Text of AL HB 164 (2024)

HB164 INTRODUCED Page 0 HB164 V6U9PL-1 By Representatives Robbins, DuBose, Faulkner RFD: Judiciary First Read: 14-Feb-24 1 2 3 4 5 V6U9PL-1 02/13/2023 CMH (L) bm 2023-2885 Page 1 SYNOPSIS: This bill would provide legislative findings regarding the public health crisis caused by pornography. This bill would require commercial distributors of sexual material harmful to minors to utilize age-verification software or programs to ensure their published material is not distributed to minors and would provide penalties for a violation. This bill would prohibit the retention of any personally identifying information obtained in the use of online age-verification methods. This bill would require distributors of sexual material harmful to minors to publish notices of the dangers of pornography on their online platforms. This bill would assess a tax on the gross proceeds of revenue generated from the sales, distribution, memberships, subscriptions, performances of material deemed harmful to minors which is generated or produced in this state. Under existing law, a person may not distribute the private image of another without that individual's consent. This bill would specify that the consent must be in writing. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 2 Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of 2022, prohibits a general law whose purpose or effect would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds from becoming effective with regard to a local governmental entity without enactment by a 2/3 vote unless: it comes within one of a number of specified exceptions; it is approved by the affected entity; or the Legislature appropriates funds, or provides a local source of revenue, to the entity for the purpose. The purpose or effect of this bill would be to require a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of the amendment. However, the bill does not require approval of a local governmental entity or enactment by a 2/3 vote to become effective because it comes within one of the specified exceptions contained in the amendment. A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT Relating to consumer protection; to provide legislative findings; to provide definitions; to provide age-verification requirements for the distribution of sexual material harmful to minors through certain adult websites, applications, and 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 3 digital and virtual platforms; to prohibit the retention of certain personally identifying information; to assess an additional tax on the gross proceeds received through sales, distribution, memberships, subscriptions, and performances of material deemed harmful to minors; to require notice to be given of the dangers of pornography under certain conditions; to provide civil and criminal penalties for violations; to amend Section 13A-6-240, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended by Act 2023-464, 2023 Regular Session, to require written consent to distribute a private image of another, with exceptions; and to further provide for the enforcement authority of the Attorney General; and in connection therewith would have as its purpose or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of 2022. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA: Section 1. The Legislature finds and declares the following: (1) The pervasive use of pornography is creating a public health crisis. (2) Pornography is contributing to the hypersexualization of children and teens in our society. (3) Due to advances in technology and the universal availability of the Internet, young children are more easily exposed to pornography than ever before, with the average age of exposure now being only 11 to 12 years of age. (4) Pornography treats people as objects and commodities for the viewer's use. 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 4 (5) Pornography normalizes violence and abuse, often depicts rape and abuse as being harmless fun, and increases the demand for sex trafficking, prostitution, and child pornography. (6) Pornography is a public health crisis leading to a broad spectrum of individual and public health impacts and societal harms. This state has a compelling governmental interest to take action, and this act serves as the most narrowly tailored approach to prevent pornography exposure and addiction to minors and to educate individuals and families concerning its very serious harms. Section 2. As used in Sections 1 through 14 of this act, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) ADULT WEBSITE. A website, application, or digital or virtual platform that uses the Internet to facilitate the dissemination of pictures, videos, or other content, a substantial portion of which is sexual material harmful to minors. (2) COMMERCIAL ENTITY. The term includes corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, limited partnerships, sole proprietorships, or other legally recognized entities. (3) CONSUMER INTEREST DIVISION. The Consumer Interest Division of the Office of the Attorney General. (4) DISTRIBUTE. To issue, sell, give, provide, deliver, transfer, circulate, or disseminate. (5) HARMFUL TO MINORS. The term as defined under Section 13A-12-200.1, Code of Alabama 1975. 