What's happening
This bill makes it a felony to create or share AI-generated obscene sexual images of children.
Why it matters
Expands criminal liability. to include not only those who create or share real images of child sexual abuse, but also those who use AI or digital technology to make realistic, fake images—even if no actual child was involved, greatly broadening who can be prosecuted under this law.
Targets creators, distributors, and promoters. of these AI-generated images, meaning anyone in New York who knowingly produces, directs, or shares such content could face felony charges, regardless of their role or whether the depicted child is real.
Responds to emerging technology. by updating existing law to specifically mention “artificial intelligence or other digital or computational means,” addressing a legal loophole and making New York one of the states at the forefront of regulating AI-generated child sexual abuse material.
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Who cares
Child Protection Advocates and Organizations
Care deeply, as the bill broadens the law to criminalize AI-generated or digitally created depictions of child sexual abuse, closing a loophole and aiming to protect children from exploitation in digital media.
Technology and AI Industry
Cares because the new definitions and potential criminal liability impact developers of artificial intelligence, content creation tools, and digital platforms that might inadvertently host or facilitate the creation of such content.
Law Enforcement and Prosecutors
Care as the bill provides new tools for prosecuting those who produce or distribute obscene synthetic child sexual abuse material, expanding their ability to address emerging digital crimes.
- Likely concerns
Civil Liberties and Free Speech Groups
Care due to concerns about the scope of the law, possible overreach, and implications for digital art, freedom of expression, and the risk of wrongful prosecution in cases of ambiguous or unintended content.
Headline styles
Ban AI Child Sex Images
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
1 Co-sponsor
History
- Referred to rules
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
10696
IN SENATE
September 11, 2026
Introduced by Sen. FAHY -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to the crime of promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Section 263.00 of the penal law is amended by adding a new subdivision 10 to read as follows:
10. "Obscene synthetic sexual performance" means any performance created through artificial intelligence or other digital or computational means that realistically depicts a person who reasonably appears to be a child less than seventeen years of age engaging in sexual conduct, regardless of whether such depicted child corresponds to an actual person.
§ 2. Section 263.10 of the penal law, as amended by section 1 of part L of chapter 55 of the laws of 2025, is amended to read as follows: § 263.10 Promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child.
A person is guilty of promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child when, knowing the character and content thereof, such person produces, directs or promotes any obscene sexual performance which includes sexual conduct by a child less than seventeen years of age, including a performance created or altered by digitization as defined in section 245.15 of this part, or when, knowing the character and content thereof, such person produces, directs or promotes any obscene synthetic sexual performance.
Promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child is a class D felony.
§ 3. Severability. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.
§ 4. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16341-01-6
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the penal law, in relation to the crime of promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child
Purpose
Relates to the crime of promoting an obscene sexual performance by a child
Section 1 amends the penal law by adding a new subdivision 10 to
Section 263.00 to define obscene synthetic sexual performances and include depictions of a child that do not correspond to an actual person under this definition.
Section 2 amends Section 263.10 of the penal law by establishing that producing, directing, or promoting an obscene synthetic sexual perform- ance by a child is a class D felony.
Section 3 adds a severability clause such that any judgement invalidat- ing a segment of this act will not affect the remainder.
Section 4 sets the enacting date.
Justification
WITH RECENT ADVANCEMENTS IN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI), VIRTUAL CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE MATERIALS (CSAM), DIGITALLY OR COMPUTER-GENERATED SEXUAL IMAGES OR VIDEOS OF CHILDREN, ARE BECOMING INCREASINGLY REALISTIC AND PROLIFIC YET REMAIN UNREGULATED IF THEY DO NOT CORRESPOND TO AN IDEN- TIFIABLE PERSON. EXISTING PENAL LAW IN NEW YORK TARGETS "DEEPFAKES," IMAGES OF FAKE SEXUAL EVENTS CREATED OR ALTERED BY DIGITIZATION THAT DEPICT A REASONABLY IDENTIFIABLE PERSON, OVER A MILLION OF WHICH HAVE FEATURED CHILDREN WORLDWIDE. HOWEVER, MATERIALS DEPICTING AN UNIDENTIFI- ABLE, OR DIGITALLY GENERATED PERSON ARE NOT CLEARLY COVERED BY CURRENT STATUTE EVEN IF THOSE IMAGES DEPICT WHAT IS CLEARLY A CHILD ENGAGED SEXUALLY.
NEW YORK LAW PROHIBITS THE CREATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF TRADITIONAL CSAM AND WAS AMENDED IN 2025 TO COVER SEXUAL PERFORMANCES "CREATED OR ALTERED BY DIGITIZATION." HOWEVER, ARTICLE 263 INCORPORATES THE DEFINITION OF "DIGITIZATION" IN PENAL LAW245.15, WHICH REQUIRES ALTERING THE IMAGE OF AN ACTUAL PERSON IN A REALISTIC MANNER. AS A RESULT, THAT DEFINITION DOES NOT ENCOMPASS WHOLLY SYNTHETIC CSAM GENERATED FROM SCRATCH THROUGH AL, WHERE THERE IS NO SINGULAR UNDERLYING IMAGE. ADDITIONALLY, ARTICLE 263 GENERALLY REQUIRES A DEPICTED SEXUAL PERFORMANCE "BY A CHILD," WHICH DOES NOT READILY ENCOMPASS A WHOLLY SYNTHETIC CHILD WHO DOES NOT CORRE- SPOND TO AN ACTUAL PERSON. THIS LEAVES A GAP IN THE CURRENT LAW FOR THE CREATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF WHOLLY SYNTHETIC AI-GENERATED CSAM.
IN THE RECENT CASE, UNITED STATES V. ANDEREGG, THE SEVENTH CIRCUIT RULED THAT THE FIRST AMENDMENT DOES NOT ALLOW THE GOVERNMENT TO PROSCRIBE THE IN-HOME POSSESSION OF OBSCENE VIRTUAL CSAM DEPICTING A "VIRTUAL" OR UNIDENTIFIABLE CHILD, YET LEFT INTACT COUNTS ALLEGING THE ILLEGAL PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION, AND TRANSFER OF CSAM MATERIALS TO A MINOR. THE INTENT OF THIS BILL IS TO ENSURE NEW YORK STATE LAW COMPLIES WITH THE COURT'S DECISION TO UPHOLD FIRST AMENDMENT RIGHTS REGARDING THE POSSESSION OF VIRTUAL CSAM WHILE EXPLICITLY SEEKING TO BAN THE PRODUCTION, DIRECTION, AND PROMOTION OF THIS TYPE OF MATERIAL.
THIS BILL KEEPS PACE WITH TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENTS IN AI TECHNOLOGY BY BROADENING THE SCOPE OF PENAL LAW TO TARGET OBSCENE SYNTHETIC SEXUAL PERFORMANCES THAT DEPICT A CHILD, EVEN IF SUCH IMAGES DO NOT CORRESPOND TO AN ACTUAL PERSON. ALLOWING THE PRODUCTION, DIRECTION, AND PROMOTION OF MATERIALS OF THIS SORT, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER THEY CORRESPOND TO AN ACTUAL CHILD, HARMFULLY NORMALIZES THE SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF CHILDREN AND FUELS DEMAND FOR ABUSIVE CONTENT WITH THE RISE OF HYPER REALISTIC AI-GENERATED CSAM.
Legislative history
NEW BILL
Fiscal implications
NONE
Effective date
THIS ACT SHALL TAKE EFFECT IMMEDIATELY
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.