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North Carolina House Bill H805

North Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session

North Carolina House Bill H805 Compare Versions

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11 GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
22 SESSION 2025
3-H 1
4-HOUSE BILL 805
3+H D
4+HOUSE BILL DRH30340-LR-36G
5+
56
67
78 Short Title: Prevent Sexual Exploitation/Women and Minors. (Public)
8-Sponsors: Representatives N. Jackson, Budd, Stevens, and Balkcom (Primary Sponsors).
9-For a complete list of sponsors, refer to the North Carolina General Assembly web site.
10-Referred to: Judiciary 2, if favorable, State and Local Government, if favorable, Rules,
11-Calendar, and Operations of the House
12-April 8, 2025
13-*H805 -v-1*
9+Sponsors: Representative N. Jackson.
10+Referred to:
11+
12+*DRH30340 -LR-36G*
1413 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
1514 AN ACT TO PREVENT THE SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF WOMEN AND MINORS . 2
1615 The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 3
1716 SECTION 1. Chapter 66 of the General Statutes is amended by adding a new Article 4
1817 to read: 5
1918 "Article 51A. 6
2019 "Prevent Sexual Exploitation of Women and Minors. 7
2120 "§ 66-505. Short title; definitions. 8
2221 (a) This Article shall be known and may be cited as the "Prevent Sexual Exploitation of 9
2322 Women and Minors Act." 10
2423 (b) The following definitions apply in this Article: 11
2524 (1) Authorized representative. – With respect to an individual: 12
2625 a. A person authorized in writing under State or other applicable law by 13
2726 the individual to act on behalf of the individual with regard to the 14
2827 matter in question; or 15
2928 b. In the case of an individual under the age of 18, a parent or legal 16
3029 guardian of the individual. 17
3130 (2) Coerced consent. – Purported consent obtained from a person lacking the 18
3231 capacity to consent or obtained from a person with capacity to consent under 19
3332 the following circumstances: 20
3433 a. Through fraud, duress, misrepresentation, undue influence, or 21
3534 nondisclosure. 22
3635 b. Through exploiting or leveraging the person's (i) immigration status, 23
3736 (ii) pregnancy, (iii) disability, (iv) substance abuse disorder, (v) 24
3837 juvenile status, or (vi) economic circumstances. 25
3938 (3) Consent. – An agreement that is informed and thorough and does not include 26
4039 coerced consent. 27
4140 (4) Distribute. – As defined in G.S. 66-500. 28
4241 (5) Eligible person. – With respect to a pornographic image published to an online 29
4342 entity, the term includes the following: 30
4443 a. An individual depicted in the pornographic image who has not 31
4544 provided consent, or who has withdrawn consent in compliance with 32
4645 the laws applicable to the jurisdiction, for the distribution of the 33
47-pornographic image. 34 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
48-Page 2 House Bill 805-First Edition
49-b. An authorized representative. 1
50-c. A law enforcement officer acting pursuant to a valid court order. 2
51-(6) Intimate visual depiction. – Any visual depiction of an individual meeting all 3
52-of the following criteria: 4
53-a. The individual is reasonably identifiable from the visual depiction 5
54-itself or information displayed in connection with the visual depiction, 6
55-including through (i) facial recognition, (ii) an identifying marking on 7
56-the individual, including a birthmark or piercing, (iii) an identifying 8
57-feature of the background of the visual depiction, (iv) voice matching, 9
58-or (v) written confirmation from an individual who is responsible, in 10
59-whole or in part, for the creation or development of the visual 11
60-depiction. 12
61-b. The individual depicted is engaging in sexual activity or the exposed 13
62-or substantially exposed genitals, anus, pubic area, or post-pubescent 14
63-female nipple of the individual depicted is visible. 15
64-(7) News-gathering organization. – As defined in G.S. 66-500. 16
65-(8) Online entity. – An individual or group of individuals working together or an 17
66-entity defined in G.S. 66-500. 18
67-(9) Online entity operator. – A provider for an online entity. 19
68-(10) Performer. – Any person portrayed in a visual depiction engaging in, or 20
69-assisting another person to engage in, sexual activity. 21
70-(11) Pornographic image. – A visual depiction of actual or feigned sexual activity 22
71-or an intimate visual depiction. 23
72-(12) Publish. – As defined in G.S. 66-500. 24
73-(13) Sexual activity. – As defined in G.S. 14-190.13. 25
74-(14) Visual depiction. – Any photograph, film, video, picture, digital image, or 26
75-computer-generated image or picture, whether made or produced by 27
76-electronic, mechanical, or other means. 28
77-"§ 66-506. Age verification obligations. 29
78-(a) An online entity operator may not publish or allow a user to publish a pornographic 30