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 5 (6) MINOR. An individual under 18 years of age. (7) NEWS-GATHERING ORGANIZATION. Any of the following: a. A newspaper, news publication, or other news source, whether in printed or electronic format, of current news and public interest. b. A radio broadcast station, television broadcast station, or cable television operator. (8) PUBLISH. To communicate or make information available to another person through an online platform. (9) REASONABLE AGE-VERIFICATION METHOD. Any commercially available software, application, program, or methodology that, when enabled, provides reasonable assurances that any individual accessing certain published material is 18 years of age or older. (10) SUBSTANTIAL PORTION. More than 33 1/3 percent. Section 3. (a) Any commercial entity that knowingly publishes or distributes sexual material harmful to minors through an adult website shall use a reasonable age-verification method to provide reasonable assurance that individuals under 18 years of age cannot access the material harmful to minors. (b) Nothing in this section shall apply to a bona fide news-gathering organization. Section 4. (a) Any commercial entity or third party that performs the required age-verification under Section 3 shall not retain any personally identifying information of the individual after access has been granted to the sexual material. 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 6 (b) A commercial entity that is found to have knowingly retained identifying information of the individual, as prohibited in subsection (a), shall be liable to the individual for damages resulting from retaining the identifying information, including court costs and reasonable attorney fees as ordered by the court. (c) Nothing in this section shall apply to a bona fide news-gathering organization. Section 5. No Internet service provider, or its affiliates or subsidiaries, search engine, or cloud service provider shall be held to have violated Section 3 solely for providing access or connection to or from a website or other information or content on the Internet or a facility, system, or network not under that provider's control, including transmission, downloading, intermediate storage, or access software to the extent the provider is not responsible for the creation of the content of the communication that constitutes sexual material harmful to minors. Section 6. (a) Any individual injured by a violation of Section 3, Section 8, or Section 9 may bring a civil action against the commercial entity to recover actual and punitive damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney's fees. If the injured individual is a minor, then a parent or legal guardian may bring action on his or her behalf. (b) Upon commencement of any action brought under this section, the clerk of the court shall mail a copy of the complaint or other initial pleading to the Attorney General and upon entry of any judgment or decree in the action, shall 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 7 mail a copy of the judgment or decree to the Attorney General. (c) Upon a finding by the court that a violation of Section 3, Section 8, or Section 9 has occurred, the Attorney General, upon petition to the court, may recover a civil penalty up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per violation. Section 7. In addition to any other penalty provided by law, any violation of Section 3, Section 8, or Section 9 shall be considered a violation of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act under Chapter 19 of Title 8, Code of Alabama 1975. Section 8. (a) Any commercial entity, before knowingly publishing or distributing a private image, as defined under Section 13A-6-240, Code of Alabama 1975, through an adult website, shall obtain written consent to publish or distribute the private image from every individual depicted in the private image. (b) The written consent required by this section shall be signed by the individual depicted and sworn to by a notary public. The commercial entity shall maintain records of the written consent for not less than five calendar years following the publication or distribution of the private image. Section 9. (a) A commercial entity required to use reasonable age verification methods under Section 3 shall do all of the following: (1) Display the following notices on the home or landing page of the adult website on which sexual material harmful to minors is published or distributed and all advertisements thereof: 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 8 "ALABAMA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES WARNING: Pornography is potentially biologically addictive, is proven to harm human brain development, desensitizes brain reward circuits, increases conditioned responses, and weakens brain function." "ALABAMA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES WARNING: Exposure to this content is associated with low self-esteem and body image, eating disorders, impaired brain development, and other emotional and mental illnesses." "ALABAMA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES WARNING: Pornography increases the demand for prostitution, child exploitation, and child pornography." (2) Display the following notice on every page of the adult website: "U.S. SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION HELPLINE: "1-800-662-HELP (4357) "THIS HELPLINE IS A FREE, CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION SERVICE (IN ENGLISH OR SPANISH) OPEN 24 HOURS PER DAY, FOR INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILY MEMBERS FACING MENTAL HEALTH OR SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS. THE SERVICE PROVIDES REFERRAL TO LOCAL TREATMENT FACILITIES, SUPPORT GROUPS, AND COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS." (b) A violation of this section shall be punished as provided under Section 6 or Section 7. (c) Each notice required under this section shall be displayed in 14 point font or greater and in a conspicuous manner. Section 10. (a) In addition to all other taxes of 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 9 every kind, there is levied and shall be collected a tax at the rate of 10 percent upon the gross receipts of all sales, distributions, memberships, subscriptions, performances, and all other content amounting to material harmful to minors that is produced, sold, filmed, generated, or otherwise based in this state. (b) The tax levied by this section may be collected by the State Department of Revenue at the same time and in the same manner as state sales and use taxes are collected. On or prior to the date the tax is due, each person subject to the tax shall file with the department a report in the form prescribed by the department. The report shall set forth, with respect to all sales and business transactions that are required to be used as a measure of the tax levied, a correct statement of the gross proceeds of all the sales and gross receipts of all business transactions. The report shall also include items of information pertinent to the tax as the department may require. Any person subject to the tax levied by this section may defer reporting credit sales until after their collection, and in the event the person defers reporting sales, the person shall thereafter include in each monthly report all credit collections made during the preceding month, and shall pay the tax due at the time of filing the report. (c) Any taxes collected under this section shall be budgeted and allotted in accordance with Sections 41-4-80 through 41-4-96, Code of Alabama 1975, and Sections 41-19-1 through 41-19-12, Code of Alabama 1975, and shall be distributed to the Department of Mental Health for the care 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 10 and treatment of individuals with behavioral health needs, including prevention, treatment, and recovery services and supports. Section 11. Section 13A-6-240, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended by Act 2023-464, 2023 Regular Session, is amended to read as follows: "§13A-6-240 (a) A person commits the crime of distributing a private image if he or she knowingly posts, emails, texts, transmits, or otherwise distributes a private image when the depicted person individual has not consented in writing to the transmission and the depicted person individual had a reasonable expectation of privacy against transmission of the private image. (b) For purposes of this section, "private image" means a photograph, digital image, video, film, or other recording of a person an individual who is identifiable from the recording itself or from the circumstances of its transmission and who is engaged in any act of sadomasochisticsado-masochistic abuse, sexual intercourse, sexual excitement, masturbation, breast nudity, as defined in Section 13A-12-190, genital nudity, or other sexual conduct. The term includes a recording that has been edited, altered, or otherwise manipulated from its original form. (c)(1) For purposes of this section, a "reasonable expectation of privacy" includes, but is not limited to, either of the following circumstances: a. The person individual depicted in the private image 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 11 created it or consented to its creation believing that it would remain confidential. b. The sexual conduct depicted in the image was involuntary. (2) There is no reasonable expectation of privacy against the transmission of a private image made voluntarily in a public setting or made with prior written consent in a commercial setting. (d) It is a defense to distributing a private image if the distribution of the private image was made in the public interest, including, but not limited to, the reporting of unlawful conduct; the lawful and common practices of law enforcement, legal proceedings, or medical treatment; or a bona fide attempt to prevent further distribution of the private image. (e) For the purposes of determining jurisdiction, the crime of distributing a private image shall be considered to be committed in any county in which any part of the crime took place, in the county of residence of the victim or defendant, or any county where the image is received. (f) A violation of this section is a Class A misdemeanor. A subsequent adjudication or conviction under this section is a Class C felony. (g) If the Attorney General has reason to believe a person has engaged in, or is engaging in, a violation of this section, the Attorney General may petition for an emergency injunction or other necessary relief to enjoin the violation, and may order the person to provide a copy of the written 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 HB164 INTRODUCED Page 12 consent required by this section." Section 12. Although this bill would have as its purpose or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of local funds, the bill is excluded from further requirements and application under Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of 2022, because the bill defines a new crime or amends the definition of an existing crime. Section 13. This act shall become effective on October 1, 2024. 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317

