New Bill Would Make All Pornography a Federal Crime in the U.S.

· May 12, 2025 at 11:03 AM

Republican Senator Mike Lee introduced Interstate Obscenity Definition Act (again) last week, which would criminalize porn at the federal level.

New Bill Would Make All Pornography a Federal Crime in the U.S. — U.S. Senator Mike Lee speaking with attendees at the 2022 Student Action Summit at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida. Credit: Gage Skidmore from Surprise, AZ, United States of America

Republican Senator of Utah Mike Lee introduced a bill that would effectively ban porn at the federal level in the United States.

The Interstate Obscenity Definition Act (IODA), introduced by Lee and Illinois Republican Rep. Mary Miller on Thursday, aims to change the Supreme Court’s 1973 “Miller Test” for determining what qualifies as obscene. “Obscenity isn’t protected by the First Amendment, but hazy and unenforceable legal definitions have allowed extreme pornography to saturate American society and reach countless children,” Lee said in a press release. “Our bill updates the legal definition of obscenity for the internet age so this content can be taken down and its peddlers prosecuted.”