Wisconsin 2023-2024 Regular Session

Wisconsin Assembly Bill AB894 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

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3	3	2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
4	4	2023 ASSEMBLY BILL 894
5	5	January 4, 2024 - Introduced by Representatives SORTWELL, BEHNKE, GOEBEN,
6	6	GUSTAFSON, MURPHY and SCHMIDT. Referred to Committee on State Affairs.
7	7	*AUTHORS SUBJECT TO CHANGE*
8	8	AN ACT to renumber 19.579 (2); and to create 19.576, 19.579 (2) (b) and 20.935
9	9	of the statutes; relating to: prohibiting state agency employees, state elected
10	10	officials, federal government agency employees, and certain state individuals
11	11	holding a national office from influencing social media Internet sites to censor
12	12	users and providing a penalty.
13	13	Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
14	14	This bill prohibits state agency employees and state elected officials from
15	15	influencing or attempting to influence a social media Internet site to censor,
16	16	deplatform, or shadow ban users on the social media Internet site. The prohibition
17	17	also applies to a U.S. senator or representative in congress elected to his or her office
18	18	in this state and to federal government agency employees present in this state.
19	19	The bill defines “deplatforming” as deleting or banning a user from a social
20	20	media Internet site for more than 60 days, and defines “shadow banning” as limiting
21	21	or eliminating the exposure of a user, or content posted by or about a user, to other
22	22	users. The penalty for each violation of the bill's prohibitions is a forfeiture between
23	23	$1,000 and $10,000.
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30	30	ASSEMBLY BILL 894
31	31	For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as
32	32	an appendix to this bill.
33	33	The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
34	34	enact as follows:
35	35	SECTION 1. 19.576 of the statutes is created to read:
36	36	19.576 Influencing social media Internet site prohibited. (1) In this
37	37	section:
38	38	(a) “Censor" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (a).
39	39	(b) “Deplatform" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (b).
40	40	(c) “Obscene” has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (c).
41	41	(d) “Shadow ban" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (d).
42	42	(e) “Social media Internet site” has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (e).
43	43	(f) “User" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (g).
44	44	(2) (a) No state public official holding an elective office may in his or her official
45	45	capacity influence or attempt to influence a social media Internet site to censor,
46	46	deplatform, or shadow ban a user on the social media Internet site. This paragraph
47	47	does not prohibit expression by a state public official holding an elective office about
48	48	a user's content if the user's content constitutes harassment, an apparent violation
49	49	of law, content that is obscene or pornographic in nature, or expressive material not
50	50	protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
51	51	(b) No U.S. senator or representative in congress elected to his or her office in
52	52	this state may in his or her official capacity influence or attempt to influence a social
53	53	media Internet site to censor, deplatform, or shadow ban a user on the social media
54	54	Internet site. This paragraph does not prohibit expression by a U.S. senator or
55	55	representative in congress elected to his or her office in this state about a user's
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81	81	content if the user's content constitutes harassment, an apparent violation of law,
82	82	content that is obscene or pornographic in nature, or expressive material not
83	83	protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
84	84	SECTION 2. 19.579 (2) of the statutes is renumbered 19.579 (2) (a).
85	85	SECTION 3. 19.579 (2) (b) of the statutes is created to read:
86	86	19.579 (2) (b) 1. A state public official holding an elective office shall be required
87	87	to forfeit not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000 for each occasion that the official
88	88	influences or attempts to influence a social media Internet site in violation of s.
89	89	19.576 (2).
90	90	2. A U.S. senator or representative in congress elected to his or her office in this
91	91	state shall be required to forfeit not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000 for each
92	92	occasion that the senator or representative influences or attempts to influence a
93	93	social media Internet site in violation of s. 19.576 (2).
94	94	SECTION 4. 20.935 of the statutes is created to read:
95	95	20.935 Influencing social media Internet site prohibited. (1) In this
96	96	section:
97	97	(a) “Censor" includes any action taken by a social media Internet site to delete,
98	98	regulate, restrict, edit, alter, inhibit the publication or republication of, suspend a
99	99	right to post, remove, or post an addendum to any content or material posted by a
100	100	user. “Censor” also includes actions to inhibit the ability of a user to be viewable by
101	101	or to interact with another user of the social media Internet site.
102	102	(b) “Deplatform" means to delete or ban a user from a social media Internet site
103	103	for more than 60 days.
104	104	(c) “Obscene” means that all of the following apply to content:
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130	130	SECTION 4 ASSEMBLY BILL 894
131	131	1. An average individual, applying contemporary community standards, would
132	132	find that the content, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest.
133	133	2. The content depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way.
134	134	3. The content, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or
135	135	scientific value.
136	136	(d) “Shadow ban" means to limit or eliminate the exposure of a user, or content
137	137	or material posted by a user, to other users of the social media Internet site through
138	138	any means, regardless of whether the action is determined by an individual or an
139	139	algorithm, and regardless of whether the action is readily apparent to a user.
140	140	(e) “Social media Internet site” means an Internet site or application that
141	141	enables users to communicate with each other by posting information, comments,
142	142	messages, or images and to which all of the following apply:
143	143	1. The Internet site or application is available to the public.
144	144	2. The Internet site or application has more than 150 million users.
145	145	(f) “State agency” means an association, authority, board, department,
146	146	commission, independent agency, institution, office, society, or other body in state
147	147	government created or authorized to be created by the constitution or any law.
148	148	(g) “User" means a person who subscribes to or has an account on a social media
149	149	Internet site, regardless of whether the person posts or has posted content or
150	150	material to the social media Internet site.
151	151	(2) (a) No employee of a state agency may in his or her official capacity influence
152	152	or attempt to influence a social media Internet site to censor, deplatform, or shadow
153	153	ban a user on the social media Internet site. This paragraph does not prohibit
154	154	expression by an employee of a state agency about a user's content if the user's
155	155	content constitutes harassment, an apparent violation of law, content that is obscene
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183	183	SECTION 4
184	184	ASSEMBLY BILL 894
185	185	or pornographic in nature, or expressive material not protected by the First
186	186	Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
187	187	(b) No federal government agency employee present in this state may in his or
188	188	her official capacity influence or attempt to influence a social media Internet site to
189	189	censor, deplatform, or shadow ban a user on the social media Internet site. This
190	190	paragraph does not prohibit expression by a federal government agency employee
191	191	present in this state about a user's content if the user's content constitutes
192	192	harassment, an apparent violation of law, content that is obscene or pornographic in
193	193	nature, or expressive material not protected by the First Amendment of the U.S.
194	194	Constitution.
195	195	(3) A person shall be required to forfeit not less than $1,000 nor more than
196	196	$10,000 for each occasion that the person influences or attempts to influence a social
197	197	media Internet site in violation of sub. (2).
198	198	(END)
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