HB164 ENROLLED Page 0 HB164 25GWSSK-3 By Representatives Robbins, DuBose, Faulkner RFD: Judiciary First Read: 14-Feb-24 1 2 3 4 5 HB164 Enrolled Page 1 Enrolled, An Act, Relating to consumer protection; to provide legislative findings; to provide definitions; to provide age-verification requirements for the distribution of sexual material harmful to minors through certain adult websites, applications, and digital and virtual platforms; to prohibit the retention of certain personally identifying information; to assess an additional tax on the gross proceeds received through sales, distribution, memberships, subscriptions, and performances of material deemed harmful to minors; to require notice to be given of the dangers of pornography under certain conditions; to provide civil and criminal penalties for violations; to amend Section 13A-6-240, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended by Act 2023-464, 2023 Regular Session, to require written consent to distribute a private image of another, with exceptions; and to further provide for the enforcement authority of the Attorney General; and in connection therewith would have as its purpose or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of 2022. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA: Section 1. The Legislature finds and declares the following: (1) The pervasive use of pornography is creating a public health crisis. (2) Pornography is contributing to the hypersexualization of children and teens in our society. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 HB164 Enrolled Page 2 (3) Due to advances in technology and the universal availability of the Internet, young children are more easily exposed to pornography than ever before, with the average age of exposure now being only 11 to 12 years of age. (4) Pornography treats people as objects and commodities for the viewer's use. (5) Pornography normalizes violence and abuse, often depicts rape and abuse as being harmless fun, and increases the demand for sex trafficking, prostitution, and child pornography. (6) Pornography is a public health crisis leading to a broad spectrum of individual and public health impacts and societal harms. This state has a compelling governmental interest to take action, and this act serves as the most narrowly tailored approach to prevent pornography exposure and addiction to minors and to educate individuals and families concerning its very serious harms. Section 2. As used in Sections 1 through 14 of this act, the following terms have the following meanings: (1) ADULT WEBSITE. A website, application, or digital or virtual platform that uses the Internet to facilitate the dissemination of pictures, videos, or other content, a substantial portion of which is sexual material harmful to minors. (2) COMMERCIAL ENTITY. The term includes corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, limited partnerships, sole proprietorships, or other legally recognized entities. 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 HB164 Enrolled Page 3 (3) CONSUMER INTEREST DIVISION. The Consumer Interest Division of the Office of the Attorney General. (4) DISTRIBUTE. To issue, sell, give, provide, deliver, transfer, circulate, or disseminate. (5) HARMFUL TO MINORS. The term as defined under Section 13A-12-200.1, Code of Alabama 1975. (6) MINOR. An individual under 18 years of age. (7) NEWS-GATHERING ORGANIZATION. Any of the following: a. A newspaper, news publication, or other news source, whether in printed or electronic format, of current news and public interest. b. A radio broadcast station, television broadcast station, or cable television operator. (8) PUBLISH. To communicate or make information available to another person through an online platform. (9) REASONABLE AGE-VERIFICATION METHOD. Any commercially available software, application, program, or methodology that, when enabled, provides reasonable assurances that any individual accessing certain published material is 18 years of age or older. (10) SUBSTANTIAL PORTION. More than 33 1/3 percent. Section 3. (a) Any commercial entity that knowingly and intentionally publishes or distributes sexual material harmful to minors through an adult website shall use a reasonable age-verification method to provide reasonable assurance that individuals under 18 years of age cannot access the material harmful to minors. (b) Nothing in this section shall apply to a bona fide 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 HB164 Enrolled Page 4 news-gathering organization. Section 4. (a) Any commercial entity or third party that performs the required age-verification under Section 3 shall not retain any personally identifying information of the individual after access has been granted to the sexual material. (b) A commercial entity that