S 8420: Requires advertisements to disclose the use of a synthetic performer; imposes a $1,000 civil penalty for a first violation and a $5,000 penalty for any subsequent violation.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 8420 2025-2026 Regular Sessions  IN SENATE June 9, 2025 ___________ Introduced by Sen. GIANARIS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to requiring advertisements to disclose the use of a synthetic performer The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 396-b of the general business law, as added by 2 chapter 1031 of the laws of 1965, is amended to read as follows: 3 § 396-b. Advertisements. 1. For the purposes of this section, the 4 following terms shall have the following meanings: 5 (a) "Artificial intelligence", "artificial intelligence technology", 6 or "AI" means a machine-based system that can, for a given set of 7 human-defined objectives, make predictions, recommendations, or deci- 8 sions influencing real or virtual environments, and that uses machine- 9 and human-based inputs to perceive real and virtual environments, 10 abstract such perceptions into models through analysis in an automated 11 manner, and use model inference to formulate options for information or 12 action. This definition includes but is not limited to systems that use 13 machine learning, large language model, natural language processing, and 14 computer vision technologies, including generative artificial intelli- 15 gence. 16 (b) "Generative artificial intelligence" means a class of artificial 17 intelligence models that are self-supervised and emulate the structure 18 and characteristics of input data to generate derived synthetic content, 19 including, but not limited to, images, videos, audio, text, and other 20 digital content. 21 (c) "Synthetic performer" means a digitally created asset created, 22 reproduced, or modified by computer, using generative artificial intel- 23 ligence or a software algorithm, that is intended to create the 24 impression that the asset is engaging in an audiovisual and/or visual EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD00785-13-5 
 S. 8420 2 1 performance of a human performer who is not recognizable as any iden- 2 tifiable natural performer. 3 2. Any person, firm, corporation or association, or agent or employee 4 thereof, hereinafter called person, who, being engaged in the business 5 of dealing in any property, makes, publishes, disseminates, circulates 6 or places before the public or causes, directly or indirectly, to be 7 made, published, disseminated, circulated or placed before the public, 8 in this state, any advertisement respecting any such property, in any 9 newspaper, magazine, or other publication, or over any radio station or 10 television station, unless it is stated in any such advertisement that 11 the advertiser is a dealer in such property or from the context of any 12 such advertisement, it plainly appears that such person is a dealer in 13 such property so offered for sale in any such advertisement; or when 14 placing or causing any such advertisement to appear in any newspaper, 15 magazine or other publication or radio or television station as 16 described in this section, if requested by the publisher of any such 17 newspaper, magazine or other publication or owner or operator of such 18 radio or television station or any agent or representative thereof to 19 file with such owner or operator, publisher, agent or representative 20 thereof [his] such person's true name, or where [he] such person is 21 transacting business under a name other than the true name pursuant to 22 law, then the name under which such business is transacted, and each 23 business address wherein any business is transacted by [him] such 24 person, in the class of property advertised or to be advertised for sale 25 in such advertisement, shall make any false statement in relation to any 26 of such items; or if requested by the publisher of any such newspaper, 27 magazine or other publication or owner or operator of such radio or 28 television station or any agent or representative thereof to file with 29 such owner, operator, publisher, agent or representative thereof a 30 statement showing whether [he] such person is causing such advertisement 31 to appear or is offering to make such sale or disposition or trans- 32 action, as herein set forth, as principal or agent, and if as agent, to 33 set forth such information as is specified in this section, in relation 34 to [his] such person's principal as well as in relation to [himself] 35 such person, shall make any false statement in relation to any of such 36 items; is guilty of a misdemeanor. 37 3. Any person engaged in the business of dealing in any property or 38 service who for any commercial purpose produces or creates an advertise- 39 ment respecting any such property or service, in any medium or media in 40 which such advertisement appears, shall conspicuously disclose in such 41 advertisement that a synthetic performer is in such advertisement, where 42 such person, or agent or employee thereof, has actual knowledge. A 43 violation of this subdivision shall result in a civil penalty of one 44 thousand dollars for a first violation, and five thousand dollars for 45 any subsequent violation. 46 4. This section shall not apply to advertisements and promotional 47 materials for expressive works, including but not limited to, motion 48 pictures, television programs, streaming content, documentaries, video 49 games, or other similar audiovisual works, provided that the use of a 50 synthetic performer in the advertisement or promotional material is 51 consistent with its use in the expressive work. 52 5. Nothing in this section shall limit, reduce, or enlarge any rights 53 any person may have under section fifty, fifty-f, or fifty-one of the 54 civil rights law or under any other law. 55 6. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit, or to enlarge, 56 the protections that 47 U.S.C. section 230 confers on an interactive 
 S. 8420 3 1 computer service for content provided by another information content 2 provider, as such terms are defined in 47 U.S.C. section 230. 3 7. This section shall not apply to advertisements and promotional 4 materials in any of the following circumstances: 5 (a) Audio advertisements; or 6 (b) Where the use of artificial intelligence solely involves the 7 language translation of a human performer. 8 8. (a) Nothing in this section shall apply to any medium used for 9 advertising, including, but not limited to, newspapers, magazines, and 10 television networks and stations, streaming services, cable television 11 systems, billboards, and transit advertisements, by whom any advertise- 12 ment or solicitation in violation of this section is published or 13 disseminated, unless it is established that the medium or employees had 14 actual knowledge by written notification that the advertising contained 15 a synthetic performer, and was given no more than five days, or as soon 16 as technically or practically feasible, to cease distribution or insert 17 the disclosure in the relevant advertisement required by this section. 18 (b) No entity that publishes or disseminates such advertisements 19 described in this section shall remove, destroy, modify or alter any 20 disclosure associated with such advertisement described in subdivision 21 three of this section prior to publishing or disseminating such adver- 22 tisement. Such actions shall constitute a violation and corresponding 23 civil penalty as described in subdivision three of this section. 24 § 2. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi- 25 sion, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of 26 competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, 27 impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in 28 its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section 29 or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg- 30 ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of 31 the legislature that this act would have been enacted even if such 32 invalid provisions had not been included herein. 33 § 3. This act shall take effect on the hundred eightieth day after it 34 shall have become a law.