United States of America: Bill prohibiting access to child sexual abuse material by content providers (HB 752) enters into force

On 1 October 2025, the Bill on Prohibiting Content Providers from Allowing Access to Child Sexual Abuse Material in Montana (HB 752) comes into force. The Bill prohibits content providers from making child sexual abuse material (CSAM) accessible in the state of Montana. The Bill defines 'content providers' as entities that create, produce, publish, distribute or store visual content. It explicitly excludes internet service providers, search engines and infrastructure operators, unless they are directly involved. Provisions include a 5% threshold for determining a "substantial amount" of sexually explicit material, which applies to providers who derive 50% or more of their annual revenue from such content, provided their total annual earnings exceed USD 500'000. The Bill provides a 96-hour window for the removal of content after the violation has been identified. Statutory damages range from USD 100'000 for strict liability to USD 5 million for intentional violations. Of these, 50–80% is allocated to victims, 35–60% to private plaintiffs, and 15–40% to the state, depending on which party brought the action before the court. The limitation period is 15 years for victim claims and 10 years for actions brought by other authorised plaintiffs. Additional provisions include exemptions for hyperlinking and protections for entities that report suspected CSAM (child sexual abuse material) to law enforcement. Both the Montana Department of Justice and private parties are authorised to take enforcement action, and the Bill is codified under a new chapter in Title 30 of the Montana Code Annotated.