Wyoming Passes Age-Verification Law for Obscene Material

Yesterday, Wyoming’s governor signed HB 43, a law that requires any website that hosts “material harmful to minors” (not just those with 33.3% or more) to verify the age of users before providing access. The law creates a right for “any parent or guardian of a minor who is aggrieved by a violation of” the law to sue for damages, court costs, fees, and $5,000 per “failure to perform age verification”.

In an unusual move, the legislation defines “material harmful to minors” as “any picture, image, graphic image file, film, videotape or other visual depiction that is obscene or is child pornography” – i.e., content that is already illegal to distribute.

While it appears that Wyoming has created a higher standard than other states for filing suit (exposure to obscene content as opposed to merely sexually-explicit content), Free Speech Coalition recommends consulting with your legal advisors to determine how to respond.

The law takes effect July 1, 2025.