Montanans sue their state over TikTok ban

Five TikTok content creators have filed a lawsuit seeking to overturn a planned ban on the videosharing app in Montana, arguing that the law is an unconstitutional violation of free-speech rights.

The Montana residents also argued in a legal complaint filed late Wednesday in federal court in Missoula that the state doesn’t have any authority over matters of national security.

Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte signed the bill into law Wednesday and said it would protect Montana residents’ private data and personal information from being harvested by the Chinese government. The ban is scheduled to take effect Jan. 1.

“We expected a legal challenge and are fully prepared to defend the law,” said Emily Flower, spokesperson for the Montana Department of Justice.

TikTok has argued that the law infringes on people’s 1st Amendment rights. However, spokesperson Brooke Oberwetter declined to comment on the lawsuit Thursday.

The creators are five Montana residents who use the video-sharing app for such things as promoting a business, connecting with military veterans, introducing others to ranch life, sharing outdoor adventures or expressing their sense of humor. Some of them make significant money from the app, the complaint states.

The lawsuit says the ban would “immediately and permanently deprive Plaintiffs of their ability to express themselves and communicate with others.”

Some lawmakers, the FBI and officials at other agencies are concerned that the app, owned by ByteDance, could be used to allow the Chinese government to access information on U.S. citizens or push proBeijing misinformation that could influence the public. TikTok says none of this has ever happened.