SB70 • 2026

Crimes and offenses; sex offenses involving a child; crime of transmitting obscene material to a child by computer, further provided for

Children Crime

Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor: Givhan
Last action: 2026-02-25
Official status: Read Second Time in Second House
Effective date: Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

The official text contains grammatical errors and fragmented sentences in subsection (e) regarding 'Transmitting obscene material of engaging in sexual intercourse,' which makes the exact scope of prohibited conduct slightly unclear, though it clearly establishes a Class B felony penalty.

SB70: Expanding the Law on Sending Obscene Material to Children by Computer

This bill changes Alabama law so that sending obscene material online is a crime if the sender believes the receiver is under age 17, regardless of the person's actual age.

What This Bill Does

Expands the current law to include cases where an adult sends obscene material to someone they believe is under age 17.
Defines 'child' as any person younger than 17 years old for this specific crime.
States that a violation occurs if the message starts in Alabama or arrives in Alabama.
Requires anyone charged with this offense to be tried as an adult.
Prevents court records from being sealed or erased (expunged) after the trial.

Who It Names or Affects

People who send material showing nudity, sexual acts, or sadomasochistic abuse through computer systems for the purpose of initiating or engaging in sexual acts.
Individuals under 17 years of age who receive such messages.
Courts and law enforcement agencies handling these cases in Alabama.

Terms To Know

Obscene material: Content that shows actual or simulated nudity, sexual conduct, or sadomasochistic abuse.
Class B felony: The specific crime category for violating this section of the law.
Expungement: The legal process of sealing or erasing a criminal record, which is not allowed for these cases under this bill.

Limits and Unknowns

The text defines the crime but does not list specific prison sentences or fine amounts.
The law takes effect on October 1, 2026, so it is not active before that date.
The bill does not explain how police will prove what a sender 'believed' about the receiver's age.

Amendments

These notes stay tied to the official amendment files and metadata from the legislature.

11D873Z-1

Judiciary

Reported Out of Committee Second House

Plain English: This amendment updates Alabama law to make it a serious crime for anyone to send real or computer-generated images of sexual acts to children under age 17 using the internet.

It defines 'virtually indistinguishable depiction' as any digital image that looks like a real person doing something sexually explicit, even if no actual child was involved in making it.
It sets the legal definition of a 'child' for this crime as anyone under 17 years old.
It states that people charged with this offense must be tried as adults and their court records cannot be erased or sealed later.
It clarifies that Alabama courts can handle cases if the message was sent from or received in the state.

The official text contains several typos, such as duplicate section numbers (two 'c' sections) and mixed-up lettering for subsections (d/e/f), which makes some sentences hard to read.
Some parts of the final penalty description appear garbled or incomplete in the provided text.

Bill History

2026-02-25 House
Read for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar
2026-02-25 House
Reported Out of Committee Second House
2026-02-17 Senate
Motion to Read a Third Time and Pass - Adopted Roll Call 436 (Yeas 34, Nays 0)
2026-02-17 Senate
Third Reading in House of Origin (Yeas 34, Nays 0)
2026-02-17 House
Pending Committee Action in Second House
2026-02-17 House
Read for the first time and referred to the House Committee on Judiciary
2026-01-14 Senate
Read for the Second Time and placed on the Calendar
2026-01-14 Senate
Reported Out of Committee House of Origin
2026-01-13 Senate
Pending Committee Action in House of Origin
2026-01-13 Senate
Read for the first time and referred to the Senate Committee on Veterans, Military Affairs and Public Safety

Official Summary Text

Crimes and offenses; sex offenses involving a child; crime of transmitting obscene material to a child by computer, further provided for

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text

SB70 INTRODUCED
Page 0
SB70
CXL5CQW-1
By Senators Givhan, Gudger, Jones, Roberts, Hovey, Weaver
RFD: Veterans, Military Affairs and Public Safety
First Read: 13-Jan-26
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CXL5CQW-1 08/18/2025 GED (L)ma 2025-2413
Page 1
First Read: 13-Jan-26
SYNOPSIS:
Under existing law, an individual is guilty of
transmitting obscene material to a child by computer if
the individual transmits material depicting actual or
simulated nudity, sexual conduct, or sadomasochistic
abuse to a child for the purpose of initiating or
engaging in sexual acts with the child.
This bill would expand the offense of
transmitting obscene material to a child by computer to
include events where an individual transmits obscene
material to a person the individual believes to be a
child.
A BILL
TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
Relating to crimes and offenses; to amend Section
13A-6-111, Code of Alabama 1975; to further provide for the
crime of transmitting obscene material to a child by computer.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
Section 1. Section 13A-6-111, Code of Alabama 1975, is
amended to read as follows:
"§13A-6-111
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SB70 INTRODUCED
Page 2
"§13A-6-111
(a) A person is guilty of transmitting obscene material
to a child if the person transmits, by means of any computer
communication system allowing the input, output, examination,
or transfer of computer programs from one computer to another,
material which, in whole or in part, depicts actual or
simulated nudity, sexual conduct, or sadomasochistic abuse,
for the purpose of initiating or engaging in sexual acts with
the child or an individual the person believes to be a child .
(b) For the purposes of this section, a "child"
includes any person under 17 years of age.
(c) For purposes of determining jurisdiction, the
offense is committed in this state if the transmission that
constitutes the offense either originates in this state or is
received in this state.
(d) A person charged under this section shall be tried
as an adult and the record of the proceeding shall not be
sealed nor subject to expungement.
(e) Transmitting obscene material of engaging in sexual
intercourse, sodomy, or to engage in a sexual performance,
obscene sexual performance, or sexual conduct for his or her
benefit to a child A violation of this section is a Class B
felony."
Section 2. This act shall become effective on October
1, 2026.
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