is found to have knowingly retained identifying information of the individual, as prohibited in subsection (a), shall be liable to the individual for damages resulting from retaining the identifying information, including court costs and reasonable attorney fees as ordered by the court. (c) Nothing in this section shall apply to a bona fide news-gathering organization. Section 5. No Internet service provider, or its affiliates or subsidiaries, search engine, or cloud service provider shall be held to have violated Sections 1 through 10 of this act or Section 13A-6-240, Code of Alabama 1975, solely for providing access or connection to or from a website or other information or content on the Internet or a facility, system, or network not under that provider's control, including transmission, downloading, intermediate storage, or access software to the extent the provider is not responsible for the creation of the content of the communication that constitutes sexual material harmful to minors. Section 6. (a) Any individual injured by a violation of Section 3, Section 8, or Section 9 may bring a civil action in circuit court against the commercial entity to recover actual 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 HB164 Enrolled Page 5 and punitive damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney's fees. If the injured individual is a minor, then a parent or legal guardian may bring action on his or her behalf. (b) Upon commencement of any action brought under this section, the plaintiff shall mail a copy of the complaint or other initial pleading to the Attorney General and upon entry of any judgment or decree in the action, shall mail a copy of the judgment or decree to the Attorney General. (c) Upon a finding by the court that a violation of Section 3, Section 8, or Section 9 has occurred, the Attorney General, upon petition to the court, may recover a civil penalty up to ten thousand dollars ($10,000) per violation. Section 7. In addition to any other penalty provided by law, any violation of Section 3, Section 8, or Section 9 shall be considered a violation of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act under Chapter 19 of Title 8, Code of Alabama 1975. Section 8. (a) Any commercial entity, before knowingly and intentionally publishing or distributing a private image, as defined under Section 13A-6-240, Code of Alabama 1975, through an adult website, shall obtain written consent to publish or distribute the private image from every individual depicted in the private image. (b) The written consent required by this section shall be signed by the individual depicted and sworn to by a notary public. The commercial entity shall maintain records of the written consent for not less than five calendar years following the publication or distribution of the private image. 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 HB164 Enrolled Page 6 Section 9. (a) A commercial entity required to use reasonable age verification methods under Section 3 shall do all of the following: (1) Display the following notices on the home or landing page of the adult website on which sexual material harmful to minors is published or distributed and all advertisements thereof: "ALABAMA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES WARNING: Pornography is potentially biologically addictive, is proven to harm human brain development, desensitizes brain reward circuits, increases conditioned responses, and weakens brain function." "ALABAMA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES WARNING: Exposure to this content is associated with low self-esteem and body image, eating disorders, impaired brain development, and other emotional and mental illnesses." "ALABAMA HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES WARNING: Pornography increases the demand for prostitution, child exploitation, and child pornography." (2) Display the following notice on every page of the adult website: "U.S. SUBSTANCE ABUSE AND MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES ADMINISTRATION HELPLINE: "1-800-662-HELP (4357) "THIS HELPLINE IS A FREE, CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION SERVICE (IN ENGLISH OR SPANISH) OPEN 24 HOURS PER DAY, FOR INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILY MEMBERS FACING MENTAL HEALTH OR SUBSTANCE USE DISORDERS. THE SERVICE PROVIDES REFERRAL TO LOCAL TREATMENT FACILITIES, SUPPORT GROUPS, AND 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149 150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 HB164 Enrolled Page 7 COMMUNITY-BASED ORGANIZATIONS." (b) A violation of this section shall be punished as provided under Section 6 or Section 7. (c) Each notice required under this section shall be displayed in 14 point font or greater and in a conspicuous manner. Section 10. (a) In addition to all other taxes of every kind, there is levied and shall be collected a tax at the rate of 10 percent upon the gross receipts of any commercial entity operating an adult website for all sales, distributions, memberships, subscriptions, performances, and all other content amounting to material harmful to minors that is produced, sold, filmed, generated, or otherwise based in this state. (b) The tax levied by this section shall be collected by the State Department of Revenue at the same time and in the same manner as state sales and use taxes are collected. On or prior to the date the tax is due, each person subject to the tax shall file with the department a report in the form prescribed by the department. (c) Any taxes collected under this section shall be budgeted and allotted in accordance with Sections 41-4-80 through 41-4-96, Code of Alabama 1975, and Sections 41-19-1 through 41-19-12, Code of Alabama 1975, and shall be distributed to the Department of Mental Health for the care and treatment of individuals with behavioral health needs, including prevention, treatment, and recovery services and supports. 