Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
The bill amends Section 1309 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 to add and define “intimate digital forgery” (sexual deepfakes) and to expand civil remedies for victims.
It creates federal causes of action for disclosure, production, possession with intent to disclose, and solicitation or receipt of intimate digital forgeries, allows injunctive relief (including deletion orders), and sets liquidated-damages floors ($150,000 or $250,000 in aggravated cases) or actual damages.
The measure includes privacy protections for plaintiffs, a 10-year statute of limitations from discovery or majority, and preserves State, Tribal, and other federal laws without preemption.
Substantive victim-protection aims aid support, but private remedy design, liability breadth, and First Amendment/Section 230 interactions raise legal and political obstacles.
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill is a substantive statutory amendment that clearly defines a targeted problem and establishes a new/expanded federal private right of action with specific definitions, standards, remedies, and privacy protections; it integrates directly with existing statutory provisions and includes non-preemption and severability provisions.
Privacy/victim relief versus concerns about free speech and overbreadth
Privacy/victim relief versus concerns about free speech and overbreadth
Likely strongly supportive: the bill addresses nonconsensual sexualized deepfakes, expands civil relief, and prioritizes victims’ privacy.
Supporters will emphasize strong redress, meaningful damages, and injunctive powers to stop circulation and reduce harm.
Generally favorable but pragmatic: supports victim protection while worrying about legal clarity and unintended consequences.
Will seek clearer mens rea, procedural safeguards, and manageable impacts on platforms and courts.
Skeptical to opposed: values victim protection but worries about federal overreach, speech impacts, and large damages.
Concerned about vagueness, platform burdens, and potential chilling effects on benign speech or research.
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Reached or meaningfully advanced
Still ahead
Still ahead
Still ahead
Substantive victim-protection aims aid support, but private remedy design, liability breadth, and First Amendment/Section 230 interactions raise legal and political obstacles.
The bill has not accumulated any surfaced votes yet.
Privacy/victim relief versus concerns about free speech and overbreadth
Substantive victim-protection aims aid support, but private remedy design, liability breadth, and First Amendment/Section 230 interactions…
Relative to its intended legislative type, this bill is a substantive statutory amendment that clearly defines a targeted problem and establishes a new/expanded federal private right of action with specific definitions,…
Go beyond the headline summary with full stakeholder mapping, legislative design analysis, passage barriers, and lens-by-lens tradeoff breakdowns.