Supreme Court refuses to block Texas age-verification law for pornographic content 

The Supreme Court has refused to block a Texas law that requires pornographic websites to verify the age of their users.

The High Court on Tuesday rejected an emergency appeal brought by the Free Speech Coalition, a trade group for the adult entertainment industry. In an emergency appeal earlier this month, the association asked a judge to block the law from being appealed in the High Court.

There were no notable objections to the Supreme Court’s order.

The law requires websites to verify that users in Texas are at least 18 years old before accessing pornographic content on the website. It also requires websites containing pornographic content to post warnings about the harm that pornography can cause.

The law, signed by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) last year, will remain in effect as a judge considers a full appeal from the association.

The law was temporarily blocked in September by U.S. District Judge Alan Ezra, who said the law “substantially regulates protected speech and uses enforcement methods that are grossly uninclusive and overly restrictive.” He said this violates the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

A panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last month reversed a district court’s age verification ruling. However, a divided panel of judges upheld the district court’s ruling that websites cannot be forced to post content warnings.

The Free Speech Coalition argued that the age verification law is contrary to Texas law. “It’s ineffective, unconstitutional and dangerous.” The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) supported the group’s appeal, arguing that the Texas law “imposes an undue burden on free speech online.”