California Assembly Passes Bill Restricting Sales to Minors, After Concessions to Internet Companies

Internet companies withdrew opposition to a California bill to prevent online sale of guns and other age-restricted items to minors after sponsor Assemblymember Ed Chau (D) agreed to amendments including removing a section specifically citing social media websites and bolstering companies' defense in court. The Assembly voted 56-16 Thursday to pass AB-2511 and send the bill to the Senate. At a hearing last month, internet companies opposed the bill, saying it's too broad and may unconstitutionally stop minors from sharing any information on social media (see 1805020024). On the Assembly floor Thursday, Chau said Amazon, Facebook, CompTIA, the Internet Association and TechNet agreed to drop opposition. The bill will be amended in the Senate to (1) remove the first section on social media, (2) apply the bill “to all sellers so long as it doesn’t weaken current law,” (3) require “reasonable steps at the point of sale or upon delivery” (4) add a safe harbor for steps considered to be reasonable -- which could be used as an affirmative defense, and (5) delay the bill’s implementation until January 2020. The Senate last week also cleared net neutrality and surveillance transparency bills (see 1805300084 and 1805310050).