Ohio Judge Grants NetChoice TRO Blocking Enforcement of State’s Social Media Law

U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley for Southern Ohio in Columbus granted NetChoice’s motion for a temporary restraining order blocking Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) from enforcing the state’s Parental Notification by Social Media Operators Act when it takes effect Jan. 15, said the judge’s signed opinion and order Tuesday (docket 2:24-cv-00047).

NetChoice is challenging the constitutionality of the statute on First and 14th amendment grounds, and the judge found that NetChoice has standing to bring its claims on behalf of its member companies and Ohio minors.

It’s unlikely that the government will be able to show that the statute “is narrowly tailored to any ends that it identifies,” said the opinion and order. Foreclosing minors under 16 from accessing all content on websites that the statute purports to cover, absent affirmative parental consent, “is a breathtakingly blunt instrument for reducing social media’s harm to children,” it said.