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2023 - 2024 LEGISLATURE
2023 ASSEMBLY BILL 894
January 4, 2024 - Introduced by Representatives SORTWELL, BEHNKE, GOEBEN,
GUSTAFSON, MURPHY and SCHMIDT. Referred to Committee on State Affairs.
***AUTHORS SUBJECT TO CHANGE***
AN ACT to renumber 19.579 (2); and to create 19.576, 19.579 (2) (b) and 20.935
of the statutes; relating to: prohibiting state agency employees, state elected
officials, federal government agency employees, and certain state individuals
holding a national office from influencing social media Internet sites to censor
users and providing a penalty.
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
This bill prohibits state agency employees and state elected officials from
influencing or attempting to influence a social media Internet site to censor,
deplatform, or shadow ban users on the social media Internet site. The prohibition
also applies to a U.S. senator or representative in congress elected to his or her office
in this state and to federal government agency employees present in this state.
The bill defines “deplatforming” as deleting or banning a user from a social
media Internet site for more than 60 days, and defines “shadow banning” as limiting
or eliminating the exposure of a user, or content posted by or about a user, to other
users. The penalty for each violation of the bill's prohibitions is a forfeiture between
$1,000 and $10,000.
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For further information see the state fiscal estimate, which will be printed as
an appendix to this bill.
The people of the state of Wisconsin, represented in senate and assembly, do
enact as follows:
SECTION 1. 19.576 of the statutes is created to read:
19.576 Influencing social media Internet site prohibited. (1) In this
section:
(a) “Censor" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (a).
(b) “Deplatform" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (b).
(c) “Obscene” has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (c).
(d) “Shadow ban" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (d).
(e) “Social media Internet site” has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (e).
(f) “User" has the meaning given in s. 20.935 (1) (g).
(2) (a) No state public official holding an elective office may in his or her official
capacity influence or attempt to influence a social media Internet site to censor,
deplatform, or shadow ban a user on the social media Internet site. This paragraph
does not prohibit expression by a state public official holding an elective office about
a user's content if the user's content constitutes harassment, an apparent violation
of law, content that is obscene or pornographic in nature, or expressive material not
protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
(b) No U.S. senator or representative in congress elected to his or her office in
this state may in his or her official capacity influence or attempt to influence a social
media Internet site to censor, deplatform, or shadow ban a user on the social media
Internet site. This paragraph does not prohibit expression by a U.S. senator or
representative in congress elected to his or her office in this state about a user's
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content if the user's content constitutes harassment, an apparent violation of law,
content that is obscene or pornographic in nature, or expressive material not
protected by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
SECTION 2. 19.579 (2) of the statutes is renumbered 19.579 (2) (a).
SECTION 3. 19.579 (2) (b) of the statutes is created to read:
19.579 (2) (b) 1. A state public official holding an elective office shall be required
to forfeit not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000 for each occasion that the official
influences or attempts to influence a social media Internet site in violation of s.
19.576 (2).
2. A U.S. senator or representative in congress elected to his or her office in this
state shall be required to forfeit not less than $1,000 nor more than $10,000 for each
occasion that the senator or representative influences or attempts to influence a
social media Internet site in violation of s. 19.576 (2).
SECTION 4. 20.935 of the statutes is created to read:
20.935 Influencing social media Internet site prohibited. (1) In this
section:
(a) “Censor" includes any action taken by a social media Internet site to delete,
regulate, restrict, edit, alter, inhibit the publication or republication of, suspend a
right to post, remove, or post an addendum to any content or material posted by a
user. “Censor” also includes actions to inhibit the ability of a user to be viewable by
or to interact with another user of the social media Internet site.
(b) “Deplatform" means to delete or ban a user from a social media Internet site
for more than 60 days.
(c) “Obscene” means that all of the following apply to content:
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1. An average individual, applying contemporary community standards, would
find that the content, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest.
2. The content depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way.
3. The content, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or
scientific value.
(d) “Shadow ban" means to limit or eliminate the exposure of a user, or content
or material posted by a user, to other users of the social media Internet site through
any means, regardless of whether the action is determined by an individual or an
algorithm, and regardless of whether the action is readily apparent to a user.
(e) “Social media Internet site” means an Internet site or application that
enables users to communicate with each other by posting information, comments,
messages, or images and to which all of the following apply:
1. The Internet site or application is available to the public.
2. The Internet site or application has more than 150 million users.
(f) “State agency” means an association, authority, board, department,
commission, independent agency, institution, office, society, or other body in state
government created or authorized to be created by the constitution or any law.
(g) “User" means a person who subscribes to or has an account on a social media
Internet site, regardless of whether the person posts or has posted content or
material to the social media Internet site.
(2) (a) No employee of a state agency may in his or her official capacity influence
or attempt to influence a social media Internet site to censor, deplatform, or shadow
ban a user on the social media Internet site. This paragraph does not prohibit
expression by an employee of a state agency about a user's content if the user's
content constitutes harassment, an apparent violation of law, content that is obscene
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or pornographic in nature, or expressive material not protected by the First
Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
(b) No federal government agency employee present in this state may in his or
her official capacity influence or attempt to influence a social media Internet site to
censor, deplatform, or shadow ban a user on the social media Internet site. This
paragraph does not prohibit expression by a federal government agency employee
present in this state about a user's content if the user's content constitutes
harassment, an apparent violation of law, content that is obscene or pornographic in
nature, or expressive material not protected by the First Amendment of the U.S.
Constitution.
(3) A person shall be required to forfeit not less than $1,000 nor more than
$10,000 for each occasion that the person influences or attempts to influence a social
media Internet site in violation of sub. (2).
(END)
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