LANSING, Mich. (FOX 2) -
Michigan lawmakers proposed a bill last week banning porn.
This comes after the bill's primary sponsor, Rep. Josh Schriver (R-Oxford), said earlier this year that he was working to draft legislation banning all porn online.
Dig deeper:
House Bill 4938, called the "Anticorruption of Public Morals Act," would prohibit the distribution of "real, animated, digitally generated, written, or auditory" depictions of sexual acts. The bill breaks down the types of acts covered, including intercourse and masturbation.
The bill also includes a section that takes aim at transgender individuals by prohibiting material "that includes a disconnection between biology and gender by an individual of 1 biological sex imitating, depicting, or representing himself or herself to be of the other biological sex."
The bill would require internet service providers in Michigan to use filters to prevent people from seeing the prohibited material.
If the bill were to become law, violators could be looking at prison time or hefty fines. Distributing the prohibited material or making it available online would carry a maximum prison sentence of 20 years and/or a $100,000 fine. If more than 100 pieces of prohibited material are involved, that penalty jumps to 25 years in prison and/or a fine up to $125,000.
Additionally, an internet service provider or commercial entity could face fines for knowingly allowing people to access sexually explicit material online.
The bill's sponsors are also pushing for violators of the Anticorruption of Public Morals Act to register as sex offenders.
Others behind the bill include Reps. Joseph Pavlov (R-Smiths Creek), Matthew Maddock (R-Milford), James DeSana (R-Carleton), and Jennifer Wortz (R-Quincy).
According to Schriver, the ban, which would apply to adults and minors alike if it were to become law, is designed to protect children.
"These measures defend children, safeguard our communities, and put families first," he wrote on X. "Obscene and harmful content online threatens Michigan families, especially children."
Schriver has been outspoken about his objections to porn and his desire to ban it completely in Michigan. Earlier this year, he said porn and human trafficking were linked, adding that "shutting down the porn industry would be a crushing blow to the human trafficking industry."
