Utah’s SB 73, an update to the state’s existing age-verification mandate, goes into partial effect on May 6, 2026. New provisions gives the Division of Consumer Protection the ability to enforce the age-verification mandate, bans platforms from encouraging the use of VPNs, and requires platforms to age-verify any users physically located in Utah, regardless of their IP address.
In practical terms, this means that compliance strategies that depend on IP addresses, such as geoblocking may not be effective at mitigating liability. Even platforms that do currently age-verify visitors from the state could run afoul of the law if a Utahn uses a VPN to disguise their location, or if their IP address belongs to a range associated with a neighboring state like Arizona or Nevada.
“Utah’s new law makes compliance extremely difficult, if not impossible,” says Alison Boden, Executive Director of Free Speech Coalition. “Determining geolocation based on IP address is imperfect. With SB 73, Utah is effectively overriding the laws of every other jurisdiction and requiring platforms to age-verify every single visitor to their sites. Platforms should discuss how to approach this situation with their attorneys.”
A separate provision of SB 73, requiring a 2% excise tax on sales of adult content in Utah, goes into effect October 1, 2026. FSC members can read more about SB 73 in April’s FSC Policy Update. Others can find more information on SB 73, including a link to the text of the legislation on the FSC Action Center.