An Act amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, providing for guidelines for user age verification and responsible dialogue; providing for the offense of prohibited promotion of sexually explicit conduct and for the offense of prohibited promotion of violence; and imposing penalties.

PRINTER'S NO. 2909
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No. 2215
Session of
2026
INTRODUCED BY McNEILL, PIELLI, SCOTT, HARKINS, HILL-EVANS,
SHUSTERMAN, DOUGHERTY, FREEMAN, MADDEN, KAZEEM, SANCHEZ,
CEPEDA-FREYTIZ, MAYES, RIVERA, INGLIS, BOROWSKI, CURRY AND
FLEMING, FEBRUARY 11, 2026
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON COMMUNICATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY,
FEBRUARY 11, 2026
AN ACT
Amending Title 18 (Crimes and Offenses) of the Pennsylvania
Consolidated Statutes, providing for guidelines for user age
verification and responsible dialogue; providing for the
offense of prohibited promotion of sexually explicit conduct
and for the offense of prohibited promotion of violence; and
imposing penalties.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
Statutes is amended by adding a chapter to read:
CHAPTER 31A
GUIDELINES FOR USER AGE VERIFICATION AND
RESPONSIBLE DIALOGUE
Subchapter
A. Preliminary Provisions
B. Prohibited Conduct
C. Age Verification
SUBCHAPTER A
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PRELIMINARY PROVISIONS
Sec.
31A01. Scope of chapter.
31A02. Definitions.
§ 31A01. Scope of chapter.
This chapter relates to artificial intelligence chatbots and
guidelines for user age verification and responsible dialogue.
§ 31A02. Definitions.
The following words and phrases when used in this chapter
shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Adult." An individual who is 18 years of age or older.
"Artificial intelligence chatbot" or "AI chatbot." An
interactive computer service or software application that:
(1) produces new expressive content or responses not
fully predetermined by the developer or operator of the
service or application;
( 2) accepts open-ended natural-language or multimodal
user input and produces adaptive or context-responsive
output; and
(3) does not include an interactive computer service or
software application, the responses of which are limited to
contextualized replies and are unable to respond on a range
of topics outside of a narrow specified purpose.
"Artificial intelligence companion" or "AI companion." An AI
chatbot that:
(1) p rovides adaptive, human-like responses to user
inputs; and
(2) is designed to encourage or facilitate the
simulation of interpersonal or emotional interaction,
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friendship, companionship or therapeutic communication.
"Covered entity." A person that owns, operates or otherwise
makes available an AI chatbot to individuals in the United
States.
"Minor." An individual who is under 18 years of age.
"Reasonable age verification measure." A method that is
authenticated to relate to a user of an AI chatbot, including:
(1) a government-issued identification; or
(2) a ny other commercially reasonable method that:
(i) can reliably and accurately determine whether a
user is an adult; and
(ii) prevents access by minors to AI companions, as
required under this chapter.
"Reasonable age verification process." An age verification
process employed by a covered entity that:
(1) uses one or more reasonable age verification
measures to verify the age of a user of an AI chatbot owned,
operated or otherwise made available by the covered entity;
(2) p rovides that requiring a user to confirm that the
user is not a minor, or to insert the user's birth date, is
not sufficient to constitute a reasonable age verification
measure;
(3) ensures that each user is subjected to each
reasonable age verification measure used by the covered
entity as part of the age verification process; and
(4) does not base verification of a user's age on
factors such as whether the user shares an Internet Protocol
address, hardware identifier or other technical indicator
with another user determined to not be a minor.
"Sexually explicit conduct." Actual or simulated:
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(1) sexual intercourse, including genital-genital, oral-
genital, anal-genital or oral-anal, whether between persons
of the same or opposite sex;
( 2) bestiality;
(3) masturbation;
(4) sadistic or masochistic abuse; or
(5) lascivious exhibition of the genitals or pubic area
of any person.
SUBCHAPTER B
PROHIBITED CONDUCT
Sec.
31A11. Prohibited promotion of sexually explicit conduct.
31A12. Prohibited promotion of violence.
§ 31A11. Prohibited promotion of sexually explicit conduct.
(a) Offense defined.--A person commits an offense if the
person designs, develops or makes available an AI chatbot,
knowing or with reckless disregard for the fact that the AI
chatbot poses a risk of soliciting, encouraging or inducing
minors to:
(1) engage in, describe or simulate sexually explicit
conduct; or
(2) create or transmit any visual depiction of sexually
explicit conduct.
