Legislature(2025 - 2026)BARNES 124
03/11/2025 08:00 AM House COMMUNITY & REGIONAL AFFAIRS
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB50 | |
| HB47 | |
| HB58 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| *+ | HB 47 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 58 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 50 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HB 47-GENERATED OBSCENE CHLD SEX ABUSE MATERIAL
8:29:24 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT announced that the next order of business
would be HOUSE BILL NO. 47, "An Act relating to crime and
criminal procedure; relating to generated obscene child sexual
abuse material; relating to the powers of district judges and
magistrates; relating to teaching certificates; and relating to
licensing of school bus drivers."
8:29:39 AM
REPRESENTATIVE SARAH VANCE, Alaska State Legislature, as prime
sponsor, presented HB 47. She gave a PowerPoint presentation on
HB 47 [included in the committee packet], beginning on slides 1
and 2, which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
HB 47 Generated CSAM
Combats the creation, possession, and distribution of
AI generated child s-xual [sic] abuse material.
AI enables the creation of virtual sexual images of
children indistinguishable from reality.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE continued to slide 3, which read as follows
[original punctuation provided]:
AI or computer-generated CSAM poses many dangers to
children, including:
• Perpetrators can now generate, alter or collage
depictions of children that are indistinguishable from
depictions of real children.
• They can use parts of images of real children to
create a composite image that is unidentifiable as a
particular child, and in a way that prevents even an
expert from concluding that parts of images of real
children were used.
• Sexually explicit depictions involving childreneven
if no physical abuse occurs during their creationhas
significant psychological and long-term impacts on the
children depicted.
• Artificially-generated or computer-edited CSAM
further re-victimizes actual child victims, as their
images are collected from the Internet and studied by
artificial intelligence tools to create new images.
• Child predators can also use artificially-generated
or computer-edited CSAM to extort minors and their
families for financial gain.
• Overwhelming law enforcement's capabilities to
identify and rescue real-life victims, child safety
experts warn.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE turned to slides 4 and 5, which addressed
the acceleration of dangerous content by artificial intelligence
(AI) and the impact of its proliferation. She continued to
slide 6, which read as follows [original punctuation provided]:
INCREASE IN AI-GENERATED CSAM: According to the IWF
study between October 2023 and July of 2024 over 3,500
new AI-generated criminal child sexual abuse images
were uploaded to one dark web forum alone AI CSAM
FEATURING KNOWN VICTIMS: ·Perpetrators increasingly
use fine-tuned AI models to generate new imagery of
known victims of child sexual abuse or famous
children.
MORE SEVERE IMAGES: Of the AI-generated images
confirmed to be child sexual abuse on the forum, more
images depicted the most severe Category A abuse,
indicating that perpetrators are more able to generate
complex 'hardcore' scenarios.
8:35:35 AM
The committee took an at-ease from 8:35 a.m. to 8:37 a.m.
8:37:15 AM
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE played a video illustrating the issues
surrounding AI-generated child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
She turned to slide 7, which read as follows [original
punctuation provided]:
State Laws that Criminalize AI-generated or Computer-
edited CSAM
Research by ENOUGH ABUSE has documented that 37 states
have enacted laws that criminalize AI-generated or
computer-edited CSAM, while 13 states and D.C. have
not. More than half of these laws were enacted in 2024
alone.
The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
(NCMEC) reports that in 2023 alone, it received 4,700
reports of CSAM involving generative AI technology.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE continued to slide 8, which read as follows
[original punctuation provided]:
EXTENDS ALASKA'S EXISTING PROHIBITIONS ON CHILD SEXUAL
ABUSE MATERIAL (CSAM)
• Includes artificially generated images depicting
identifiable children
EXPANDS CRIMINAL LAW TO COVER ENTIRELY SYNTHETIC, YET
REALISTIC AND OBSCENE IMAGES OF MINORS
• Depicts conduct under AS 11.41.455.
• Meets obscenity criteria under the Miller Test
Exemptions: Protects employees of interactive computer
services, ISPs, and telecommunications providers
detecting/reporting illegal materials.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE concluded on slide 9, which stated that HB
47 would hold perpetrators accountable for exploiting children's
digital likeness, enhance law enforcement tools, and strengthen
safeguards for children.
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT sought questions from members of the
committee.
8:46:59 AM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE referenced "identifiable child" on page
4 of the bill and questioned the purpose of specifying an
identifiable child, as opposed to including images of a person
who is unidentifiable as a crime as well.
8:47:50 AM
BOB BALLINGER, Staff, Representative Sarah Vance, Alaska State
Legislature, explained that under current law, generated
material is protected under the First Amendment unless it is
obscene. So, even if the generated material is not obscene, HB
47 would make it prosecutable under Alaska's CSAM statutes if
the child is identifiable without needing to prove the elements
of the Miller Test.
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE insisted that the possession of AI-
generated CSAM even if it's not depicting an identifiable
person should still be a crime.
MR. BALLINGER said yes and explained that the bill accomplishes
two things: firstly, it expands existing CSAM statutes to
incorporate identifiable child; secondly, it creates a new
statute that addresses AI generated CSAM. Under HB 47,
generated material depicting any child, identifiable or not,
that meets the elements of the Miller Test would be illegal.
