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Committee defers deep-fakes bill (SB1156) after Attorney General cites existing statute
Summary
The committee deferred SB1156, which would create the crime of unlawful creation/distribution of explicit deepfakes; the Deputy Attorney General said existing statute (HRS 711‑1109) already criminalizes creating images/videos of composite fictitious persons and covers AI-generated content.
Senate Bill 1156, a proposal to establish the crime of unlawful creation or distribution of explicit deepfakes, was deferred by the Senate Committee on Labor and Technology on Feb. 7.
Deputy Attorney General Albert Cook told the committee that the State’s existing criminal statute—Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS) section 711-1109—already criminalizes the creation of an image or video of a composite fictitious person, and that the statute does not depend on how the image or video was created. Cook said that content created by artificial intelligence would be covered under the current law. He also noted that the current offense is a class C felony while the draft bill under consideration appeared to propose only a misdemeanor-level offense.
Yasmin Cheney (listed in the transcript as Yasmin/Jasmine Chien), executive director of the Hawaii State Commission on the Status of Women, and other supporters stood on their written testimony in support of the measure. Jacob Wyntzak also registered support.
On the basis that the conduct is already covered by existing statute, the committee recommended deferral of SB1156.