(b) Penalty.--A person who violates subsection (a) shall,
upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding
$100,000 per offense.
§ 31A12. Prohibited promotion of violence.
(a) Offense defined.--A person commits an offense if the
person designs, develops or makes available an AI chatbot,
knowing or with reckless disregard for the fact that the AI
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chatbot encourages, promotes or coerces suicide, nonsuicidal
self-injury or imminent physical or sexual violence.
(b) Penalty.--A person who violates subsection (a) shall,
upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding
$100,000 per offense.
SUBCHAPTER C
AGE VERIFICATION
Sec.
31A21. Creation of user accounts.
31A22. Age verification for existing accounts.
31A23. Age verification for new accounts.
31A24. Review of verified user accounts.
31A25. Use of third party.
31A26. Prohibition on minor use of AI companions.
31A27. Age verification measure data security.
31A28. Enforcement.
§ 31A21. Creation of user accounts.
A covered entity shall require each individual accessing an
AI chatbot to make a user account in order to use or otherwise
interact with the AI chatbot.
§ 31A22. Age verification for existing accounts.
For each user account of an AI chatbot that exists on the
effective date of this section, a covered entity shall:
(1) On the effective date of this section, freeze each
user account.
(2) As a condition t o restore the functionality of a
user account, require that the user provide age data that is
verifiable using a reasonable age verification process,
subject to section 31A25 (relating to use of third party).
(3) Using the age data provided in accordance with
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paragraph (2), classify each user as a minor or an adult.
§ 31A23. Age verification for new accounts.
On or after the effective date of this section, at the time
that an individual creates a new user account to use or interact
with an AI chatbot, a covered entity shall:
(1) Request age data from the individual.
(2) V erify the individual's age using a reasonable age
verification process, subject to section 31A25 (relating to
use of third party).
(3) Using the age data provided in accordance with
paragraph (2), classify each user as a minor or an adult.
§ 31A24. Review of verified user accounts.
A covered entity shall periodically review previously
verified user accounts using a reasonable age verification
process, subject to section 31A25 (relating to use of third
party), to ensure compliance with this chapter.
§ 31A25. Use of third party.
(a) Authorization.--For purposes of sections 31A22 (relating
to age verification for existing accounts), 31A23 (relating to
age verification for new accounts) and 3 1A24 (relating to review
of verified user accounts), a covered entity may contract with a
third party to employ reasonable age verification measures as
part of the covered entity's reasonable age verification
process.
(b) Effect.--The use of a third party under subsection (a)
shall not relieve the covered entity of its obligations under
this chapter or from liability under this chapter.
§ 31A26. Prohibition on minor use of AI companions.
If the age verification process described in this subchapter
determines that an individual is a minor, a covered entity shall
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prohibit the minor from accessing or using an AI companion
owned, operated or otherwise made available by the covered
entity.
§ 31A27. Age verification measure data security.
A covered entity:
(1) Shall develop, implement and maintain reasonable
data security for data under this chapter to:
(i) Limit the collection of personal data to that
which is minimally necessary to verify a user's age or
maintain compliance with this chapter.
(ii) P rotect age verification data against
unauthorized access.
(2) Shall protect the integrity and confidentiality of
data under this chapter by only transmitting data using
industry-standard encryption protocols.
(3) Shall retain data under this chapter for no longer
than is reasonably necessary to verify a user's age or
maintain compliance with this chapter.
(4) May not share with, transfer to or sell data under
this chapter to any other person or entity.
§ 31A28. Enforcement.
(a) Civil action.--In the case of a violation under this
subchapter, the Attorney General may bring a civil action to:
(1) enjoin the violation;
(2) e nforce compliance with this subchapter; or
(3) obtain civil penalties in accordance with subsection
(c), restitution and other appropriate relief.
(b) Powers of Office of Attorney General.--
(1) For the purpose of conducting investigations or
bringing enforcement actions under this subchapter, the
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Office of Attorney General may issue subpoenas, administer
oaths and compel the production of documents or testimony.
( 2) The Office of Attorney General may promulgate
regulations necessary to implement, administer and enforce
this subchapter.
(c) Civil penalties.--
(1) A person who violates this subchapter shall be
subject to a civil penalty not exceeding $100,000 for each
violation.
(2) Each violation described in paragraph (1) shall be
considered a separate violation.
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 180 days.
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