BOISE, Idaho — July first marks the first of many new laws going into effect. One of which is aimed at protecting children online.
As of today, online pornography publishers and distributors now require age verification to prevent minors from accessing harmful material on the internet.
Because of this, Pornhub is pulling out of Idaho and Idahoans can no longer use the service.
If you pull up Pornhub, you will get a landing page for users in Idaho.
It explains why it's pulling out and not allowing anyone to view its videos.
It said quote, "Your elected officials in Idaho are requiring us to verify your age before allowing access to our website. While safety and compliance are at the forefront of our mission -- giving your ID card every time you want to visit an adult platform is not the most effective solution for protecting our users."
It goes on to say it could put your privacy at risk, that the decision will drive traffic to sites with far fewer safety measures, and that they've made the difficult decision to completely disable access to our website in Idaho.
Representative Julianne Young is a co-sponsor for House Bill 498, which requires online pornographic publishers and distributors to get an age verification from a user.
She said it passed the House and Senate with flying colors.
"I think this was one of the most exciting bipartisan efforts in the legislature this year to support and protect Idaho kids," said Young.
Young said Idaho is one of many states with similar legislation.
"It's a problem that's recognized nationwide, and that states all across the country are taking steps to address," she said.
Dozens of states including Utah, Kansas, Indiana, and Montana have enacted a similar policy.
Idaho's law is nearly identical to the one implemented in Texas.
While Pornhub is refusing to operate since the bill passed, those who continue to operate will have to confirm the age of users by scanning an ID, or credit card, or gaining access to social media to give proof of age.
"We're not picking at the details of the business, but we are saying you have to conduct business in a way that prevents harm," said Young.
If the sites don't implement this policy, the law allows minors and parents to sue for statutory damages of at least $10,000 dollars.
Young said there will always be bad actors pushing people to unregulated sites.
"There are people out there who just want to do whatever it is, that's harmful, and they do tend to find a way around it, but our hope is to better protect those kids who are just the innocent victims of this stuff," she said. "We can't stop everyone who wants to do bad things, but we can put reasonable measures in place to protect the innocent kids that might stumble onto it."
Despite Pornhub pulling out and being left unsatisfied with the law, Young said she doesn't expect anything to change because she said it's working successfully in several states.
"Early sexual exposure to these kinds of materials can cause some real problems for our kids and so this is just common-sense protection for kids who do not have the maturity to navigate some of these issues in the way that adults can," she said.
KTVB reached out to Pornhub to see if they have any plans to ever come back online for Idaho users and have not heard back.
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