SCREEN Act Back in Play: Federal AV Bill Faces Senate Hearing

WASHINGTON — A key Senate committee is scheduled to consider the SCREEN Act during a markup session this week, advancing another effort to establish nationwide age verification requirements for people seeking access to adult content online.

Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah introduced the Shielding Children’s Retinas from Egregious Exposure on the Net (SCREEN) Act in early 2025, marking his third attempt to move the legislation through Congress. Republican Rep. Mary Miller introduced a companion measure in the House. Even so, both bills remained dormant for roughly a year.

That changed in March, when the House Energy and Commerce Committee folded a revised version of the SCREEN Act into the broader Kids Internet and Digital Safety (KIDS) Act, a package bringing together several online safety proposals. The House approved the KIDS Act in June, but the legislation has since run into resistance in the Senate. The objections have centered not on the SCREEN Act itself, but on disagreements over language contained in the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), another major proposal included in the package. The Senate version of KOSA is also scheduled for consideration during Wednesday’s markup session.

The Senate committee’s decision to place the original version of the SCREEN Act back on its agenda suggests lawmakers may be looking to advance individual online safety bills separately rather than continue pursuing them as part of the House’s broader KIDS Act package.

Under the SCREEN Act, violations of its age verification requirements would be treated as violations of the Federal Trade Commission Act’s ban on unfair or deceptive acts or practices. Civil penalties could reach as much as $10,000 for each violation.

Free Speech Coalition Director of Public Policy Mike Stabile described the SCREEN Act as a “particularly egregious” national age verification proposal.

“It would not only impact adult sites, but any platform that allows ‘harmful’ material, including X, Reddit and Amazon,” Stabile said, adding that Free Speech Coalition Executive Director Alison Boden recently traveled to Washington to meet with lawmakers serving on the Senate committee.

“We’ve been especially aggressive in our efforts since it was placed on the Senate Commerce calendar last week,” Stabile said. “We’re currently working with our allies and sounding the alarm in and out of the industry on this bill. FSC members should be calling their senators telling them to oppose the SCREEN Act.”

The Free Speech Coalition has also created a resource to help people contact their representatives about the legislation and is encouraging members to use it and share it with colleagues, members and fans.