American Family Association Action (AFA Action), is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing biblical, family values in society and government by educating and influencing public policy. AFA Action is also the Governmental Affairs Affiliate of American Family Association (AFA).
TUPELO, Miss. — AFA Action, the governmental affairs affiliate of the American Family Association, calls on Wisconsin parents and lawmakers to oppose Governor Tony Evers’ veto of a bill to protect children from hardcore pornography and illegal child pornography. AB 105, sponsored by Rep. Joy Goeben, requires commercial pornographic websites to verify that users are at least age 18 before accessing content that is obscene for children. The bill also forbids publishing or distributing obscene depictions of children online. Similar legislation has passed in at least 25 states and was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court in the 2025 Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton decision. Assembly Bill 105 also contains important privacy protections. Once a porn website operator has confirmed a user’s age, it cannot retain the individual’s other identifying information.
Gov. Evers is the first governor in America to veto age verification legislation. Assembly Bill 105 passed the Wisconsin Assembly in a strong bipartisan vote, 69-22, and passed the Wisconsin Senate on a unanimous voice vote.
“We are shocked by Gov. Evers’ veto of this commonsense bipartisan bill,” said Trey Dellinger, senior legal fellow for AFA Action. “Gov. Evers raises contrived privacy concerns to justify this shameful veto. But the bill contains the same privacy protections as similar legislation passed across the nation. The bill prohibits websites from retaining personal identifying information used to verify an individual’s adult age. Any website that does so could be sued for damages, including punitive damages, under this bill.
“Websites for thousands of businesses — banks, insurance companies, hospitals, doctors — require customers to enter their personal information online for identification purposes. There is no sound legal reason that porn websites should not require users to verify that they are adults. Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of age verification in Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton (2025). The Court recognized that age verification is an appropriate way to protect children online. Gov. Evers’ veto is providing cover for predators and traffickers profiting from child abuse.”
In addition to allowing underage children to access online pornography, Gov. Evers’ veto eliminates legal remedies that would enable children victimized by Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) to sue websites profiting from illegal child rape videos.
Wisconsin kids are desperately in need of protection from online sexual victimization. According to the Wisconsin Attorney General, the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force received approximately 11,000 total tips of online child exploitation, up from 7,000 total tips in 2022. Attorney General Kaul’s press release says online threats to kids “can include cyber bullying, exposure to Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), contact from adults looking to obtain CSAM from the child and possessing or distributing CSAM images or videos.”
“A two-thirds vote of the Wisconsin Legislature will override Gov. Evers’ veto,” concluded Dellinger. “This fight goes back to the Legislature, where lawmakers are now accountable for fixing what the governor got wrong. Kids need protection from the public health crisis of pornography and from the lifelong harm caused by child sexual abuse material (CSAM).”
AFA Action is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing biblical family values in society and government by shaping public policy through education and advocacy. The mission of AFA Action is to inform and mobilize individuals to strengthen the biblical foundations of America by persuading individuals with the truth of the Gospel, challenging the lost to repent, promoting societal values that are consistent with Scripture, restraining evil and exposing the works of darkness, motivating people to take a stand on cultural and moral issues, and encouraging Christians to bear witness to the world the love of Jesus Christ. Find AFA Action Alerts here.
For more information on the American Family Association, visit www.afa.net or follow AFA on Facebook or X.
For more information on AFA Action, visit www.afaaction.net or follow AFA Action on Facebook or X.
To interview an AFA or AFA Action spokesperson, contact Hamilton Strategies, [email protected], or Beth Bogucki, 610.584.1096, ext. 105, or Daniel Moyer, ext. 104.
AFA Action is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization dedicated to advancing biblical, family values in society and government by educating and influencing public policy. AFA Action is also the Governmental Affairs Affiliate of American Family Association.