79-image to the online entity unless the operator has verified that each individual appearing in the 31
80-pornographic image: 32
81-(1) Was not less than 18 years of age when the pornographic image was created; 33
82-(2) Has provided explicit written evidence of consent for each act of sexual 34
83-activity in which the individual engaged during the creation of the 35
84-pornographic image; and 36
85-(3) Has provided explicit written consent for the distribution of the specific 37
86-pornographic image. 38
87-(b) Separate consent is required for the act of sexual activity and for distribution of the 39
88-intimate visual depiction, as follows: 40
89-(1) Consent for sex act. – Consent described in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) 41
90-of this section does not imply or constitute evidence of consent described in 42
91-subdivision (3) of that subsection. 43
92-(2) Consent for distribution of image. – Consent described in subdivision (3) of 44
93-subsection (a) of this section does not imply or constitute evidence of consent 45
94-described in subdivision (2) of that subsection. 46
95-(c) To carry out the obligations of subsection (a) of this section, an online entity operator 47
96-shall obtain all of the following, either from the user or entity seeking to publish the pornographic 48
97-image or through other means: 49 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
98-House Bill 805-First Edition Page 3
99-(1) A consent form created or approved by the Attorney General under subsection 1
100-(d) of this section from each individual appearing in the pornographic image 2
101-that includes: 3
102-a. The name, date of birth, and signature of the individual. 4
103-b. A statement that the individual is not less than 18 years of age, unless 5
104-no reasonable person could conclude that the individual is less than 30 6
105-years of age. 7
106-c. A statement that the consent is for distribution of the specific 8
107-pornographic image. 9
108-d. A statement that explains coerced consent and that the individual has 10
109-the right to withdraw the individual's consent at any time. 11
110-(2) Not less than one form of valid identification for each individual appearing in 12
111-the pornographic image (i) issued by an agency of the federal government or 13
112-of a state, local, or foreign government; and (ii) containing the name, date of 14
113-birth, signature, and photograph of the individual; and on which the name, 15
114-date of birth, and signature of the individual match the name, date of birth, 16
115-and signature of the individual on the consent form required under subsection 17
116-(a) of this section. 18
117-(d) The Attorney General may adopt rules for the implementation and enforcement of 19
118-this Article and shall create and make available to the public a consent form for purposes of this 20
119-section. 21
120-"§ 66-507. Removal of images. 22
121-(a) An online entity operator shall establish a procedure for removing a pornographic 23
122-image from the online entity at the request of a person and designate one or more employees of 24
123-the operator to be responsible for handling requests for removal of pornographic images. 25
124-(b) An online entity operator shall display a prominently visible notice on the website or 26
125-mobile application of the online entity that provides instructions on how a person can request the 27
126-removal of a pornographic image. 28
127-(c) If an online entity operator receives a request from an eligible person, through any 29
128-request mechanism offered by the operator under subsection (b) of this section to remove a 30
129-pornographic image that is being hosted by the online entity without the consent of an individual 31
130-who appears in the pornographic image, the operator shall remove the pornographic image as 32
131-quickly as possible, and in any event not later than 72 hours after receiving the request. 33
132-(d) If an online entity operator receives a request from a person other than an eligible 34
133-person (through any request mechanism offered by the operator under subsection (b) of this 35
134-section) to remove a pornographic image that is being hosted by the online entity without the 36
135-consent of an individual who appears in the pornographic image, then not later than 72 hours 37
136-after receiving the request, the operator shall do the following: 38
137-(1) Review the records of the operator with respect to the pornographic image to 39
138-determine whether the pornographic image was published to the platform in 40
139-accordance with the verification requirements of G.S. 66-506; and 41
140-(2) Remove the pornographic image if the operator determines that the 42
141-pornographic image was not published to the platform in accordance with the 43
142-verification requirements of G.S. 66-506. 44
143-(e) An online entity operator shall remove a pornographic image temporarily if any 45
