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SECOND REGULAR SESSION
HOUSE BILL NO. 2862
103RD GENERAL ASSEMBL Y
INTRODUCED BY REPRESENT A TIVE DOLAN.
5347H.01I JOSEPH ENGLER, Chief Clerk
AN ACT
T o amend chapter 537, RSMo, by adding thereto one new section relating to digital
impersonation.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the state of Missouri, as follows:
Section A. Chapter 537, RSMo, is amended by adding thereto one new section, to be
2 known as section 537.056, to read as follows:
537.056. 1. For the purposes of this section, the following terms mean:
2 (1) "Digital impersonation", synthetic media, typically video or audio, that:
3 (a) Has been digitally manipulated to convincingly repl ace one person's likeness
4 or voice with that of another using deep generative methods and artificial intelligence
5 techniques, or for which one person's likeness or voice has otherwise been simulated
6 using deep generative methods and artificial intelligence techniques;
7 (b) W as creat ed with the intention to deceive or lead reas onable listeners or
8 viewers into believing that the content is authentic;
9 (c) Reasonable viewers or listeners would believe actually repr esents the
10 person's voice or likeness;
11 (d) W ould cause r easonable viewers or listeners to conclude that the r ecording
12 or image is a true and accurate depiction of something the person said or did;
13 (e) Is not commentary , par ody , satir e, criticism, or artistic expr ession; and
14 (f) W as not crea ted by the person or with the person's consent;
15 (2) "Information content prov ider", any person or entity that is res ponsible, in
16 whole or in part, for the cr eation or development of information prov ided thr ough the
17 internet or any other interactive computer service;
EXPLANA TION — Matter enclosed in bold-faced brackets [thus] in the above bill is not enacted and is
intended to be omitted from the law . Matter in bold-face type in the above bill is proposed language.
18 (3) "Interactive computer service", any information service, system, or access
19 softwar e pr ovider that provi des or enables computer access by multiple users to a
20 computer server , including specifically a service or system that pr ovides access to the
21 internet and such systems operated or services offer ed by libraries or educational
22 institutions.
23 2. Any res ident of this state may bring an action for digital impersonation within
24 two years after the date that the person knows, or in the exer cise of r easonable diligence
25 should know , that a digital impersonation of that person was published. The sole
26 r emedy on this cause of action is preli minary and permanent declaratory relief except as
27 otherwise expr essly pro vided by this section. T o preva il on an action pre scribed by this
28 section, a plaintiff shall pr ove all of the following by a pr eponderance of the evidence:
29 (1) That a digital impersonation of the person was published to one or mor e
30 other persons without the person's consent; and
31 (2) That on publication:
32 (a) The publisher did not rea sonably convey to the persons to whom the
33 publication was made that the record ing or image was a digital impersonation or that its
34 authenticity was disputed; or
35 (b) It was not otherwise obvious to the person or persons to whom the
36 publication was made that the record ing or image was a digital impersonation.
37 3. If the digital impersonation is or is part of a paid advertisement, a cause of
38 action for declaratory judgment of digital impersonation shall be br ought only against
39 the person or entity that originated, order ed, placed, or paid for the advertisement.
40 4. For purposes of this section, no pr ovider of an interactive computer service
41 shall be tre ated as the publisher or speaker of any information pr ovided by another
42 information content pr ovider .
43 5. A person bringing an action for digital impersonation may petition the cir cuit
44 court for the county in which he or she res ides for a prel iminary judicial declaration
45 that a record ing or image is a digital impersonation. The court shall rule on the petition
46 within two days, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and state holidays, after the petition is
47 filed. Pr eliminary declaratory relief shall be granted only if the person is able to pr ove
48 by a pr eponderance of the evidence the elements of digital impersonation and any of the
49 following additional requ irem ents are met:
50 (1) The digital impersonation depicts the person engaging in a sexual act or
51 depicts the unclothed brea sts, buttocks, or genitals of the person;
52 (2) The digital impersonation depicts the person engaging in a criminal act;
53 (3) In the absence of expedited r elief, the person can be rea sonably expected to
54 suffer significant personal or financial hardship or loss of employment opportunities;
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55 (4) In the absence of expedited rel ief, the person's rep utation will be irr eparably
56 harmed; or
57 (5) The inter ests of justice otherwise req uir e.
58 6. The publisher of the alleged digital impersonation shall have the right to
59 appear , be heard, and pr esent evidence prior to the court's entry of a preli minary
60 declaratory judgment, and the plaintiff shall make all r easonable efforts to pr ovide both
61 service and actual notice immediately upon filing the complaint. If the publisher does
62 not appear and no other party intervenes as a defendant, the plaintiff shall not be
63 entitled to taxable costs.
64 7. A person bringing an action for digital impersonation additionally has the
65 right to r ecover injunctive relief and damages if all of the following req uirements are
66 met:
67 (1) The digital impersonation depicts the person engaging in a sexual act or
68 depicts the unclothed brea sts, buttocks, or genitals of the person;
69 (2) The person was not a public figur e at the time the cause of action accrued;
70 (3) The elements of subsection 2 of this section are pro ven by clear and
71 convincing evidence; and
72 (4) The person pr oves, by clear and convincing evidence, that the publication
73 was made with actual knowledge that the r ecording or image was a digital
7 4 impersonation or , if a digital impersonation was published without such knowledge,
75 that the publisher failed to take re asonable corr ective action within twenty-one days
76 after the publisher had actual knowledge that the reco rding or image was a digital
77 impersonation. Reasonable correct ive action shall include, but not be limited to,
78 r emoving or disabling access to the digital impersonation or publishing to the same
79 audience a statement that the publication was a digital impersonation.
80 8. Any factual determinations made by the court in a r equest for pr eliminary
81 r elief under subsection 5 of this section shall not be consider ed by the trier of fact at any
82 later stage of the pr oceeding.
83 9. A par ent or guardian of a minor child or incapacitated person may seek relief
84 under this section on the minor child's or incapacitated person's behalf.
85 10. This section shall be narr owly construed in favor of both fr ee and open
86 discourse on matters of public concern and artistic expr ession and shall not be
87 construed so as to deny or disparage any cause of action otherwise available.
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88 1 1. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit a party's constitutional
89 right to trial by jury . Both parties to actions seeking only permanent declaratory relief
90 r etain the right to trial by jury .
✔
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