Business regulations: sexually explicit material.

Existing law, the Parent's Accountability and Child Protection Act, requires a person or business that conducts business in California and that seeks to sell specified products or services to take reasonable steps to ensure that the purchaser is of legal age at the time of purchase or delivery, including verifying the age of the purchaser. Existing law prohibits a person or business that is required to comply with these provisions from retaining, using, or disclosing any information it receives in an effort to verify age from a purchaser or recipient for any other purpose, except as specified, and subjects a business or person that violates these provisions to a civil penalty. This bill would require a commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes sexually explicit material on the internet from a sexually explicit website to use an age verification method that prevents minors from accessing sexually explicit material. The bill would make a commercial entity that violates these provisions liable to the parent or legal guardian of a minor who accessed the sexually explicit material, as specified. The bill would prohibit a commercial entity or third party that performs age verification required by these provisions from retaining any identifying information of an individual after age verification has been accomplished. The bill would make a commercial entity that knowingly retains the identifying information of an individual in violation of these provisions liable, as specified. The bill would provide specified exceptions to these provisions, including for a bona fide news or public interest broadcast, website video, report, or event. The bill would define several terms for purposes of these provisions.