87R9493 SCL-D
 
  By: Cason H.B. No. 3001
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the censorship or disfavoring of political or religious
  speech by a social media website.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  This Act may be cited as the "Stop Social Media
  Censorship Act."
         SECTION 2.  The legislature finds that:
               (1)  this state has a compelling interest in holding
  certain social media websites to higher standards for having
  substantially created a digital public square; and
               (2)  this state has an interest in helping its
  residents enjoy their free exercise of rights in certain
  semi-public forums commonly used for religious and political
  speech.
         SECTION 3.  Title 6, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is
  amended by adding Chapter 129B to read as follows:
  CHAPTER 129B. SOCIAL MEDIA CENSORSHIP
         Sec. 129B.001.  DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
               (1)  "Algorithm" means a set of instructions designed
  to perform a specific task.
               (2)  "Hate speech" means a phrase concerning content
  that an individual finds offensive based on the individual's moral
  code.
               (3)  "Obscene" means material that an average person,
  applying contemporary community standards, would find, taken as a
  whole, has a dominant theme that appeals to prurient interests.
               (4)  "Political speech" means speech relating to the
  state, government, body politic, or public administration as it
  relates to public policymaking. The term includes speech by the
  government or a candidate for public office and any discussion of
  social issues. 
               (5)  "Religious speech" means speech relating to a set
  of unproven answers, truth claims, faith-based assumptions, and
  naked assertions that attempt to explain questions concerning how
  the world was created, what constitutes right and wrong actions by
  humans, and what happens after death.
               (6)  "Social media website" means an Internet website
  or application that enables users to communicate with other users
  by posting content, including information, comments, messages, and
  images.
         Sec. 129B.002.  APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. This chapter
  applies only to a social media website that:
               (1)  is open to the public;
               (2)  has more than 75 million subscribers; and
               (3)  from its inception, has not been specifically
  affiliated with a religion or political party.
         Sec. 129B.003.  PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION. A social media
  website user in this state who is 18 years of age or older may bring
  a civil action against the owner or operator of a social media
  website that purposefully:
               (1)  deletes or censors the user's political or
  religious speech; or
               (2)  uses an algorithm to disfavor or censor the user's
  political or religious speech.
         Sec. 129B.004. REMEDIES. (a) A claimant who prevails in an
  action under this chapter may recover:
               (1)  exemplary damages of $75,000 per purposeful action
  described by Section 129B.003, regardless of whether actual damages
  are awarded or the proof required by Section 41.003 is met;
               (2)  actual damages;
               (3)  other forms of equitable relief; 
               (4)  court costs; and
               (5)  reasonable attorney's fees.
         (b)  In addition to an award under Subsection (a)(1), a
  claimant who prevails in an action under this chapter may recover
  additional exemplary damages in accordance with Chapter 41.
         Sec. 129B.005.  MITIGATION OF DAMAGES. The defendant in an
  action under this chapter may mitigate damages by restoring from
  deletion or removing the censorship of the claimant's speech in a
  reasonable amount of time.
         Sec. 129B.006.  PROHIBITED DEFENSE. The defendant in an
  action under this chapter may not use the claimant's alleged hate
  speech as a basis for a defense of the defendant's actions.
         Sec. 129B.007.  ATTORNEY GENERAL ACTION. The attorney
  general may bring an action under this chapter against a social
  media website on behalf of a social media website user who resides
  in this state and whose political or religious speech has been
  censored by the social media website.
         Sec. 129B.008.  EXEMPTIONS. This chapter does not apply to:
               (1)  a social media website that deletes or censors a
  social media website user's speech or that uses an algorithm to
  disfavor or censor speech that:
                     (A)  calls for immediate acts of violence;
                     (B)  is obscene or pornographic in nature;
                     (C)  is the result of operational error;
                     (D)  is ordered by a court;
                     (E)  comes from an inauthentic source;
                     (F)  involves false personation;
                     (G)  entices criminal conduct; or
                     (H)  involves a minor bullying another minor; or
               (2)  a social media website user censoring another
  social media website user's speech.
         SECTION 4.  Chapter 129B, Civil Practice and Remedies Code,
  as added by this Act, applies only to a cause of action that accrues
  on or after the effective date of this Act.
         SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.