Assigned to ELEC AS PASSED BY HOUSE
ARIZONA STATE SENATE
Fifty-Sixth Legislature, Second Regular Session
AMENDED
FACT SHEET FOR S.B. 1359
election communications; deep fakes; prohibition
(NOW: election communications; deepfakes; prohibition)
Purpose
Requires a person who distributes a deceptive and fraudulent deepfake of a candidate
within 90 days before an election to include a clear and conspicuous disclosure that the media
includes content generated by artificial intelligence (AI) and subjects a person that fails to disclose
a deepfake as outlined to a civil penalty.
Background
Generative AI is technology that can create content, including text, images, audio, or video,
when prompted by a user. Generative AI systems create responses using algorithms that are trained
often on open-source information, such as text and images from the internet. Generative AI
systems learn patterns and relationships from massive amounts of data, which enables them to
generate new content that may be similar, but not identical, to the underlying training data (U.S.
Government Accountability Office).
Statute outlines failure to file penalties for a candidate committee, political action
committee or a political party (committee) that fails to timely file a campaign finance report. The
committee must pay the filing officer a penalty of $10 for each day that the filing is late during the
first 15 days after the filing deadline, which increases to $25 each subsequent day until the late
report is filed (A.R.S. § 16-937).
There is no anticipated fiscal impact to the state General Fund associated with this legislation.
Provisions
1. Prohibits a person who acts as a creator of a deceptive and fraudulent deepfake from creating
and distributing a deepfake of a candidate that the entity knows is deceptive and fraudulent
within 90 days before an election at which the candidate will appear on the ballot, unless the
deepfake includes a clear and conspicuous disclosure that conveys to a reasonable person that
the message includes content generated by AI.
2. Subjects a person who fails to disclose a deceptive and fraudulent deepfake to a civil penalty
as outlined for a failure to file penalty for each day that the person distributes the deepfake
without disclosure.
3. Specifies that the requirements relating to the disclosure of deceptive and fraudulent deepfakes
do not apply to media that constitutes satire or parody and an interactive computer service.
4. Defines creator as:
a) any person that utilizes AI or other digital technology to generate synthetic media; and
b) excludes the provider of any technology used in the creation of the synthetic media. FACT SHEET – Amended
S.B. 1359
Page 2
5. 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 false image audio or video.
6. Defines deceptive and fraudulent deepfake as synthetic media that depicts a candidate with
knowledge of its falsity and the intent to injure the reputation of the candidate and that is
intentionally calculated to mislead a reasonable person into concluding that a real individual
said or did something that they did not say or do in reality.
7. Contains a severability clause.
8. 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 deceptive and fraudulent deepfake to the
requirement that the deepfake include a disclosure.
3. Removes the ability of an eligible candidate to seek injunctive or other equitable relief that
prohibits the publication of a deceptive and fraudulent deepfake.
4. Specifies that the equitable relief prohibiting the publication of a deceptive and fraudulent
deepfake is from the sponsor or creator of the media.
5. Adds an interactive computer service to the exclusion of the requirements relating to deepfake
disclosures.
6. Defines creator.
7. Modifies the definition of synthetic media.
8. Makes technical and conforming changes.
Amendments Adopted by the House of Representatives
1. Narrows the applicability of the deceptive and fraudulent deepfake disclosure requirements to
only candidates, rather than candidates and political parties.
2. Removes the criminal penalties for a violation of the deceptive and fraudulent deepfake
disclosure requirements.
3. Prescribes civil penalties for a person who fails to disclose a deceptive and fraudulent deepfake.
4. Specifies that the deceptive and fraudulent deepfake disclosure must convey to a reasonable
person that the media includes content generated by AI. FACT SHEET – Amended
S.B. 1359
Page 3
5. Removes the prescribed disclosure requirements for an audio only deceptive and fraudulent
deepfake.
6. Removes a radio or television broadcasting station and an internet website or regularly
published periodical of general circulation from the exemption relating to fraudulent and
deceptive deepfake disclosures.
7. Modifies the definition of deceptive and fraudulent deepfake.
Senate Action House Action
ELEC 2/5/24 DP 7-1-0 MOE 3/20/24 DPA 8-0-0-1
3
rd
Read 2/29/24 24-4-2 3
rd
Read 5/1/24 56-0-4
Prepared by Senate Research
May 7, 2024
AN/cs