Written Testimony in Support of Requiring Age Verification for Harmful Internet Content (H.F. 1434 - Bakeberg)

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Written Testimony in Support of Requiring Age Verification for Harmful Internet Content
(H.F. 1434 - Bakeberg)
House Commerce Finance and Policy

February 19, 2026

Co-Chair O’Driscoll, Co-Chair Koegel, and Members of the Committee:

We write to express our support for H.F. 1434, which would enact age verification requirements for internet content that is harmful to minors.

Children are spending an increasing amount of time online. Ninety-five percent of teens ages 13 to 17 have access to a smartphone, 45 percent say they are online “almost constantly,” and another 44 percent say they are on the internet several times a day.¹ This time spent online is leading to mental, emotional, and behavioral problems among youth.² It is also exposing children to addictive content that they could never access in the real world.

Would we allow a 12-year-old child to visit a strip club, gamble at a casino, or drink at a bar? Of course not. Currently, these guardrails we put up for our children do not translate to the online world.

Big Tech is not in the business of keeping kids safe. When a child logs onto his computer or device, he has a virtual world at his fingertips, including obscene material that should not be viewed by anyone, much less youth. People can access this content from the privacy of their rooms, without anyone finding out. Research shows that the anonymity and availability of pornographic content leads to higher rates of consumption and addiction. In turn, this can lead to psychopathological changes and blur the line between the real world and fantasy seen on devices.³ Adolescents experiencing this dopamine hit are more susceptible to falling into addiction, and the effects of viewing this content can be more severe than in adults.⁴

While online content is often protected by the courts, that should not act as a shield when it comes to keeping children safe online. At a recent conference on artificial intelligence (AI) at the Vatican, Pope Leo stressed: “Governments and international organizations have a responsibility to design and implement policies that protect the dignity of minors in this era of AI.”⁵ Like with AI, it is incumbent upon lawmakers to enact safeguards so that children do not have unfettered access to content that will be detrimental to them long term. Requiring that websites where a large portion of its material is harmful to minors verify that the user is over the age of 18 before allowing him to enter is a reasonable step. Please vote yes.

Thank you for your consideration.

Respectfully,

Maggee Hangge
Assistant Director for Family Policy
[email protected]

1 https://www.pewinternet.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/9/2018/05/PI_2018.05.31_TeensTech_FINAL.pdf
2 https://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2023/p0213-yrbs.html, and https://childmind.org/article/is-social-media-use-causing-depression/
3 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10399954/
4 https://culturereframed.org/adolescents-porn-and-mental-health-understanding-the-dangerous-effects-of-porn-on-developing-minds/
5 https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2025-11/pope-leo-xiv-conference-dignity-of-children-adolescents-age-ai1.html