United States of America: Bill prohibiting access to child sexual abuse material by content providers (HB 752) was adopted by Montana State Legislature

On 1 May 2025, the Montana State Legislature adopted Bill HB 752, which prohibits content providers from allowing access to child sexual abuse material in Montana, following final approval by both chambers. The effective date is set for 1 October 2025, allowing time for implementation and compliance. During the legislative process, amendments were introduced to the Bill, including a definition of "content provider" that covers entities involved in the creation, production, publication, distribution, or storage of online content. However, search engines, browsers, hosting services, and infrastructure providers are exempt unless they are directly involved. The final text defined a "substantial amount" of sexually explicit content as 5% or more of a provider's total visual material, and applied liability to those earning over USD 500'000 annually from such content. The Bill preserved the 96-hour safe harbour period for removing material once actual knowledge of its existence had been acquired, and included protections for providers who reported such content to law enforcement. The Bill was codified under a new chapter of Title 30 of the Montana Code Annotated to ensure legal integration.