Montana lawmakers adopted legislation on Friday. It would make it illegal for the popular Chinese-owned short-form video app TikTok to operate in the state.
Montana app merchants would be prohibited from promoting or providing access to TikTok under SB 419. The Montana House of Representatives voted 54-43 in favor of the restriction.
If implemented, the bill will impose fines on mobile app merchants such as Apple and Google, as well as TikTok, who violate the limit.
The state’s strategy for implementing the ban is unknown. Montana Governor Greg Gianforte must now sign the bill into law.
According to a spokeswoman for Montana’s governor, his administration will analyze any legislation handed to it by the legislature.
The firm said, “We will continue to fight for TikTok users and creators in Montana. Those whose livelihoods and First Amendment rights are threatened by this egregious government overreach.”
Concerns over suspected Chinese government control of the site have prompted some US lawmakers to call for a statewide ban on the TikTok app, which is owned by Chinese internet company ByteDance.
Shou Zi Chew, the CEO of TikTok, was questioned last month by a congressional committee. He was grilled about the likelihood of Chinese government access to user data. Also on their influence over what Americans see on the app.
TikTok has denied claims that it shared user data with the Chinese government and has said that it would not comply with such demands in the future.
Project Texas is Oracle’s attempt to establish a distinct corporation for keeping data from American customers on servers owned and managed by Oracle in the United States.
