A court strikes down a law calling for "verifiable parental consent" before any company collects or receives personal information of anyone under 18 years old. The law topped NetChoice's top 10 list of bad Internet legislation.A federal court ruled Sept. 8 that a controversial Maine marketing law
set to effect Sept. 12 is likely unconstitutional, confirming Maine
Attorney General Janet Mills' opinion that the legislation is overly
broad in the way it
regulates commercial speech and violates the First Amendment.
As approved by Maine lawmakers, the Predatory Marketing law would
require "verifiable parental consent" before any company collects or
receives
personal information of anyone under 18 years old. The new law would
impact all Websites where teenagers provide their names and other
personal
information.
It also prohibits using that information for marketing
products to minors. In addition, the legislation imposes strict liability that would prevent common
marketing practices used to serve teens information, including marketing materials from colleges and test prep
services. The law recently topped NetChoice's list of 10 Worst Internet Laws.
NetChoice joined Reed Elsevier, the Maine Independent Colleges
Association and Maine Press Association in calling for an injunction on
the grounds that this law represents a threat to both First Amendment
rights and interstate commerce. Justice John A. Woodcock stopped short
of issuing an injunction but noted, "The Attorney General has
acknowledged her concerns over the
substantial overbreadth of the statute and the implications ... and
accordingly has committed not to enforce it."
"Today's order sheds light on how the law harms the rights of
teenagers, parents and businesses to share information through
legitimate and lawful commercial activities," Steve DelBianco,
executive director of NetChoice, said in a statement. "We look forward to working with the
Maine legislature to develop policy that will both protect the privacy
of children while also respecting the Constitution. In the meantime,
the judge rightfully put private litigants on notice that the law has
serious constitutional defects and any litigation based on the law will
likely not be successful."
The bill originated with the idea of protecting minors from marketers
seeking to collect health data from children but the legislative
process was expanded all to all personal data on minors.