Sponsors (144)
The bill modernizes and clarifies regulation of sexually explicit material and reduces criminal exposure for abortion‑related items, trading greater legal clarity for sellers and online platforms against increased potential public exposure to some non‑obscene 'indecent' material and short‑term enforcement uncertainty.
Women who seek or distribute abortion‑related products or information: the bill removes 'means for procuring abortion' from the criminal list, reducing the risk of criminal exposure for abortion‑related products or communications.
Sellers and distributors of sexually explicit material and online intermediaries: the bill modernizes and clarifies statutory language and cross‑references (including to §230(f)(2)), reducing legal uncertainty about which content and intermediaries are regulated.
Parents, families, and children: narrowing or removing the statutory 'indecent' category may allow some non‑obscene but widely considered offensive material to circulate more freely, increasing public exposure.
Government contractors, prosecutors, and taxpayers: replacing prior statutory text with terse phrases (e.g., 'Is declared') may complicate prosecutorial interpretation and require additional rulemaking or guidance, creating legal ambiguity and administrative costs.
Importers, customs officials, and immigrants: changes to carriage/importation language may create transitional enforcement uncertainty at ports about what imports are prohibited or admissible, potentially delaying shipments and complicating enforcement.
Based on analysis of 2 sections of legislative text.
Introduced March 11, 2025 by Becca Balint · Last progress March 11, 2025
Makes targeted changes to federal criminal and customs laws by removing or narrowing the use of the word "indecent," revising language about obscene materials, and updating cross‑references; it changes wording about carriage and importation of certain materials but does not create new crimes, funding, agencies, or effective‑date provisions. The changes amend provisions in title 18 of the U.S. Code and a provision of the Tariff Act of 1930 to replace or strike specified phrases and to redirect a few internal statutory references.