Latest news with #SenateBill163
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Backers urge Ohio lawmakers to pass AI restrictions
State Sen. Louis Blessing, III, R-Colerain Township, is co-sponsoring a measure prohibiting noncompete contracts in Ohio. (Photo by Graham Stokes for Ohio Capital Journal. Republish photo only with original article.) Ohio senators heard from supporters Wednesday of a proposal establishing guardrails around media produced with artificial intelligence. The proposal would prohibit the use of AI to create deepfake porn — particularly involving minors. But with provisions requiring watermarks and punishing identity fraud, the bill's impact could extend far beyond the creation of pornography. The bill's sponsors, state Sens. Louis Blessing, R-Colerain Twp., and Terry Johnson, R-McDermott, argue the restrictions will 'prevent potentially harmful uses' of an emerging technology while protecting Ohioans 'safety and privacy.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The bill goes after AI-generated child porn by expanding the definition of obscenity to include an 'artificially generated depiction.' Blessing explained 'current laws against child sexual abuse material require an actual real photo of a child to be able to prosecute someone.' 'With AI not being a real photo,' he added, 'this leads to issues of prosecuting someone generating these photos. Senate bill 163 will give attorneys the ability to prosecute these people.' The sponsors argue AI can also be used to engage in fraud for financial, political and reputational purposes. So, the proposal extends identity fraud statutes to include a 'replica' of an individual's voice or likeness. It prohibits the use of a replica persona to defraud, damage a person's reputation, or depict a person in a state of nudity or engaged in a sexual act. Beyond its prohibitions, the bill aims to get ahead of deceptive uses by requiring any media created with artificial intelligence to include a watermark identifying it as such. Removal of a watermark is subject to a civil lawsuit for damages, and anyone who removes a watermark faces the presumption that they caused the alleged harm. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost praised the measure's 'three-pronged approach.' He argued the watermark requirement 'would provide a minimum level of transparency and notice' when an individual encounters AI-generated content. Speaking about the bill's identity fraud provisions, Yost brought up a case from his time as state auditor. A scammer successfully mimicked a school district's email system and then sent a fake funds transfer request to the accounts payable department posing as the district's financial controller. Best practice, Yost said, would be to call the sender for confirmation. 'But now, in the era of deepfakes with audio,' Yost explained, 'you can send that fake email, call up (accounts payable) using the controller's voice and say, 'Hey, I just sent you an email asking you to do a wire transfer. This is really important. We need to move it. I wanted to follow up with phone calls so you didn't have any questions.'' As for the restrictions on child sexual abuse material, Yost urged lawmakers ensure 'these powerful tools are not used for evil,' and added that 'these are the kinds of things that keep me up at night.' Sen. Kent Smith, D-Euclid, pressed Yost on how useful state legislation can be when it comes to addressing a 'borderless' crime. Yost acknowledged he'd prefer to see federals laws and even international treaties governing the use of AI-generated images. But 'possession or use within Ohio can still be proscribed by this body and it ought to be.' He added that one way to push Congress to act is for states to pass an array of legislation. Lou Tobin, speaking on behalf of the Ohio Prosecuting Attorneys Association, noted many states have passed bills to prohibit AI-generated child sexual abuse material or CSAM. 'As of last month,' he said, 'Thirty-eight states, including every state surrounding Ohio, have enacted laws that criminalize the creation, possession and distribution of artificially generated CSAM.' But while many states have taken action, it's not clear those laws will hold up in court. 'I think a federal district court has found one of these statutes to be in violation of the Ashcroft decision,' Tobin told lawmakers. 'The Ashcroft decision was a U.S. Supreme Court decision from the early 2000s that said you could not criminalize artificially generated images of child pornography because there wasn't a real victim.' In February, a federal judge in Wisconsin threw out one charge related to possession of 'virtual child pornography,' but allowed three others to go forward. Prosecutors in that case have appealed the decision to dismiss the charge. Tobin explained his office and the AG's worked with state lawmakers to narrowly tailor S.B. 163 bill to avoid problems with the First Amendment. Regardless of how the case in Wisconsin or others play out, Tobin agued, 'We think that's a fight worth having.' Follow Ohio Capital Journal Reporter Nick Evans on X or on Bluesky. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
05-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Graduation Regalia: More Native students get green light to wear tribal regalia this year
