CaliforniaCompanion chatbots: children's safety.
What it does
Existing law generally regulates artificial intelligence, including companion chatbots, as defined. Existing law requires an operator, as defined, to prevent a companion chatbot on its companion chatbot platform from engaging with users unless the operator maintains a protocol for preventing the production of suicidal ideation, suicide, or self-harm content to the user. Existing law requires an operator, for a user the operator knows is a minor, to take certain prescribed action, including disclosing to the user that the user is interacting with artificial intelligence.
More detail
This bill would delete those provisions imposing requirements on an operator if the operator knows the user is a minor.
The Digital Age Assurance Act requires a person who owns, maintains, or controls a software application, as defined, to request age bracket data sent by a real-time secure application programming interface or operating system with respect to a particular user from an operating system provider or a covered application store when the application is downloaded and launched.
This bill would require an operator, as defined, of a companion chatbot to, beginning July 1, 2027, before making a new or substantially modified companion chatbot available to users in the state, do various things with respect to child safety, including perform and document a comprehensive risk assessment related to the design, configuration, and operation of the companion chatbot with respect to minor users that contains, among other things, a summary of the results of any evaluation of each covered harm, as defined, pertaining to the companion chatbot. The bill would require an operator to submit to independent child safety audits of its compliance with the bill, as specified. The bill would require an auditor to produce a report that describes whether the operator has established and adhered to policies and practices to comply with the bill that includes, among other things, the signature of the lead auditor certifying the results of the audit under penalty of perjury. By expanding the scope of the crime of perjury, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would authorize the Attorney General to, for cause, request and obtain a copy of an AI child safety audit report from the operator and would make a child safety audit report submitted to the Attorney General confidential.
This bill would authorize certain public prosecutors to bring a civil action to enforce the bill's provisions, as specified, and would authorize a child who suffers an actual harm as a result of a violation of this chapter, or a parent or guardian acting on behalf of that child, to bring a civil action against the operator, as specified.
Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest.
This bill would make legislative findings to that effect.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.
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Where it stands
- Introduced
- Passed Senate
- Passed Assembly
- To Governor
- Became Law
Looking ahead
No hearings or votes scheduled.
History
- 2026
- Sep 10Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 190, Statutes of 2026.Latest
- Sep 10Approved by the Governor Gavin Newsom.Became Law
- Sep 9Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 2 p.m.To Governor
- Sep 1
- Vote recorded SB 1119 Padilla Senate Third Reading By Wicks. Result: pass.Lower
- Aug 31Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.Major
- Vote recorded W/O REF. TO FILE. Result: pass.Upper
- Aug 31Unanimous consent granted to take up without reference to file.
- Aug 31In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
- Aug 31Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 69. Noes 4. Page 7037.) Ordered to the Senate.Passed Assembly
- Aug 28Ordered to third reading.Minor
- Aug 28Read third time and amended.Major
- Aug 28Joint Rule 61(b)(16) suspended. (Ayes 57. Noes 1. Page 6819.)
- Aug 17Ordered to third reading.Minor
- Aug 17Read third time and amended.Major
- Aug 13Read second time. Ordered to third reading.Minor
- Vote recorded Do pass. Result: pass.Lower
- Aug 13From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 11. Noes 1.) (August 13).Minor
- Aug 13Assembly Rule 63 suspended.
- Aug 5August 5 set for first hearing. Placed on suspense file.
- Jul 2From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 12. Noes 2.) (July 1). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.Minor
- Jul 2Coauthors revised.
- Jul 1July 1 hearing postponed by committee.
- Vote recorded Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]. Result: pass.Lower
- Jun 25From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on P. & C.P.Major
- Jun 16From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on P. & C.P. (Ayes 10. Noes 1.) (June 16). Re-referred to Com. on P. & C.P.Minor
- Vote recorded Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Privacy and Consumer Protection]. Result: pass.Lower
- Jun 16Coauthors revised.
- Jun 4Re-referred to Coms. on JUD. and P. & C.P. pursuant to Assembly Rule 96.Minor
- May 26Referred to Coms. on P. & C.P. and JUD.Minor
- May 20In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.Minor
- May 19Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 39. Noes 0. Page 4346.) Ordered to the Assembly.Passed Senate
- Vote recorded 3rd Reading SB1119 Padilla et al. Result: pass.Upper
- May 14Read second time. Ordered to third reading.Minor
- Vote recorded Do pass. Result: pass.Upper
- May 14From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 6. Noes 0. Page 4265.) (May 14).Minor
- May 12Set for hearing May 14.
- May 11May 11 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
- Vote recorded Placed on suspense file. Result: pass.Upper
- May 4Set for hearing May 11.
- Apr 28Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on APPR.Major
- Apr 27From committee: Do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 13. Noes 0. Page 3978.) (April 21).Major
- Apr 21
- Vote recorded Do pass as amended, but first amend, and re-refer to the Committee on [Appropriations]. Result: pass.Upper
- Apr 20From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 7. Noes 0. Page 3958.) (April 20). Re-referred to Com. on JUD.Minor
- Vote recorded Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Judiciary]. Result: pass.Upper
- Apr 14Set for hearing April 21 in JUD. pending receipt.
- Apr 9Set for hearing April 20.
- Apr 8Re-referred to Coms. on P., D.T., & C.P. and JUD.Minor
- Mar 25From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on RLS.Major
- Feb 26Referred to Com. on RLS.Minor
- Feb 18From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 20.
- Feb 17Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.Introduced