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE asked whether the foregoing statute is
in HB 47.
8:51:29 AM
MR. BALLINGER confirmed and called the committee's attention to
Section 2, which adds new statutes that criminalize the
distribution and possession of obscene material and incorporates
the Miller Test in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3).
8:54:17 AM
MR. BALLINGER summarized the sectional analysis for HB 47
[included in the committee packet], which read as follows
[original punctuation provided]:
Section 1: Amends AS 11.61.120(a) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse Harassment in the second degree, a class
B misdemeanor.
Section 2. Amends AS 11.61 by adding new sections:
• AS 11.61.121 to prohibit the distribution of
generated obscene child sexual abuse material in
a way that closely aligns with the distribution
of child sexual abuse material.
• AS 11.61.122 to prohibit the possession of
generated obscene child sexual abuse material in
a way that closely aligns with the possession of
child sexual abuse material accept that this
material would also have to pass the Miller Test
as outlined in subparagraphs 1-3.
? Paragraph (b) provides that an employee of
a technology company who, while acting in the
scope of employment, accesses the prohibited
material solely to remove the material would
not be held criminally liable.
Section 3. Amends AS 11.61.127(a) to include the
images of a child that "is indistinguishable from an
identifiable child" who, by manipulation, creation, or
modification, appears to be engaged in sexual
conduct within the description of the possession of
child sexual abuse material.
Section 4. Amends AS 11.61.127(b)(2) to provide that
an employee of a technology company who, while
acting in the scope of employment, accesses the
prohibited material solely to remove the material
would
not be held criminally liable.
Section 5. Amends AS 11.61.127(f)(2) to define an
"identifiable child."
Section 6. Amends AS 11.61.129 to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse material as an offense to which a
violator forfeits the property used in the offense.
Section 7: Amends AS 11.66.100(c) to include
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse material as an offense to which a victim
or witness can testify and not risk prosecution for
prostitution to mirror that of distribution and
possession of child sexual abuse material in statute.
Section 8: Amends AS 12.10.010(a) to include
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse material as an offense to which there is
no statute of limitations to mirror that of
distribution
and possession of child sexual abuse material in
statute.
2
Section 9: Amends AS 12.55.078(f) to include
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse material as crimes to which a court may
not suspend the imposition or entry of judgment
and may not defer prosecution to mirror that of
distribution and possession of child sexual abuse
material
in statute.
Section 10: Amends AS 12.55.085(f) to include
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse material as crimes to which a court may
not suspend the imposition of a sentence to mirror
that of distribution and possession of child sexual
abuse material in statute.
Section 11: Amends AS 12.55.100(e) to include
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse material as crimes to which a court
should impose additional obligations on the defendant,
while on probation and as a condition of probation to
mirror that of distribution and possession of child
sexual abuse material in statute.
Section 12: Amends AS 12.55.125(i) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse material in the sentencing
guidelines to mirror that of distribution and
possession of
child sexual abuse material in statute.
Section 13: Amends AS 12.55.127(d) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse material as crimes to which a
consecutive term of imprisonment shall be imposed for
some additional term of imprisonment for each
additional crime or each additional attempt or
solicitation
to commit the offense to mirror that of distribution
and possession of child sexual abuse material in
statute.
Section 14: Amends AS 12.55.185(16) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse material as a "sexual felony" to
mirror that of distribution and possession of child
sexual abuse material in statute.
Section 15: Amends AS 12.62.900(22) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse material as a "serious offense" to
mirror that of distribution and possession of child
sexual abuse material in statute.
Section 16: Amends AS 14.20.030(b) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse material as crimes to which the
certificate would be revoked for life upon conviction
of said crime to mirror that of distribution and
possession of child sexual abuse material in statute.
Section 17: Amends 28.15.046(c) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene child
sexual abuse material as a crime that will remove the
eligibility to hold a bus driver's license to mirror
that of distribution and possession of child sexual
abuse material in statute.
Section 18: Amends AS 44.23.080(a) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse as a violation that qualifies for
an administrative subpoena to obtain the business
records of the Internet service provider to mirror
that of distribution and possession of child sexual
abuse
material in statute.
Section 19: Amends AS 47.12.110(d) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse material as crimes which a court
may make open to the public if the department files
with the court a motion asking the court to open the
hearing to the public to mirror that of distribution
and possession of child sexual abuse material in
statute.
3
Section 20: Amends AS 47.12.315(a) to include the
possession and distribution of generated obscene
child sexual abuse material as a crime a department
shall disclose information to the public to mirror
that of distribution and possession of child sexual
abuse material in statute.
Section 21: Amends uncodified law of the State of
Alaska to verify that none of the criminal provisions
of the statute are intended to apply retroactively.