Renata BirkenbuelSpecial to ICTMore Native students than ever before will graduate this year with regalia on their traditional caps and gowns as a growing number of states pass laws that allow beadwork, feathers, painting and other cultural years of facing possible removal from graduation ceremonies or confiscation of their caps or gowns, students in at least 20 states have now received official approval from their lawmakers to celebrate their heritage while they collect their INDIGENOUS JOURNALISM. 'Graduation is a hard-won, major life accomplishment,' said Matthew L. Campbell, deputy director of the Native American Rights Fund. 'No Native student should have to choose between their right to wear tribal regalia and attending their high school graduation ceremony.'New Mexico is the latest state to enact graduation protections for Native students. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed into law Senate Bill 163 on March 19, granting leeway for students to express their cultural and spiritual heritage at school chambers of the New Mexico Legislature gave unanimous support to the new legislation, which specifically prohibits school boards and charter schools from preventing Native students from wearing culturally significant clothing, accessories and objects during graduation new law went into effect immediately, just in time for this year's graduation ceremonies.'This legislation represents our commitment to honoring and respecting the rich cultural heritage of New Mexico's Native communities,' Grisham said at the signing. 'Every student deserves to celebrate their academic achievements in a way that honors their identity and traditions.'Nineteen other states now have similar laws, according to the Native American Rights Fund, including Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, and Washington. Regalia bills are also pending in Wisconsin.'Whether an eagle feather or plume, beadwork, sealskin cap, moccasins, or other forms of traditional dress, tribal regalia plays a unique role, spiritually and culturally, for graduating Indigenous students,' according to a statement from the American Civil Liberties Union.'Disruptions'The legislative victories have come after long-fought battles to allow regalia at an eagle feather or plume on graduate graduation caps, for example, can represent honesty, truth, majesty, strength, courage, wisdom, power, and freedom among many of the 574 federally recognized tribes in the United school officials, however, have maintained the adornments cause 'disruptions' for graduation ceremonies, or violate dress codes. In 2024, several incidents upended graduation for Indigenous students. In Tacoma, Washington, a public school student was told she couldn't collect her diploma wearing a sacred button blanket that she had been given by her tribe. The student filed suit in late in Farmington, New Mexico, a school official confiscated a student's graduation cap that had been beaded around the rim and included an eagle feather. The incident sparked outrage from the Navajo Nation.A Native student in Oklahoma also sued after officials tried to take an eagle plume from her cap during the ceremony. And in Liberty Hill, Texas, near Austin, a Navajo student was told she could not graduate with purple beading and a feather on her graduation school principals last year in southern Utah tried to bar two Native students from wearing forms of tribal regalia at their graduation ceremonies, and in Montana, a school administrator prevented a student from wearing a graduation cap that had been painted with a Native design by his turmoil can cause unnecessary stresses for Native students who should be celebrating their big Adams-Cornell, a Choctaw Nation parent and a board member of the ACLU Oklahoma, said in a national 2023 ACLU video on tribal regalia that the first time she tried on her own Choctaw dress was pivotal to her identity.'I feel the gravity as an Indigenous person to have all those things stripped from us, to have assimilation policies and boarding schools,' Adams-Cornell says in the video. 'And there is this incredible time that we get to live in right now to reclaim and restore Indigeneity. I feel that if people understood the meaning behind these items, they can understand why it's important that our kids have the opportunity to wear them at graduation.'Her daughter, college graduate Isabella Blu Aiukli Cornell, connects regalia to storytelling.'Representing yourself and your culture is an honor and everybody should be able to do it,' Cornell said in the video. 'Our regalia has stories in it. It tells us who we are as people.' Resources aboundResources are available for students to learn about their rights in their state or local Native American Rights Fund posts a guide for wearing eagle feathers at graduation, and school personnel may also access a Native American Rights Fund guide on how to handle the wearing of often advises students and their families on regalia questions, especially as commencements approach. Every year, concerned families inquire about possible bans on wearing eagle feathers or traditional outfits at graduation American Civil Liberties Union also provides guidance on the issue of regalia, with a 'Know Your Rights: Tribal Regalia' guide on its Albert, Native Forward Scholars Fund chief executive and Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes, said wearing regalia is one way to increase visibility of Natives in higher its founding 50 years ago, Native Forward Scholars Fund has awarded $400 million in scholarships and provided follow-up services for more than 22,000 students from more than 500 tribes in all 50 states. Recipients include those studying in undergraduate, graduate and professional degrees programs. Education remains keyEducation remains key to broadening the understanding of public displays of Native pride and recognition, said Cheryl Crazy Bull, Sicangu Lakota and president of the American Indian College Fund.'Laws such as those passed by the New Mexico legislature affirm Native students' right to celebrate their cultural identities during events — graduations, convocations, ceremonies — that are also a time when Native people reclaim education,' said Crazy Bull, otherwise known as Wacinyanpi Win, translated as 'They Depend on Her.''Our historical experience with boarding schools and removal from our communities means we are still striving for that reclamation,' Crazy Bull said. 