SB 484 West Virginia Senate · 2025 Regular Session

Relating to disclosures and penalties associated with use of synthetic media and artificial intelligence

West Virginia's SB 484 prohibits political campaigns from distributing AI-generated election content that falsely depicts individuals without consent within 90 days of an election, unless a clear disclaimer is included. The required disclaimer must be prominently displayed (matching font size for text, clearly spoken for audio), include technical metadata about the media's creation, and remain permanently visible. Exemptions cover bona fide news coverage that discloses authenticity concerns and paid broadcasts by media outlets. The law targets deceptive election tactics while preserving journalistic protections and platform responsibilities under federal law.

Issues: ✗ Technology

Bill status in committee 1 of 4 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2025

Committee Review

Floor Vote

Governor

Introduced Feb 14, 2025 Last action Mar 4, 2025

Maddy AI version diff · 1 comparison

What changed between versions

Introduced Version → Committee Substitute · 5 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended from an introduced version to a committee substitute version, adding new exemptions, clarifying language, and expanding enforcement mechanisms. The committee version adds three new limitations to the prohibition on synthetic media use, clarifies the disclosure requirements for news organizations, and introduces civil penalties and a complaint filing process for violations.

Scope change

The bill's scope was expanded to include additional exemptions for paid broadcasts and news organizations that clearly label synthetic media content, and the definition of who can file complaints was clarified.

EXEMPTIONS

Added three new exemptions: paid broadcasts of synthetic media, news organizations that clearly state content doesn't accurately represent candidates, and technology providers who create synthetic media tools.

ENFORCEMENT

Added new subsections establishing criminal misdemeanor penalties ($1,000 per violation), civil penalties up to $1,000 per violation, and a process for filing complaints with the state election commission.

Added a new provision allowing the Secretary of State to propose emergency and legislative rules for implementation.

REQUIREMENT

Modified the exemption for bona fide news coverage to require clear acknowledgment that questions exist about the authenticity of the synthetic media, rather than just acknowledging the content.

DEFINITION

Modified the definition of 'Candidate' to explicitly reference the specific code section (§3-8-1a(4)) for clarity.

Floor votes

How they voted

No floor votes recorded yet.

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Mar 4, 2025

Committee

Referred to Rules on 1st reading

upper

Feb 27, 2025

Upper · Passed

Committee substitute reported

upper

Feb 14, 2025

Introduced

Introduced in Senate

upper

Feb 14, 2025

Committee

To Judiciary

upper

1 primary · 2 co-sponsors