 (6) The amount of revenue the commercial entity generates 29 from obscene material on the commercial entity’s internet site 30 in proportion to all revenues the commercial entity generates. 31 (7) Any other factor the court deems relevant. 32 2. “Identifying information” means any representation of 33 information that permits the identity of an individual to whom 34 the information applies to be reasonably inferred by either 35 -1- LSB 1466HV (4) 91 dg/jh 1/ 6 H.F. 864 direct or indirect means. 1 3. “Information content provider” means the same as defined 2 in 47 U.S.C. §230. 3 4. “Interactive computer service” means the same as defined 4 in 47 U.S.C. §230. 5 5. “Obscene material” means the same as defined in section 6 728.1. 7 6. “Provider” means all of the following: 8 a. An internet service provider. 9 b. A cloud service provider. 10 c. A wireless service provider. 11 d. An internet search engine. 12 e. An information service as defined in 47 U.S.C. §153. 13 f. A telecommunications service as defined in 47 U.S.C. 14 §153. 15 g. A cable service as defined in 47 U.S.C. §522. 16 h. An affiliate or a subsidiary of an entity listed in 17 paragraph “a” through “g” . 18 7. “Reasonable age verification” means verifying the age of 19 an individual by using any of the following methods: 20 a. Government-issued identification. 21 b. Financial documents or other documents that are reliable 22 proxies for age. 23 c. Any other commercially reasonable and reliable method. 24 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 554I.2 Publication and distribution 25 of obscene material on the internet —— age verification —— civil 26 liability. 27 1. A covered platform shall be held liable if the covered 28 platform fails to perform reasonable age verification of 29 individuals attempting to access obscene material published or 30 distributed by the covered platform. 31 2. Reasonable age verification required under subsection 32 1 may be performed by a third party subject to state 33 jurisdiction, and may employ cryptographic techniques such 34 as zero knowledge proofs to preserve anonymity and protect 35 -2- LSB 1466HV (4) 91 dg/jh 2/ 6 H.F. 864 privacy. 1 3. a. A covered platform or third party that performs the 2 reasonable age verification required under subsection 1 shall 3 not retain an individual’s identifying information after the 4 covered platform or third party completes the individual’s 5 reasonable age verification. 6 b. A covered platform or third party that performs the 7 reasonable age verification required under subsection 1 shall 8 not distribute, sell, or otherwise disseminate an individual’s 9 identifying information obtained through the covered platform’s 10 or third party’s performance of reasonable age verification. 11 4. A covered platform that violates subsection 1 shall be 12 subject to punitive damages resulting from the violation, plus 13 reasonable attorney fees and costs. Punitive damages shall not 14 exceed triple the aggregate amount of a plaintiff’s reasonable 15 attorney fees and costs. 16 5. A covered platform or third party that violates 17 subsection 3 shall be subject to punitive damages and actual 18 damages resulting from the violation, plus reasonable attorney 19 fees and costs. Punitive damages shall not exceed triple the 20 aggregate amount of a plaintiff’s reasonable attorney fees and 21 costs. 22 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 554I.3 Enforcement —— penalties. 23 1. If the attorney general has reasonable belief that a 24 covered platform, or third party performing reasonable age 25 verification, is in violation of this chapter, the attorney 26 general has the sole authority to bring civil action to provide 27 for all of the following: 28 a. Enjoinment of further violations by the covered platform 29 or third party performing reasonable age verification. 30 b. Enforcement of compliance with this chapter. 31 c. Assessment of civil penalties in an amount not more than 32 ten thousand dollars for each violation of this chapter. 33 d. Other remedies permitted under law. 34 2. If the attorney general has reasonable belief that a 35 -3- LSB 1466HV (4) 91 dg/jh 3/ 6 H.F. 864 covered platform, or third party performing reasonable age 1 verification, is in violation of an injunction issued under 2 this section, the attorney general has the sole authority to 3 bring civil action to provide for civil penalties in an amount 4 not more than one hundred thousand dollars. 5 3. An individual that has knowledge of a violation of this 6 chapter may report the violation to the attorney general. 7 4. The attorney general shall establish an electronic 8 reporting system for the submission of reports pursuant to this 9 section. 10 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 554I.4 Limitations on liability. 11 1. This chapter shall not be construed to impose liability 12 on a user of an interactive computer service on the internet. 