The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Missouri bill requires age verification on websites featuring adult material and bans data retention
Last action · March 25, 2026: Voted Do Pass S General Laws CommitteeSponsor: Mike Henderson
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What This Bill Would Do
Commercial entities publishing websites where more than one-third of the content is must use reasonable age verification methods to ensure users are at least 18 years old. The measure prohibits commercial or third-party entities from retaining user identifying information and empowers the Attorney General to enforce violations with civil penalties.
Websites publishing adult content must implement age-checking mechanisms and delete user verification data, while facing civil penalties of up to $250,000 if minors access restricted material.
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Commercial entities publishing adult material
Commercial entities must implement approved age verification methods, display mandatory website notices, and face financial penalties for non-compliance or data retention.
Internet service providers
Internet service providers, search engines, and cloud services are granted immunity from liability under the act solely for providing internet access or content transmission not under their control.
Minors
Minors are restricted from accessing commercial adult websites lacking compliant age verification methods.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which websites are required to verify user ages under this bill?
Can age verification companies or websites store my identification data?
Who is responsible for enforcing these rules?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
5 actions- Mar 25, 2026SenateCommitteeVoted Do Pass S General Laws Committee
- Feb 25, 2026SenateHearing Conducted S General Laws Committee
- Jan 8, 2026SenateFloorSecond Read and Referred S General Laws Committee
- Jan 7, 2026SenateIntroducedS First Read
- Dec 1, 2025SenatePrefiled
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. The text on record is the 5428S.01I - Introduced version. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Introduction of Mandated Internet Age Verification
The bill shifts Missouri regulatory policy by imposing affirmative age-checking duties on commercial website operators alongside strict data-deletion rules.
Connected Entities
Sources
www.senate.mo.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy80Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz65Current news / social attention level
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