Dear Governor Huntsman,

I’m writing today to urge you to veto H.B. 353, now sitting on your desk.  H.B. 353 would amend the Truth in Advertising Act to expose retailers and movie theater owners as well as other businesses to frivolous litigation.  These groups currently limit the sale of products that have voluntary age restrictions or recommendations.  Amending the TIAA to include these transactions would have a chilling effect on the industry and further damage an already ailing economy.

Specifically, the Media Freedom Project strongly opposes opening up businesses to lawsuits for underage video game or movie sales.  This giveaway to trial lawyers won’t make kids safer, but will build in dramatically higher costs for small businesses who are already working on strategies to keep kids safe, and these businesses will be forced to pass these costs on to consumers.

Retailers already have an excellent record of voluntarily restricting access to these products by minors, opening them up to potential civil penalties if someone successfully slips through the net would only serve to enrich trial lawyers at the expense of consumers.

No crisis exists.  Parents are not clamoring for government intervention into the lives of their children. They, with the help of voluntary efforts of both content producers and retailers, are doing a fine job of monitoring their children’s DVD, movie watching and video game habits themselves.  There is no need for government intervention.

H.B. 353 is not needed and will create a new shades-of-grey area for trial lawyers to exploit at the expense of retailers and other businesses.  This will harm Utah businesses.  

It is for all these reasons that I urge you to veto H.B. 353.

Sincerely,
 
Derek Hunter
Executive Director,
Media Freedom Project