By Ruth Brown, Idaho Reports
The House State Affairs Committee introduced another bill Thursday on explicit images generated by artificial intelligence. The bill would make it illegal to put an image of a person’s face on images or video that are artificial and explicit.
Sponsor Rep. Julianne Young, R-Blackfoot, explained that this would be a scenario where an image of a person’s face could be artificially put on a pornographic image and then used to harass, blackmail, or intimidate them.
Under the bill, a person found guilty would have to publish the explicit fake content and use it with the intent to “annoy, terrify, threaten, intimidate, harass, offend, humiliate, or degrade an identifiable person” portrayed in the content. If found guilty, it would be a misdemeanor offense.
If the guilty party already had a prior conviction, or a similar violation in another state within the last five years, they would face a felony sentence punishable by up to 10 years or a fine of $25,000, or both.
The bill must still get a hearing before the House Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee before it can move forward.
There are other artificial intelligence bills introduced this year, but those have focused on exploited children depicted using generative AI, or AI being used in election communications against a candidate. This bill would be applicable to everyone.
Ruth Brown | Producer
Ruth Brown grew up in South Dakota and her first job out of college was covering the South Dakota Legislature. She’s since moved on to Idaho lawmakers. Brown spent 10 years working in print journalism, including newspapers such as the Idaho Statesman and Idaho Press, where she’s covered everything from the correctional system to health care issues. She joined Idaho Reports in 2021 and looks forward to telling stories about how state policy can impact the lives of regular Idahoans.