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ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, Second Regular Session
AMENDED
election communications; deep fakes; prohibition
Purpose
Prescribes requirements governing the distribution of a synthetic media message that is a deceptive and fraudulent deepfake (deepfake) of a candidate for elected office.
Background
On October 30,
2023, President Biden issued Executive
Order 13960 (EO) that aims to promote the safe and trustworthy development
and use of artificial intelligence (AI). The EO directs multiple federal
agencies to collaborate with joint efforts in research, development and
implementation of strategies to detect and prevent the spread of deepfakes or
other manipulated digital media. The EO urges for the standardization of
guidelines to govern the ethical use of AI to ensure that AI is safe for use
and emphasizes transparency and accountability to safeguard peoples' privacy
and civil liberties. The EO directs the U.S. Department of Commerce to develop
guidelines for AI content authentication and watermarks for the purposes of
clearly disclosing AI
-generated media. Federal agencies will be required to utilize the
authentication and watermark tools to allow for people to know whether or not
the communications that they receive are authentic.
The EO
establishes the White House AI Council to coordinate the activities of the
federal agencies to ensure the effective formulation, communication and timely
implementation of AI
-related policies.
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Requires a person who acts as a creator of a deepfake to clearly and conspicuously disclose that the media includes content generated by artificial intelligence of a candidate, within 90 days before an election at which the candidate will appear on the ballot.
2. Prohibits a person who acts as a creator of a deepfake from sponsoring or creating and distributing a deepfake of a candidate that the entity knows is a deepfake of the candidate or of a political party unless the deepfake includes the prescribed disclosure.
3. Requires, for an audio only media where a visual disclosure is not possible, the disclosure to be read in a clearly spoken manner and in a pitch that can be easily heard by the average listener at the beginning and end of the audio.
4. Stipulates that, if the audio only media is longer than two minutes in length, the verbal disclosure must be interspersed within the audio at least every two minutes.
5. Allows a candidate whose appearance, action or speech is depicted through a deepfake in violation of the deepfake disclosure requirements to seek injunctive or other equitable relief from the sponsor or creator of the media prohibiting the publication of the deepfake.
6. Specifies that the requirements relating to the disclosure of deepfakes do not apply to:
a) a radio or television broadcasting station, including a cable or satellite television operator, programmer or producer:
i. that broadcasts a deceptive and fraudulent deepfake that is prohibited by the deepfake disclosure requirements and that is part of a bona fide newscast, news interview or news documentary or on-the-spot coverage of bona fide news events, if the broadcast clearly acknowledges through its content or a disclosure in a manner that can be easily heard or read by the average listener or viewer that there are questions about the authenticity of the materially deceptive audio or visual media; and
ii. when it is paid to broadcast a deepfake and has made a good faith effort to establish that the depiction is not a deepfake;
b) an internet website or 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 materially depictive audio or visual media that is prohibited by the deepfake disclosure requirements if the publication clearly states that the materially depictive audio or visual media;
c) media that constitutes satire or parody; and
d) an interactive computer service.
7. Classifies, as a class 6 felony, a violation of the deepfake disclosure requirements with the intent to cause violence or bodily harm.
8. Classifies, as a class 4 felony, a violation of the deepfake disclosure requirements if a person commits the violation within five years of one or more prior deepfake violation convictions.
9. Classifies, as a class 1 misdemeanor, the violation of the deepfake disclosure requirements, with exceptions.
10. Defines creator as:
a) any person that utilizes artificial intelligence or other digital technology to generate synthetic media; and
b) excludes the provider of any technology used in the creation of the synthetic media.
11. Defines synthetic media as an image, audio recording or video recording of an individual's appearance, speech or conduct that has been created or intentionally manipulated with the use of digital technology in a manner to create a realistic by false image audio or video.
12. Defines deceptive and fraudulent deepfake as synthetic media that depicts a candidate or political party with the intent to injure the reputation of the candidate or political party or otherwise deceive a voter that:
a) appears to a reasonable person to depict a real individual saying or doing something that did not actually occur in reality; or
b) provides to a reasonable person a fundamentally different understanding or impression of the appearance, action or speech in an image, audio recording or video recording than a reasonable person would have from an unaltered, original version of the image, audio recording or video recording.
13. Contains a severability clause.
14. Becomes effective on the general effective date.
Amendments Adopted by Committee of the Whole
1. Removes the prescribed disclosure requirements.
2. Subjects only a person who acts as a creator of a deepfake to the requirement that the deepfake include a disclosure.
3. Specifies that the equitable relief prohibiting the publication of a deepfake is from the sponsor or creator of the media.
4. Adds an interactive computer service to the exclusion of the requirements relating to deepfake disclosures.
5. Defines creator.
6. Modifies the definition of synthetic media.
7. Makes technical and conforming changes.
Senate Action
ELEC 2/5/24 DP 7-1-0
Prepared by Senate Research
February 26, 2024
AN/cs