HB 1593 — Relating to a covered platform's liability for publishing or distributing sexual material harmful to a minor; and to provide a penalty.

25.0746.0100225.0746.02000 Adopted by the Judiciary Committee Title.02000 February 12, 2025 Sixty-ninth Legislative Assembly of North Dakota PROPOSEDFIRST AMENDMENTSENGROSSMENT TOENGROSSED HOUSE BILL NO.

Ruby, McLeod, Frelich, Steiner Senators Boehm, Paulson, Castaneda, Clemens A BILL for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 51-07 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to a commercialcovered entity'splatform's liability for publishing or distributing sexual material harmful to a minor;

to provide a penalty;

and to provide for application.for an Act to create and enact a new section to chapter 51-07 of the North Dakota Century Code, relating to a covered platform's liability for publishing or distributing sexual material harmful to a minor;

Liability for publishing or distributing sexual material harmful to minors - Age verification requirement - Damages.

1.

As used in this section:

a.

"Commercial entity" includes a corporation, limited liability company, partnership, limited partnership, sole proprietorship, or other legally recognized business entity.

b.

"Distribute" means to issue, sell, give, provide, deliver, transfer, transmute, circulate, or disseminate by any means.

c.

"Minor" means an individual under eighteen years of age.

d.

"News-gathering organization" means an employee of a:

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1 25.0746.01002 Sixty-ninth Legislative Assembly (1) Newspaper, news publication, or news source, printed or on an online or mobile platform, of current news and public interest, who is acting within the scope of employment and can provide documentation of employment with the newspaper, news publication, or news source;

or (2) Radio broadcast station, television broadcast station, cable television operator, or wire service, who is acting within the scope of employment and can provide documentation of employment with the radio broadcast station, television broadcast station, cable television operator, or wire service.

e.

"Publish" means to communicate or make information available to another person on a publicly available internet website.

f.

"Reasonable age verification methods" includes verifying the individual seeking to access the material is eighteen years of age or older by using:

(1) A digitized identification card;

or (2) Requiring the individual attempting to access the material to comply with a commercial age verification system including the use of:

(a) Government-issued identification;

or (b) Any commercially reasonable method that relies on public or private transactional data to verify the age of the individual attempting to access the information is eighteen years of age or older.

g.

"Sexual material harmful to a minor" includes material that:

(1) The average individual applying contemporary community standards would find, taking the material as a whole and with respect to a minor, is designed to appeal to or pander to the prurient interest;

(2) In a manner patently offensive with respect to a minor, exploits, is devoted to, or principally consists of descriptions of actual, simulated, or animated displays or depictions of:

(a) An individual's pubic hair, anus, genitals, or the nipple of the female breast;

(b) Touching, caressing, or fondling of nipples, breasts, buttocks, anuses, or genitals;

or Page No.

2 25.0746.01002 Sixty-ninth Legislative Assembly (c) Sexual intercourse, masturbation, sodomy, bestiality, oral copulation, flagellation, excretory functions, exhibitions, or any other sexual act;

and (3) Taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value for a minor.

h.

"Substantial portion" means if more than thirty-three and one-third percent of total material on a website is sexual material harmful to a minor.

i.

"Transactional data" means a sequence of information that documents an exchange, agreement, or transfer between an individual, commercial entity, or third party used for the purpose of satisfying a request or event.

The term includes records from mortgage, education, and employment entities.