144-question arises as to the consent of a performer. This requirement is in addition to the 46
145-requirements of subsections (c) and (d) of this section. 47
146-(f) At the request of a performer, a pornographic image distributed or published by an 48
147-online entity operator must be removed within 72 hours of the request being made, regardless of 49
148-the age or consent of the performer. 50 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
149-Page 4 House Bill 805-First Edition
150-(g) In the case of a pornographic image that has been removed from an online entity in 1
151-accordance with this section, the online entity operator shall block the pornographic image, and 2
152-any altered or edited version of the pornographic image, from being distributed on or published 3
153-to the online entity again. 4
154-"§ 66-508. Obligations of users. 5
155-(a) A user of an online entity may not distribute or publish a pornographic image of an 6
156-individual to the online entity without the consent of the individual. 7
157-(b) For purposes of subsection (a) of this section, whether an individual has provided 8
158-consent to the publishing of a pornographic image shall be determined in accordance with this 9
159-Article. 10
160-"§ 66-509. Enforcement. 11
161-(a) Violations of this Article are subject to the imposition of civil penalties. In 12
162-determining the amount of the penalty, the Attorney General shall consider the degree and extent 13
163-of harm caused by the violation. A civil penalty under this Article shall accrue on a per day and 14
164-per image basis. The clear proceeds of civil penalties assessed pursuant to this section shall be 15
165-remitted to the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund in accordance with G.S. 115C-457.2. 16
166-(b) A violation of this Article is a Class 1 misdemeanor in addition to any other sanctions 17
167-allowed by law. 18
168-(c) The Attorney General may impose a civil penalty on any online entity operator that 19
169-violates this Article in an amount of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day 20
170-during which a pornographic image remains on the online entity, beginning 24 hours after the 21
171-Attorney General provides notice of the violation to the operator. 22
172-(d) If an online entity operator violates this Article with respect to a pornographic image, 23
173-any eligible person may bring a civil action against the online entity operator for damages in an 24
174-amount equal to the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day during which a 25
175-pornographic image remains on the online entity in violation of that section, calculated on a per 26
176-day and per image basis or (ii) actual damages. A prevailing eligible person shall be awarded 27
177-attorneys' fees. 28
178-(e) The Attorney General may impose a civil penalty on any online entity operator that 29
179-violates G.S. 66-507(b) in an amount of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each 30
180-day during which the online entity remains in violation, beginning 24 hours after the Attorney 31
181-General provides notice of the violation to the operator. 32
182-(f) The Attorney General may impose a civil penalty on any online entity operator that 33
183-violates G.S. 66-507(c) in an amount of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each 34
184-day during which the online entity remains in violation of that section, beginning 24 hours after 35
185-the Attorney General provides notice of the violation to the operator. If an online entity operator 36
186-violates G.S. 66-507(d) with respect to a pornographic image, any eligible person may bring a 37
187-civil action against the online entity operator in an appropriate district court of the United States 38
188-for damages in an amount equal to the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day 39
189-during which the pornographic image remains on the online entity in violation of that section, 40
190-calculated on a per day and per image basis or (ii) actual damages. 41
191-(g) An online entity operator shall not be liable for a violation of this Article if, in 42
192-allowing the publishing of a pornographic image to the online entity, the operator reasonably 43
193-relied on verification materials that were later found to be in violation of this Article, provided 44
194-that the operator removes the pornographic image not later than 24 hours after receiving notice 45
195-that the verification materials are in violation of this Article. 46
196-(h) If an online entity operator fails to remove a pornographic image within 24 hours of 47
197-receiving notice that the verification materials are in violation of this Article, damages shall be 48
198-calculated with respect to each day on or after the date on which that 24-hour period expires. 49
199-(i) If an online entity operator violates this Article with respect to a pornographic image, 50