13 2. This chapter shall not be construed to impose liability 14 on a provider solely for providing access or connection to 15 a covered platform, or to obscene material on an internet 16 site or in a facility, system, or network not under the 17 provider’s control. For purposes of this subsection, “access 18 or connection” includes but is not limited to transmitting, 19 downloading, providing intermediate storage for, and providing 20 access software for data. 21 EXPLANATION 22 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 23 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 24 This bill relates to certain commercial entities who publish 25 or distribute certain material on the internet. 26 The bill defines “covered platform”, “identifying 27 information”, “information content provider”, “interactive 28 computer service”, “obscene material”, “provider”, and 29 “reasonable age verification”. 30 The bill makes a covered platform liable if the covered 31 platform fails to perform reasonable age verification of 32 individuals attempting to access obscene material published 33 or distributed by the covered platform. Reasonable 34 age verification includes the use of government-issued 35 -4- LSB 1466HV (4) 91 dg/jh 4/ 6 H.F. 864 identification, financial documents or other documents that 1 are reliable proxies for age, or any other commercially 2 reasonable and reliable method. Reasonable age verification 3 may be performed by a third party subject to state jurisdiction 4 (third party), and the bill permits the use of cryptographic 5 techniques to preserve anonymity and protect privacy. A 6 covered platform or third party is prohibited from retaining 7 an individual’s identifying information after completing 8 the individual’s reasonable age verification, and from 9 distributing, selling, or disseminating an individual’s 10 identifying information obtained through the performance of 11 reasonable age verification. A covered platform or third party 12 is subject to punitive damages for violations of the bill. 13 Punitive damages cannot exceed triple the aggregate amount of a 14 plaintiff’s reasonable attorney fees and costs. 15 The bill’s provisions are not to be construed as to impose 16 liability on a user of an interactive computer service on the 17 internet. 18 The bill’s provisions are not to be construed as to impose 19 liability on a provider solely for providing access or 20 connection to a covered platform, or to obscene material on an 21 internet site or in a facility, system, or network not under 22 the provider’s control. 23 If the attorney general has reasonable belief that a covered 24 platform, or third party, is in violation of the bill, the 25 attorney general may bring a civil action to enjoin further 26 violations, enforce compliance with the bill, assess a civil 27 penalty in an amount not more than $10,000 for each violation, 28 and provide other remedies permitted by law. If the attorney 29 general has reasonable belief that a covered platform, or third 30 party, is in violation of an injunction issued under the bill, 31 the attorney general may bring a civil action to provide for 32 civil penalties in an amount not more than $100,000. 33 The bill allows individuals with knowledge of a violation to 34 report the violation to the attorney general, and requires the 35 -5- LSB 1466HV (4) 91 dg/jh 5/ 6 H.F. 864 attorney general to establish an electronic reporting system 1 for the submission of reports of violations of the bill. 2 -6- LSB 1466HV (4) 91 dg/jh 6/ 6

House File 864 - Enrolled House File 864 AN ACT REQUIRING PERSONS WHO OPERATE CERTAIN INTERNET SITES, APPLICATIONS, OR A SEGMENT OF AN INTERNET SITE OR APPLICATION THAT CONTAINS MATERIAL PORNOGRAPHIC FOR MINORS TO PERFORM REASONABLE AGE VERIFICATION. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: Section 1. NEW SECTION . 554J.1 Definitions. For purposes of this chapter: 1. “Application” means a software application or electronic service that a user may run or direct on a mobile device. 2. “Commercial entity” means a legally recognized business entity. 3. “Digital identification” means information stored on a digital network that may be accessed by a commercial entity and that serves as proof of the identity of an individual. 4. “Interactive computer service” means the same as defined in 47 U.S.C. §230. 5. “Minor” means an individual under eighteen years of age. House File 864, p. 2 6. “Mobile device” means a device described by all of the following: a. The device is small enough to be held and operated in hand. b. The device provides a cellular or wireless connection to the internet. c. The device has the ability to run an application. 7. “News-gathering organization” means any of the following: a. An employee of a newspaper, news publication, or other commercial entity with the primary purpose of serving as a source of current news and public interest stories, who is acting within the course and scope of that employment and can provide documentation of that employment. b. An employee of a radio broadcast station, television broadcast station, cable television operator, or wire service who is acting within the course and scope of that employment and can provide documentation of that employment. 