Bill Text: CA AB2355 | 2023-2024 | Regular Session | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Political Reform Act of 1974: political advertisements: artificial intelligence.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2024-09-17 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 260, Statutes of 2024. [AB2355 Detail]
Download: California-2023-AB2355-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Political Reform Act of 1974: political advertisements: artificial intelligence.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Passed) 2024-09-17 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 260, Statutes of 2024. [AB2355 Detail]
Download: California-2023-AB2355-Introduced.html
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION
Assembly Bill
No. 2355
| Introduced by Assembly Member Wendy Carrillo |
February 12, 2024 |
An act to add Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 20050) to Division 20 of the Elections Code, relating to political advertisements.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2355, as introduced, Wendy Carrillo.
Political advertisements: artificial intelligence.
Existing law requires a paid political advertisement, as defined, that refers to an election or to any candidate for state or local elective office and that is contained or distributed with a newspaper to include the printed disclosure “Paid Political Advertisement,” as specified. Existing law, until January 1, 2027, prohibits a person, committee, or other entity from, except as specified, distributing, with actual malice, materially deceptive audio or visual media of a candidate for elective office with the intent to injure the candidate’s reputation or to deceive the voter into voting for or against the candidate.
This bill would require a person, committee, or other entity that creates, originally publishes, or originally distributes a qualified political advertisement to include in the advertisement a specified disclosure that the
advertisement was generated, in whole or in part, using artificial intelligence, as defined. The bill would define “qualified political advertisement” to include any paid advertisement, as specified, that relates to a candidate for federal, state, or local office, any election to federal, state, or local office, a ballot measure, or a bond issue, that contains any image, audio, or video that is generated, in whole or in part, using artificial intelligence. The bill would authorize any registered voter to bring an action in superior court seeking a temporary or permanent restraining order or injunction against the publication, printing, circulation, posting, or distribution of any qualified political advertisement that violates these disclosure requirements.
Digest Key
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: NO Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Chapter 1.5 (commencing with Section 20050) is added to Division 20 of the Elections Code, to read:CHAPTER 1.5. Artificial Intelligence in Political Advertisements
20050.
(a) (1) If a person, committee, as defined in Section 82013 of the Government Code, or other entity creates, originally publishes, or originally distributes a qualified political advertisement, the qualified political advertisement shall include, in a clear and conspicuous manner, the following disclosure: “This _____ has been generated, in whole or in part, using artificial intelligence.”(2) The blank in the disclosure required by paragraph (1) shall be filled with whichever of the following terms most accurately describes the media:
(A) Audio
(B) Image.
(C) Video.
(3) (A) For visual media, the text of the disclosure shall appear in a size that is easily readable by the average viewer and no smaller than the largest font size of other text appearing in the visual media. If the visual media does not include any other text, the disclosure shall appear in a size that is easily readable by the average viewer. For visual media that is video, the disclosure shall appear for the duration of the video.
(B) If the media consists of audio only, the disclosure shall be read in a clearly spoken manner and in a pitch that can be easily heard by the average listener, at the beginning of the audio, at the end of the audio, and, if the audio is greater than two minutes in length, interspersed within the audio at intervals of not greater than two minutes each.
(b) (1) This section does not alter or negate any rights, obligations, or immunities of an interactive service provider under Section 230 of Title 47 of the United States Code.
(2) This section does not apply to any of the following:
(A) A radio or television broadcasting station, including a cable or satellite television operator, programmer, or producer, that broadcasts a qualified political advertisement as part of a bona fide newscast, news interview, news documentary, or on-the-spot coverage of bona fide news events, if the broadcast clearly acknowledges through content or a disclosure, in a manner that can be easily heard or read by the average listener or viewer, that the qualified political advertisement may have been generated, in whole or in part, using artificial intelligence.
(B) A radio or television broadcasting station, including a cable or satellite television operator, programmer, or producer, when it is paid to broadcast a qualified political advertisement.
(C) An internet website, or a regularly published newspaper, magazine, or other periodical of general circulation, including an internet or electronic publication, that routinely carries news and commentary of general interest, and that publishes a qualified political advertisement, if the publication clearly states that the qualified political advertisement may have been generated, in whole or in part, using artificial intelligence.
(D) A qualified political advertisement that constitutes satire or parody.
(c) The superior court, in a case brought before it by a
registered voter, may issue a temporary or permanent restraining order or injunction against the publication, printing, circulation, posting, or distribution of any qualified political advertisement in violation of this section, and all cases of this nature shall be in a preferred position for purposes of trial and appeal, so as to assure the speedy disposition of cases of this nature.
(d) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
(1) “Artificial intelligence” means a machine-based system that can, for a given set of human-defined objectives, make predictions, recommendations, or decisions influencing real or virtual environments, and that uses machine and human-based inputs to do all of the following:
(A) Perceive real and virtual environments.
(B) Abstract such perceptions into models through analysis in an automated manner.
(C) Use model inference to formulate options for information or action.
(2) “Ballot measure” includes any of the following:
(A) City ballot measures.
(B) County ballot measures.
(C) School and district ballot measures.
(D) Statewide ballot measures.
(3) “Bond issue” has the same meaning as the term is defined in Section 9400.
(4) “Qualified political advertisement” means means any paid advertisement,
including search engine marketing, display advertisements, video advertisements, native advertisements, issue advertisements, printed advertisements, messaging service advertisements, mobile application advertisements, prerecorded telephone message advertisements, or sponsorships, relating to a candidate for federal, state, or local office, any election to federal, state, or local office, a ballot measure, or a bond issue, that contains any image, audio, or video that is generated, in whole or in part, using artificial intelligence.