200-any eligible person may bring a civil action against the online entity operator for damages in an 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
201-House Bill 805-First Edition Page 5
202-amount equal to the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day during which the 1
203-pornographic image remains on the online entity in violation of this Article or (ii) actual damages. 2
204-(j) If a user of an online entity violates this Article with respect to a pornographic image, 3
205-any eligible person may bring a civil action against the user for damages in an amount equal to 4
206-the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day during which the pornographic 5
207-image remains on the online entity in violation of this Article, calculated on a per day and per 6
208-image basis or (ii) actual damages. 7
209-"§ 66-510. Severability. 8
210-If any provision of this Article is held invalid or unenforceable, the invalidity or 9
211-unenforceability shall not affect other provisions or applications of this Article that can be given 10
212-effect without the invalid or unenforceable provision or application and, to this end, the 11
213-provisions of this Article are severable." 12
214-SECTION 2. This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to acts or 13
215-omissions occurring before, on, or after that date; except that, prosecutions under G.S. 66-510, 14
216-as enacted by this act, may be brought only for acts or omissions occurring on or after that date. 15
46+pornographic image. 34
47+b. An authorized representative. 35
48+c. A law enforcement officer acting pursuant to a valid court order. 36
49+H.B. 805
50+Apr 7, 2025
51+HOUSE PRINCIPAL CLERK General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
52+Page 2 DRH30340-LR-36G
53+(6) Intimate visual depiction. – Any visual depiction of an individual meeting all 1
54+of the following criteria: 2
55+a. The individual is reasonably identifiable from the visual depiction 3
56+itself or information displayed in connection with the visual depiction, 4
57+including through (i) facial recognition, (ii) an identifying marking on 5
58+the individual, including a birthmark or piercing, (iii) an identifying 6
59+feature of the background of the visual depiction, (iv) voice matching, 7
60+or (v) written confirmation from an individual who is responsible, in 8
61+whole or in part, for the creation or development of the visual 9
62+depiction. 10
63+b. The individual depicted is engaging in sexual activity or the exposed 11
64+or substantially exposed genitals, anus, pubic area, or post-pubescent 12
65+female nipple of the individual depicted is visible. 13
66+(7) News-gathering organization. – As defined in G.S. 66-500. 14
67+(8) Online entity. – An individual or group of individuals working together or an 15
68+entity defined in G.S. 66-500. 16
69+(9) Online entity operator. – A provider for an online entity. 17
70+(10) Performer. – Any person portrayed in a visual depiction engaging in, or 18
71+assisting another person to engage in, sexual activity. 19
72+(11) Pornographic image. – A visual depiction of actual or feigned sexual activity 20
73+or an intimate visual depiction. 21
74+(12) Publish. – As defined in G.S. 66-500. 22
75+(13) Sexual activity. – As defined in G.S. 14-190.13. 23
76+(14) Visual depiction. – Any photograph, film, video, picture, digital image, or 24
77+computer-generated image or picture, whether made or produced by 25
78+electronic, mechanical, or other means. 26
79+"§ 66-506. Age verification obligations. 27
80+(a) An online entity operator may not publish or allow a user to publish a pornographic 28
81+image to the online entity unless the operator has verified that each individual appearing in the 29
82+pornographic image: 30
83+(1) Was not less than 18 years of age when the pornographic image was created; 31
84+(2) Has provided explicit written evidence of consent for each act of sexual 32
85+activity in which the individual engaged during the creation of the 33
86+pornographic image; and 34
87+(3) Has provided explicit written consent for the distribution of the specific 35
88+pornographic image. 36
89+(b) Separate consent is required for the act of sexual activity and for distribution of the 37
90+intimate visual depiction, as follows: 38
91+(1) Consent for sex act. – Consent described in subdivision (2) of subsection (a) 39
92+of this section does not imply or constitute evidence of consent described in 40
93+subdivision (3) of that subsection. 41
94+(2) Consent for distribution of image. – Consent described in subdivision (3) of 42
95+subsection (a) of this section does not imply or constitute evidence of consent 43
96+described in subdivision (2) of that subsection. 44
97+(c) To carry out the obligations of subsection (a) of this section, an online entity operator 45
98+shall obtain all of the following, either from the user or entity seeking to publish the pornographic 46
99+image or through other means: 47