8:57:10 AM
TREVOR STORRS, President/CEO, Alaska Children's Trust, gave
invited testimony during the hearing on HB 47. He said
expanding Alaska's criminal law to include generated CSAM would
allow law enforcement officials to more effectively investigate
and prosecute these crimes and help deter sexual exploitation of
children. He said the time to act on this emerging issue is
now, as predators are using AI technology to alter images of
real minors, which can be used to extort children for money or
explicit content. The use of AI-generated CSAM has already
impacted Alaska's children in a case on Joint Base Elmendorf-
Richardson (JBER). He encouraged the legislature's support.
9:00:02 AM
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked what the bill would achieve by adding
this into state law that couldn't already be accomplished under
federal law.
MR. BALLINGER stated that it would allow the state to prosecute
these cases without relying on the prosecutorial discretion of
the federal government.
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT questioned the difference in penalty between
state and federal law.
MR. BALLINGER did not know the answer. He deferred to the
Department of Law (DOL).
9:01:55 AM
KACI SCHROEDER, Assistant Attorney General, Criminal Division,
Department of Law (DOL), offered to follow up with the requested
information.
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT asked whether the state could arrest and
prosecute on federal charges.
MS. SCHROEDER answered no, the state prosecutes states crimes,
and the federal government prosecutes federal crimes; however,
they could work in partnership.
9:03:47 AM
REPRESENTATIVE PRAX asked whether the bill would apply to a
scenario involving pornographic material of the Mona Lisa, for
example.
MS. SCHROEDER said there are two prongs to the bill: one that
amends the existing CSAM statutes and applies to an identifiable
child, and another that applies to generated CSAM and does not
require the identity of a child be proven. In the later
instance, the material need only look like a child engaging in
obscene sexual activity. She added that case law provides
guidance on how to do that while preserving First Amendment
protections.
REPRESENTATIVE PRAX asked how one would distinguish between a
child and an adult.
MS. SCHROEDER said even under current law, the state tends not
to charge things that are "close to the line" and the child must
appear to be under the age of 18.
9:06:42 AM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE asked for the definition of "generated"
with regard to CSAM.
MS. SCHROEDER stated that there's not a definition in the bill;
however, AI-generation is not a necessary element of the crime.
All prosecution must prove is that the individual possessed
images that look like a child under the age of 18 who appears to
be engaging in conduct that is sexual in nature, and that the
image is obscene.
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE asked why possession of any obscene
CSAM is not being criminalized by the bill regardless of whether
its generated or not.
MS. SCHROEDER pointed out that although the title of the offense
includes the word "generated," it does not appear in the body of
the statute itself. She reiterated that there's no legal reason
for the inclusion of the word "generated."
9:09:02 AM
REPRESENTATIVE HOLLAND contended that "generated" is included in
the bill on page 3, lines 3 and 22, for example.
REPRESENTATIVE VANCE said the goal is to avoid being overly
specific with the use of the term "AI-generated," but the
inclusion of "generated" is useful because it expands the
state's existing CSAM statute, which does not address the
technology that's being utilized to perpetuate these crimes.
CO-CHAIR HIMSCHOOT announced that HB 47 would be held over.
| Document Name | Date/Time | Subjects |
|---|---|---|
| HB 47 (34-LS0334-A) - Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 Version A.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 (34-LS0334-A) - Sectional Analysis.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 Fiscal Note - DOA-OPA 3.7.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 Fiscal Note - DOA-PDA 3.7.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 Fiscal Note - EED-FSS 3.7.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 Fiscal Note - JUD-ACS 3.7.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 Fiscal Note - LAW-CJL 3.6.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 - Supporting Document, AI-Generated Child Sexual Abuse Materia....pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 - Research, IWF Report Update (What has Changed...).pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 - Research, IWF Report (How AI is being abused to create child sexual abuse imagery).pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 - Article (Army Soldier Arrested for Using AI to Generate Child).pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 47 Presentation - AI CSAM - Rep. Vance 3.11.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 4/24/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 47 |
| HB 50, version A.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 5/6/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 50 |
| HB 50 Sectional Analysis, version A.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 4/22/2025 1:30:00 PM SCRA 5/6/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 50 |
| HB 50 Fiscal Note - DOR-TAX 3.7.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 4/22/2025 1:30:00 PM SCRA 5/6/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 50 |
| HB 50 Juneau Nordic Ski Club Letter of Support 2.12.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 4/22/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 50 |
| HB 50 Research - Alaska Department of Revenue Tax Division 2023 Charitable Gaming Annual Report.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 4/22/2025 1:30:00 PM SCRA 5/6/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 50 |
| HB 58 ver. A Sponsor Statement.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 5/13/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 58 |
| HB 58 v. A.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 58 |
| HB 58 ver. A Sectional Analysis.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 5/13/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 58 |
| HB 58 Fiscal Note - DOA-OPA 3.7.25.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 58 |
| HB 58 Research - CH 55 SLA 1984.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 5/13/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 58 |
| HB 58 Research - SB 312 Fiscal Analysis.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM SCRA 5/13/2025 1:30:00 PM |
HB 58 SB 312 |
| HB 58 Research - DOA HFIN.SFIN SubCom OPA Presentation 2.27.24.pdf |
HCRA 3/11/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/13/2025 8:00:00 AM HCRA 3/18/2025 8:00:00 AM |
HB 58 |