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 HB164 Enrolled Page 8 Section 11. Section 13A-6-240, Code of Alabama 1975, as amended by Act 2023-464, 2023 Regular Session, is amended to read as follows: "§13A-6-240 (a) A person commits the crime of distributing a private image if he or she knowingly posts, emails, texts, transmits, or otherwise distributes a private image when the depicted person individual has not consented in writing to the transmission and the depicted person individual had a reasonable expectation of privacy against transmission of the private image. (b) For purposes of this section, "private image" means a photograph, digital image, video, film, or other recording of a person an individual who is identifiable from the recording itself or from the circumstances of its transmission and who is engaged in any act of sadomasochisticsado-masochistic abuse, sexual intercourse, sexual excitement, masturbation, breast nudity, as defined in Section 13A-12-190, genital nudity, or other sexual conduct, as those terms are defined under Section 13A-12-190. The term includes a recording that has been edited, altered, or otherwise manipulated from its original form. (c)(1) For purposes of this section, a "reasonable expectation of privacy" includes, but is not limited to, either of the following circumstances: a. The person individual depicted in the private image created it or consented to its creation believing that it would remain confidential. 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224 HB164 Enrolled Page 9 b. The sexual conduct depicted in the image was involuntary. (2) There is no reasonable expectation of privacy against the transmission of a private image made voluntarily in a public setting or made with prior written consent in a commercial setting. (d) It is a defense to distributing a private image if the distribution of the private image was made in the public interest, including, but not limited to, the reporting of unlawful conduct; the lawful and common practices of law enforcement, legal proceedings, or medical treatment; or a bona fide attempt to prevent further distribution of the private image. (e) For the purposes of determining jurisdiction, the crime of distributing a private image shall be considered to be committed in any county in which any part of the crime took place, in the county of residence of the victim or defendant, or any county where the image is received. (f) A violation of this section is a Class A misdemeanor. A subsequent adjudication or conviction under this section is a Class C felony. (g) If the Attorney General has reason to believe a person has engaged in, or is engaging in, a violation of this section, the Attorney General may petition for an emergency injunction or other necessary relief to enjoin the violation, and may order the person to provide a copy of the written consent required by this section. (h) No Internet service provider, or its affiliates or 225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 HB164 Enrolled Page 10 subsidiaries, search engine, or cloud service provider shall be held to have violated this section solely for providing access or connection to or from a website or other information or content on the Internet or a facility, system, or network not under that provider's control, including transmission, downloading, intermediate storage, or access software to the extent the provider is not responsible for the creation of the content of the communication that constitutes a private image." Section 12. Although this bill would have as its purpose or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of local funds, the bill is excluded from further requirements and application under Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of 2022, because the bill defines a new crime or amends the definition of an existing crime. Section 13. The Department of Revenue may adopt rules for the implementation and administration of Sections 1 through 10 of this act. Section 14. Section 10 of this act shall become effective September 1, 2025; the remaining sections of this act shall become effective on October 1, 2024. 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 HB164 Enrolled Page 11 ________________________________________________ Speaker of the House of Representatives ________________________________________________ President and Presiding Officer of the Senate House of Representatives I hereby certify that the within Act originated in and was passed by the House 29-Feb-24, as amended. John Treadwell Clerk Senate 09-Apr-24 Amended and Passed House 11-Apr-24 Concurred in Senate Amendment 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298 299 300 301 302 303 304 305 306