100+(1) A consent form created or approved by the Attorney General under subsection 48
101+(d) of this section from each individual appearing in the pornographic image 49
102+that includes: 50
103+a. The name, date of birth, and signature of the individual. 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
104+DRH30340-LR-36G Page 3
105+b. A statement that the individual is not less than 18 years of age, unless 1
106+no reasonable person could conclude that the individual is less than 30 2
107+years of age. 3
108+c. A statement that the consent is for distribution of the specific 4
109+pornographic image. 5
110+d. A statement that explains coerced consent and that the individual has 6
111+the right to withdraw the individual's consent at any time. 7
112+(2) Not less than one form of valid identification for each individual appearing in 8
113+the pornographic image (i) issued by an agency of the federal government or 9
114+of a state, local, or foreign government; and (ii) containing the name, date of 10
115+birth, signature, and photograph of the individual; and on which the name, 11
116+date of birth, and signature of the individual match the name, date of birth, 12
117+and signature of the individual on the consent form required under subsection 13
118+(a) of this section. 14
119+(d) The Attorney General may adopt rules for the implementation and enforcement of 15
120+this Article and shall create and make available to the public a consent form for purposes of this 16
121+section. 17
122+"§ 66-507. Removal of images. 18
123+(a) An online entity operator shall establish a procedure for removing a pornographic 19
124+image from the online entity at the request of a person and designate one or more employees of 20
125+the operator to be responsible for handling requests for removal of pornographic images. 21
126+(b) An online entity operator shall display a prominently visible notice on the website or 22
127+mobile application of the online entity that provides instructions on how a person can request the 23
128+removal of a pornographic image. 24
129+(c) If an online entity operator receives a request from an eligible person, through any 25
130+request mechanism offered by the operator under subsection (b) of this section to remove a 26
131+pornographic image that is being hosted by the online entity without the consent of an individual 27
132+who appears in the pornographic image, the operator shall remove the pornographic image as 28
133+quickly as possible, and in any event not later than 72 hours after receiving the request. 29
134+(d) If an online entity operator receives a request from a person other than an eligible 30
135+person (through any request mechanism offered by the operator under subsection (b) of this 31
136+section) to remove a pornographic image that is being hosted by the online entity without the 32
137+consent of an individual who appears in the pornographic image, then not later than 72 hours 33
138+after receiving the request, the operator shall do the following: 34
139+(1) Review the records of the operator with respect to the pornographic image to 35
140+determine whether the pornographic image was published to the platform in 36
141+accordance with the verification requirements of G.S. 66-506; and 37
142+(2) Remove the pornographic image if the operator determines that the 38
143+pornographic image was not published to the platform in accordance with the 39
144+verification requirements of G.S. 66-506. 40
145+(e) An online entity operator shall remove a pornographic image temporarily if any 41
146+question arises as to the consent of a performer. This requirement is in addition to the 42
147+requirements of subsections (c) and (d) of this section. 43
148+(f) At the request of a performer, a pornographic image distributed or published by an 44
149+online entity operator must be removed within 72 hours of the request being made, regardless of 45
150+the age or consent of the performer. 46
151+(g) In the case of a pornographic image that has been removed from an online entity in 47
152+accordance with this section, the online entity operator shall block the pornographic image, and 48
153+any altered or edited version of the pornographic image, from being distributed on or published 49
154+to the online entity again. 50
155+"§ 66-508. Obligations of users. 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
156+Page 4 DRH30340-LR-36G
157+(a) A user of an online entity may not distribute or publish a pornographic image of an 1
158+individual to the online entity without the consent of the individual. 2
159+(b) For purposes of subsection (a) of this section, whether an individual has provided 3
160+consent to the publishing of a pornographic image shall be determined in accordance with this 4
161+Article. 5
162+"§ 66-509. Enforcement. 6
163+(a) Violations of this Article are subject to the imposition of civil penalties. In 7
164+determining the amount of the penalty, the Attorney General shall consider the degree and extent 8
