Texas
Supreme Court declines to block Texas age-verification law on porn websites like Pornhub
Pornhub blocks access in Texas
Pornhub, one of the most visited pornography sites, announced they were disabling their website in Texas following a recent ruling.
Fox – 26 Houston
A Texas law requiring pornographic websites to verify the age of their users will remain after the Supreme Court declined an emergency appeal.
Here’s what the court said about House Bill 1181 and what happens next.
What is HB 1181?
HB 1181 passed in 2023, requiring porn sites to verify the age of users with a government-issued ID or reasonable alternative. The bill was written by Plano Republican state Rep. Matt Shaheen. The bill prevents minors from accessing sites and comes with a $10,000-a-day fine for violators and $250,000 “if a child is exposed to pornographic content due to not properly verifying a user’s age.”
Last March, in a court battle between the state and Aylo Global Entertainment — which owns many popular pornographic websites, including Pornhub — sides argued whether or not Texas’ law violated free speech rights. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that HB 1181 does not violate the First Amendment.
In addition to Texas, Pornhub has reluctantly blocked site access for people in other states with age-verification laws, including Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Utah and Virginia.
Will HB 1181 remain?
For now. According to Newsweek, the Free Speech Coalition, a trade association that fights for protection and the rights of the adult industry, said they will continue to fight the current bill.
“The ruling by the Fifth Circuit remains in direct opposition to decades of Supreme Court precedent, and we remain hopeful that the Supreme Court will grant our petition for certiorari and reaffirm its lengthy line of cases applying strict scrutiny to content-based restrictions on speech like those in the Texas statute we’ve challenged. We will continue to fight for the right to access the internet without intrusive government oversight,” a spokesperson for the Free Speech Coalition said.
What other sites does Pornhub’s parent company Aylo own?
Owned by the adult entertainment conglomerate Aylo, Pornhub stands as the second-most visited website in its category, trailing only behind XVideos.
There are eight video-sharing websites in the Pornhub Network: GayTube, Peeperz, PornIQ, Pornhub, RedTube, Thumbzilla, Tube8, and YouPorn. The network also operates Porn MD, a video search engine that aggregates content from across the network.
All adult entertainment brands operated by Aylo include:
- Brazzers
- Digital Playground
- Men.com
- Mofos
- Nutaku
- Pornhub
- Reality Kings
- RedTube
- Sean Cody
- Twistys
- WhyNotBi.com
- Xtube
- YouPorn
— USA TODAY contributed to this report.
Texas
See how Texas medical schools rank among the world’s best for 2026
Texas Tech welcomes Sofie Jones as the new Masked Rider
Watch Texas Tech University formally welcome Sofie Jones as the 65th Masked Rider.
When it comes to training the doctors and researchers who will staff hospitals, Texas holds its own on the world stage.
Several Texas health and medical institutions landed on U.S. News and World Report’s 2026-27 Best Global Universities list, with three cracking the global top 500 — led by UT Southwestern Medical Center at No. 113.
The list considered 13 indicators and weights to measure global research performance and reputation, ranking the world’s 2,250 top universities.
Here’s a look at how some major public and private health care and medical universities in Texas fared on the list.
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center
Global Ranking: No. 113.
Location: Dallas, Texas.
Type: Public university.
Baylor College of Medicine
Global Ranking: No. 144.
Location: Houston, Texas.
Type: Private university.
University of Texas Health Science Center — Houston
Global Ranking: No. 324.
Location: Houston, Texas.
Type: Public university.
University of Texas Medical Branch — Galveston
Global Ranking: No. 599.
Location: Galveston, Texas.
Type: Public university.
Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center
Global Ranking: No. 1,871.
Location: Lubbock, Texas.
Type: Public university.
Mateo Rosiles is the Texas Connect reporter for USA TODAY and its regional papers in Texas. Got a news tip for him? Email him at mrosiles@usatodayco.com.
Texas
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Texas
New screwworm portal aims to protect Texas livestock, wildlife and rural economy
AUSTIN – Texas officials are rolling out a new online hub aimed at helping residents spot and report the New World screwworm, a pest Gov. Greg Abbott says threatens livestock, wildlife, and the state’s rural economy.
Abbott announced the launch of screwworm.texas.gov, an enhanced website housed in the Texas Division of Emergency Management’s Disaster Portal that he described as a “one-stop shop” for information and resources tied to the state’s response.
The New World screwworm poses a direct threat to Texas livestock, wildlife, and our rural economy,” Abbott said. “This new website puts essential tools in the hands of our producers, veterinarians, and families. Screwworm.texas.gov delivers the facts, maps, identification methods, and certification resources Texans need to detect problems early and report cases without delay. Now every Texan has the information to act. Texas will protect our land, our animals, and our way of life from this pest.
According to the governor’s office, the site is designed to provide “actionable and reliable multimedia information” about the New World screwworm, including fact sheets, videos, and educational materials.
The portal includes background information, guidance on how to spot the pest, sample collection procedures, Texas Animal Health Commission New World screwworm zone maps, the U.S. Department of Agriculture case dashboard, links to best practices for livestock and wildlife, and details on registering for a new no-cost New World screwworm Certified Inspector Training.
The governor’s office said state and federal partners are working together to detect, control and contain the spread, and that expanding public outreach and providing clear information is a key part of reducing risk.
Abbott’s office also highlighted actions taken by the governor in response to the pest, including:
- Directing the creation of a joint Texas New World screwworm Response Team
- Joining USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins to announce a $750 million investment in a new sterile fly production facility in Edinburg
- Issuing a statewide disaster declaration ahead of the first detection
- Deploying state resources and activating the State Emergency Operations Center after the first confirmed Texas cases
- Visiting the Knipling-Bushland U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory in Kerrville for a briefing
- Launching a free online training course to certify more inspectors
- Announcing federal funding to strengthen inspection capacity.
Texans are urged to inspect livestock and pets for wounds and report suspected cases immediately, including in wildlife.
For livestock and pets, suspected cases should be reported to the Texas Animal Health Commission’s 24-hour veterinarian call line at 1-800-550-8242.
For wildlife, reports should be made to Texas Parks and Wildlife’s 24-hour biologists’ call line at 512-389-4505. Officials also warn people not to move affected animals.
More information and updates are available at screwworm.texas.gov and screwworm.gov.
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