8. “Pornographic for minors” means material or a performance described by all of the following: a. The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the material or performance, taken as a whole, has a tendency to cater or appeal to a prurient interest of minors. b. The material or performance depicts nudity, sexual conduct, the condition of human genitals when in a state of sexual stimulation or arousal, or sadomasochistic abuse in a way which is patently offensive to the average person applying contemporary adult community standards with respect to what is suitable for minors. c. The material or performance, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for minors. 9. “Provider” means all of the following: a. An internet service provider. b. A cloud service provider. c. A wireless service provider. d. An internet search engine. e. An information service as defined in 47 U.S.C. §153. f. A telecommunications service as defined in 47 U.S.C. House File 864, p. 3 §153. g. A cable service as defined in 47 U.S.C. §522. h. An affiliate or a subsidiary of an entity listed in paragraphs “a” through “g” . 10. “Substantial portion” means thirty-three percent or more of the total amount of data publicly available on an internet site or application. 11. “Transactional data” means a sequence of information that documents an exchange, agreement, or transfer between an individual, commercial entity, or third party. Sec. 2. NEW SECTION . 554J.2 Age verification. 1. A person shall not operate an internet site, an application, or a segment of an internet site or application, including on a social media platform, that contains a substantial portion of content pornographic for minors unless the person uses reasonable age verification to prevent minors from accessing such content. 2. Reasonable age verification shall include any of the following: a. Requiring an individual to provide digital identification. b. A method that is commercially reasonable given a person’s scope of business and that relies on transactional data to verify an individual’s age. c. A method approved by the attorney general by rule. 3. A person that performs reasonable age verification under this section, including a third party that contracts with a person to perform reasonable age verification for the person, shall not retain, sell, lease, or otherwise disseminate any identifying information of an individual subject to reasonable age verification unless retention or dissemination of the identifying information is required by law or a court order. 4. A person that performs reasonable age verification under this section, including a third party that contracts with a person to perform reasonable age verification for the person, shall use reasonable methods given the person’s scope of business to secure all data collected and transmitted under this section. Sec. 3. NEW SECTION . 554J.3 Limitations. House File 864, p. 4 1. This chapter shall not apply to any of the following: a. A bona fide news or public interest broadcast, news recording, report, or event. b. A news-gathering organization. c. An internet service provider, an internet service provider’s affiliates and subsidiaries, a search engine, or a cloud service provider solely for providing access or connection to an internet site or other information or content on the internet, in a facility, on a system, or on a network not under the internet service provider’s, affiliate’s, subsidiary’s, search engine’s, or cloud service provider’s control. This subsection shall not apply if the internet service provider, affiliate, subsidiary, search engine, or cloud service provider was responsible for the creation of the content pornographic for minors. 2. This chapter shall not be construed to impose liability on a user of an interactive computer service on the internet. 3. This chapter shall not be construed to impose liability on a provider solely for providing access or connection to an internet site, system, or network that contains material pornographic for minors provided that the internet site, system, or network is not under the provider’s control. For purposes of this subsection, “access or connection” includes but is not limited to transmitting, downloading, providing intermediate storage for, and providing access software for data. Sec. 4. NEW SECTION . 554J.4 Enforcement and penalties. 1. The attorney general shall enforce this chapter, seek injunctions for violations of this chapter, and bring actions against a person thought to be in violation of this chapter. 2. Each time an individual accesses an internet site or application not in compliance with this chapter shall constitute a separate violation. 3. a. A violation of this chapter is punishable by a civil penalty of up to one thousand dollars per violation. A person in violation of this chapter shall not accrue civil penalties of more than ten thousand dollars in a single day. b. Civil penalties collected under this section shall be deposited into the general fund of the state. House File 864, p. 5 Sec. 5. NEW SECTION . 554J.5 Rules. The attorney general shall adopt rules pursuant to chapter 17A to implement and administer this chapter. ______________________________ PAT GRASSLEY Speaker of the House ______________________________ AMY SINCLAIR President of the Senate I hereby certify that this bill originated in the House and is known as House File 864, Ninety-first General Assembly. ______________________________ MEGHAN NELSON Chief Clerk of the House Approved _______________, 2026 ______________________________ KIM REYNOLDS Governor