165+of harm caused by the violation. A civil penalty under this Article shall accrue on a per day and 9
166+per image basis. The clear proceeds of civil penalties assessed pursuant to this section shall be 10
167+remitted to the Civil Penalty and Forfeiture Fund in accordance with G.S. 115C-457.2. 11
168+(b) A violation of this Article is a Class 1 misdemeanor in addition to any other sanctions 12
169+allowed by law. 13
170+(c) The Attorney General may impose a civil penalty on any online entity operator that 14
171+violates this Article in an amount of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day 15
172+during which a pornographic image remains on the online entity, beginning 24 hours after the 16
173+Attorney General provides notice of the violation to the operator. 17
174+(d) If an online entity operator violates this Article with respect to a pornographic image, 18
175+any eligible person may bring a civil action against the online entity operator for damages in an 19
176+amount equal to the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day during which a 20
177+pornographic image remains on the online entity in violation of that section, calculated on a per 21
178+day and per image basis or (ii) actual damages. A prevailing eligible person shall be awarded 22
179+attorneys' fees. 23
180+(e) The Attorney General may impose a civil penalty on any online entity operator that 24
181+violates G.S. 66-507(b) in an amount of not more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each 25
182+day during which the online entity remains in violation, beginning 24 hours after the Attorney 26
183+General provides notice of the violation to the operator. 27
184+(f) The Attorney General may impose a civil penalty on any online entity operator that 28
185+violates G.S. 66-507(c) in an amount of not more than five thousand dollars ($5,000) for each 29
186+day during which the online entity remains in violation of that section, beginning 24 hours after 30
187+the Attorney General provides notice of the violation to the operator. If an online entity operator 31
188+violates G.S. 66-507(d) with respect to a pornographic image, any eligible person may bring a 32
189+civil action against the online entity operator in an appropriate district court of the United States 33
190+for damages in an amount equal to the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day 34
191+during which the pornographic image remains on the online entity in violation of that section, 35
192+calculated on a per day and per image basis or (ii) actual damages. 36
193+(g) An online entity operator shall not be liable for a violation of this Article if, in 37
194+allowing the publishing of a pornographic image to the online entity, the operator reasonably 38
195+relied on verification materials that were later found to be in violation of this Article, provided 39
196+that the operator removes the pornographic image not later than 24 hours after receiving notice 40
197+that the verification materials are in violation of this Article. 41
198+(h) If an online entity operator fails to remove a pornographic image within 24 hours of 42
199+receiving notice that the verification materials are in violation of this Article, damages shall be 43
200+calculated with respect to each day on or after the date on which that 24-hour period expires. 44
201+(i) If an online entity operator violates this Article with respect to a pornographic image, 45
202+any eligible person may bring a civil action against the online entity operator for damages in an 46
203+amount equal to the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day during which the 47
204+pornographic image remains on the online entity in violation of this Article or (ii) actual damages. 48
205+(j) If a user of an online entity violates this Article with respect to a pornographic image, 49
206+any eligible person may bring a civil action against the user for damages in an amount equal to 50
207+the greater of (i) ten thousand dollars ($10,000) for each day during which the pornographic 51 General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
208+DRH30340-LR-36G Page 5
209+image remains on the online entity in violation of this Article, calculated on a per day and per 1
210+image basis or (ii) actual damages. 2
211+"§ 66-510. Severability. 3
212+If any provision of this Article is held invalid or unenforceable, the invalidity or 4
213+unenforceability shall not affect other provisions or applications of this Article that can be given 5
214+effect without the invalid or unenforceable provision or application and, to this end, the 6
215+provisions of this Article are severable." 7
216+SECTION 2. This act becomes effective December 1, 2025, and applies to acts or 8
217+omissions occurring before, on, or after that date; except that, prosecutions under G.S. 66-510, 9
218+as enacted by this act, may be brought only for acts or omissions occurring on or after that date. 10