What is the PROTECT Act?

The PROTECT Act is a proposed federal bill introduced by Utah Senator Mike Lee that aims to make adult websites liable for third-party content and impose new requirements on sites categorized as "pornography sites."

What is a notable ambiguity in the PROTECT Act?

A notable ambiguity in the PROTECT Act is its lack of a specific definition for "pornography site."

Who endorses the PROTECT Act?

The PROTECT Act is endorsed by the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), Terry Schilling, Witney Cummings, and Terry Crews.

Sen. Mike Lee's PROTECT Act Targets Adult Websites

Q: What are some of the mandates proposed by the PROTECT Act?

The PROTECT Act proposes requiring age verification for all participants in pornographic images, obtaining verified consent forms, and mandating swift removal of images uploaded without consent.

Q: Who is promoting the PROTECT Act?

Utah Senator Mike Lee and Mormon activist Dawn Hawkins, CEO of NCOSE, are promoting the PROTECT Act.

Senator Mike Lee and NCOSE's Dawn Hawkins promote the PROTECT Act, a bill making adult websites liable for third-party content and requiring age verification. The bill faces scrutiny over its broad definitions.

Utah Senator Mike Lee (R) and Mormon activist Dawn Hawkins, CEO of NCOSE, are promoting the PROTECT Act, a proposed federal bill that would make adult websites liable for third-party content. The bill was introduced by Sen. Lee last week and aims to impose new requirements on sites categorized as "pornography sites."

The PROTECT Act's Provisions and Ambiguities

The PROTECT Act, introduced by Sen. Lee, proposes several mandates for "pornography sites." These include requiring age verification for all participants in pornographic images, obtaining verified consent forms from individuals uploading content and those appearing in uploaded content, and mandating the swift removal of images upon notification that they were uploaded without consent.

A notable aspect of the proposed legislation is its lack of a specific definition for "pornography site." The definition of pornography is frequently contested. Groups such as NCOSE have previously asserted that mainstream publications like Sport Illustrated and Cosmopolitan constitute "pornography."

Sen. Lee's announcement of the bill last week connected legal "pornography" with illegal CSAM and rape. He stated that the proposal "comes as Utah law enforcement announced a 600% increase in cases involving child pornography and sexual contact with minors since 2020" and cited statistics from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC). This announcement was juxtaposed with an endorsement from the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE).

The bill is also endorsed by Terry Schilling, president of the American Principles Project, as well as Witney Cummings and Terry Crews.

NCOSE and Dawn Hawkins' Background

NCOSE, described as a religiously motivated anti-porn lobby, is led by Mormon activist and former Republican staffer Dawn Hawkins, who is also from Utah. Hawkins has taken credit for the secular rebranding of NCOSE, which was originally known as Morality in Media.

Earlier this year, Hawkins shared with Utah's Deseret News that after returning from her church mission, she moved to Washington, D.C., and contacted Patrick Treuman. Treuman was the former chief at the U.S. Department of Justice of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section under former presidents Reagan and Bush. Hawkins asked if there was a job on which she could serve.

Utah's History with Anti-Pornography Legislation

Utah has a history of legislative efforts concerning pornography and obscenity. In February 2001, Utah's Republican-dominated Legislature established the position of Obscenity and Pornography Complaints Ombudsman, held by Paula Houston, to determine what classifies as pornographic or obscene. This position lasted two years.

In March 2005, former Governor Jon Huntsman Jr. signed House Bill 260, sponsored by Republican Rep. John Dougall, which was intended to protect children from Internet pornography.

More recently, Utah Senator Todd Weiler, R-Woods Cross, introduced the Children’s Device Protection Act, or SB104. This bill aims to require tablets or smartphones to automatically enable a filter blocking obscene content when used by a minor. Adult users and parents would have the option to disable the filter through a password. Weiler noted that this bill is similar to legislation passed previously by Rep. Susan Pulsipher and Sen. Wayne Harper, which stipulated it would not go into effect unless four or five other states passed similar legislation.

Sen. Weiler also previously sponsored a resolution declaring pornography a public health crisis, which passed in the 2016 session. He has expressed intentions to introduce proposals that could require Internet service providers to add filters, making it necessary for everyone in Utah to opt-in to view pornography. Weiler has referenced England's approach to similar programs for guidance.

Key Facts

Utah Senator Mike Lee (R) and Mormon activist Dawn Hawkins, CEO of NCOSE, are promoting the PROTECT Act.
The PROTECT Act would require "pornography sites" to verify the age of participants, obtain verified consent forms, and remove images uploaded without consent.
The bill does not define "pornography site," a term that NCOSE has applied to mainstream publications like Sport Illustrated and Cosmopolitan.
Sen. Lee's announcement linked the bill to a "600% increase in cases involving child pornography and sexual contact with minors since 2020" in Utah.
Dawn Hawkins, a former Republican staffer, leads NCOSE, which was formerly known as Morality in Media.
Utah has a history of anti-pornography legislation, including a "porn-czar" position in 2001 and recent bills concerning age verification and content filtering on devices.