AUSTIN (KXAN) — The Texas Legislature is working on several bills that could introduce more protections against AI-generated explicit images used for harassment and the production of child sexual assault materials (CSAM).
The Texas Senate passed three such bills by unanimous votes on Wednesday.
SB 20 and SB 1621 both update the state’s statues against the possession of CSAM to include AI-generated content. SB 442 would update state law to consider AI-generated content as potentially unlawful production or distribution of sexually explicit video, if made without the consent of the person it depicts.
Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, asked prior to the vote on SB 20 if it could take effect sooner than Sept. 1.
“There are not enough negative adjectives out there to describe people that would use a computer software animation or something to depict the child in some form of pornography or obscene visual material,” Menéndez said. “I would like to see what we could do to get any material or any people that are possessing or creating this material to understand that they’re going to be dealt with severely through the criminal justice system, and that we’re not going to tolerate this.”
A Texas law can only take immediate effect if more than two-thirds of both chambers vote in favor of the bill’s final version.
Sen. Tan Parker, R-Dallas, spoke about SB 20 prior to the vote. He is one of the bill’s authors.
“The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence has created powerful tools that, while being beneficial in many areas, are being exploited to produce AI-generated and virtual [CSAM],” Parker said, “Unlike traditional CSAM, which is already illegal, AI-generated images, videos and deep fakes depicting child exploitation exist in a legal gray area, allowing offenders to create and share disturbing content with impunity. This loophole must be closed immediately.”
House committee hears testimony
In addition to those two bills, the Texas House of Representatives is working on its own legislation to protect against AI misuse.
On Wednesday, the House Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence committee heard testimony about House Bills 421 and 581. Both bills were authored by Rep. Mary González, D-El Paso, who chairs the Texas House LGBTQ Caucus.
HB 421 would allow for victims of AI-generated explicit images to sue the creators of such images. If the lawsuit succeeds, the plaintiff could be rewarded exemplary damages. Rep. Armando Walle, D-Houston, also authored the bill.
HB 581 also creates grounds for lawsuits; this time, against a commercial entity who creates an AI program that can create sexual material harmful to minors, which covers explicit images of adults. Businesses providing explicit AI-generation tools would need to comply with Texas’ age verification law and have consent from the person whose likeness is used in the produced image.
González told the committee that the House has “a responsibility to do something” to combat the use of AI-generated CSAM. She said that her solutions, aimed at companies that create AI tools for explicit image creation, would likely inconvenience some in the tech sector.
“Here’s what’s happening — a kid, a 12-year-old girl, her picture is taken, and another student uses her picture and creates sexually explicit content. The kid goes to school, it’s traumatic,” González said. “If it stops a 12-year-old girl from being bullied because [someone] had created sexual content about her, then yeah, let’s inconvenience some people, because the long term effects are completely harmful and traumatic.”
