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Montana became the first US state on Friday, April 14, to pass a bill that would ban TikTok not only from government-issued devices but from all phones in the state. The bill is likely to face legal challenges. However, it is currently serving as a testing ground for a nation free from the app - something that many legislators have been envisioning.
The Montana House won by 54-43 votes to send the bill to Greg Gianforte, their Republican Governor, for his signature. The governor’s office spoke to CBS News and stated that they will carefully consider all the bills sent to their desk by the legislature. The statement added:
“We will keep you apprised of the bill’s status once the governor acts on it.”
Greg Gianforte has already banned the short-video posting platform on government devices in the state after the Senate passed the bill in March by 30-20 votes.
One Twitter user @Kmansyv wrote that the VPN sites would now have a bright future, implying that since the app is being banned, TikTok enthusiasts would definitely use VPNs to access the platform.
Netizens react to Montana's new bill to ban TikTok on all devices
Many people questioned the bill proposed by Montana. They criticized legislators for only banning TikTok, and not other e-commerce sites that allow users to buy items from China.
Some also argued that other apps like Facebook and Google are spying on user data just as much, questioning why the lawmakers only wanted to ban the short-video app.
Lawmakers are banning TikTok for national security concerns
In response to the new bill’s passage, a spokesperson from TikTok also spoke to CBS News on Friday afternoon and said:
"The bill's champions have admitted that they have no feasible plan for operationalizing this attempt to censor American voices and that the bill's constitutionality will be decided by the courts.”
The spokesperson added that they would continue to fight for the creators and users of the app based in Montana whose First Amendment rights and livelihoods are currently threatened.
The popular short-video platform owned by Chinese tech company ByteDance is facing intense scrutiny over what lawmakers are deeming to be national security concerns. They also brought up concerns about user data being handed over to the Chinese government.
Legislators who support the ban have pointed to two Chinese laws that oblige companies in China to cooperate with their government on state intelligence work. Lawmakers have also pointed out other issues, including the disclosure by the parent company of the app that came in December.
According to the disclosure, ByteDance fired four employees who gained access to the IP addresses and other personal information of two journalists in an attempt to detect the source of a leaked report about the company.
Montana’s GOP-controlled legislature backed the bill, which is more sweeping than the bans that are placed in nearly half of the federal government and states in the US, prohibiting the app on government devices.
The US Congress is considering legislation that would not call out the app but would give the Commerce Department the power to restrict foreign threats on these tech platforms. Although the White House is backing the bill, it has received pushback from right-wing commentators and privacy advocates.
Austin Knudsen, Montana's Attorney General, had urged state legislators to pass the bill banning the app because he was not certain that Congress would act quickly to enforce a federal ban.
Knudsen, a Republican, stated in a House committee in March that he thinks Montana has an opportunity here to be the leader. He said that TikTok is a tool that the Chinese government was using to spy on the residents of the state.
The bill would prohibit downloading the app in Montana. It would fine any app store $10,000 per day if someone is allowed the ability to access TikTok. However, the penalties wouldn’t be applicable to users.
