Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen has spearheaded a coalition of 21 state attorneys general in urging the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to uphold the national TikTok divest-or-ban legislation passed by Congress earlier this year.
The federal law mandates that TikTok, owned by the Chinese company ByteDance, must either divest its stake in the platform or face a nationwide ban. ByteDance and TikTok have challenged the ban in court.
In an amicus brief filed on Friday, the coalition argues that the court should reject TikTok’s petition, asserting that Congress has the authority to address national security and foreign affairs issues. The brief contends that TikTok poses a significant threat to national security and consumer privacy, due to the company’s potential sharing of user data with the Chinese Communist Party, privacy infringements, and the risk of harmful content being promoted to minors.
“TikTok is a Chinese Communist Party spy tool and is feeding harmful content to children. It should be banned. In Montana, we were the first to recognize this threat, and I’m pleased that Congress has followed our lead,” Knudsen said. “The court should uphold this law to protect Americans from the CCP, a self-declared enemy of our country.”
TikTok has confirmed that its technology and infrastructure are subject to Chinese government control. The company argues that the ban infringes on its First Amendment rights, but the attorneys general maintain that the ban does not violate free speech protections because it targets security risks rather than expressive behavior.
The brief highlights concerns that TikTok could be used for corporate and international espionage, potentially allowing the Chinese Communist Party to track the real-time locations of public officials, journalists, and other individuals critical of its interests.
Montana was the first state to impose a TikTok ban, an initiative led by Attorney General Knudsen during the 2023 Legislative Session.
Joining Knudsen and Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares in the brief are attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, and Utah.
Click here to read the brief.