'For Native people, education is an opportunity and a celebration.'As the coalition of pro-regalia states has increased, so has school May 2024, a feather-tying ceremony at a joint commencement of Bismarck Public Schools and Mandan Public Schools celebrated Indigenous graduates' achievements and their protected rights to wear eagle feathers and tribal regalia.'The College Fund joins with Native Scholars Fund, AISES, and Cobell Scholarships to also celebrate students' education achievements through our online graduation walk,' added Crazy Bull, who encourages recipients to share their experiences. 'All graduates can join the celebration by posting their photos and videos to their social media channels with the hashtags #NativePathways and #EducationIsTheAnswer.'Josett Monette, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians and secretary of New Mexico Indian Affairs, wants the New Mexico law to ease student fears. She is also the mother of three public school graduates.'I'm hopeful that this just makes one of those steps a little bit easier for students.' Monette said. 'To be able to say, I know I get to wear my moccasins if I want to. I know I can wear my traditional dress if I want to, or I can wear my traditional slacks or a ribbon or whatever it may be if I want to.' Our stories are worth telling. Our stories are worth sharing. Our stories are worth your support. Contribute today to help ICT carry out its critical mission. Sign up for ICT's free newsletter.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ohio bill seeks to regulate AI-generated child sexual abuse material and identity fraud
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A recently introduced Ohio bill would regulate artificial intelligence in the state, including simulated child sexual abuse material and content mimicking people without their consent. Senate Bill 163, sponsored by Sens. Louis Blessing III (R-Colerain Township) and Terry Johnson (R-McDermott), would prohibit creating or distributing sexual images of children generated by AI. Current state laws surrounding child pornography leave loopholes for AI materials that are not based on a real person, Blessing said. 'There is a gray area in the law where somebody possesses child pornography, for example, but it's AI-generated and it's not an actual person, you really can't go after them easily,' Blessing said. Why this transgender Ohioan says he's leaving the state Introduced in April, the bill would classify creating child sexual abuse material using AI as a third-degree felony, and buying or possessing it as a fourth-degree felony. In Ohio, third-degree felonies typically carry a sentence of nine months to three years in prison, in addition to a possible fine of up to $10,000. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, a nonprofit that runs an online tip line for child exploitation, reported that from 2022 to 2024, it received over 7,000 reports of child sexual abuse material involving AI. If SB 163 passes, Ohio will join 38 states that have enacted laws to criminalize AI-generated child sexual abuse material. The bill's AI regulations extend beyond sexual images of children, and also prohibit computer-generated identity fraud. This includes replicating a person's image, voice or likeness to illegally obtain money or damage their reputation. This would include any sexual or obscene material portraying a person without their consent. Under the bill, identity fraud using AI is generally a fifth-degree felony, but the charge could be escalated depending on a variety of factors, including previous related offenses and whether other statutes were violated in carrying out the crime. The bill would permit a person whose identity is unlawfully replicated to sue their offender. The bill would also require creators of AI products that are accessible in the state to watermark them. This would not be a visual watermark, but rather exist in the file's metadata, identifying it as AI-generated. The watermarks would be detectable by computer programs, rather than the human eye. Currently, most mainstream social media platforms use metadata to flag content as AI. 'It actually kind of protects the business to some degree by including that watermark,' Blessing said. 'It's like, 'Hey, we're including it with all of our software, if somebody removed this to use it in a bad way that's that's on them.'' Under the legislation, those found removing watermarks could be fined up to $10,000 by the attorney general. Residents harmed by a violation of this rule could also file a civil lawsuit. Blessing said throughout the bill's hearings, lawmakers will likely work on amending the bill to determine a date the watermark needs to be effective by to give entities time to implement the rule. Blessing and Johnson introduced similar legislation in the last General Assembly, Senate Bill 217, which received three hearings but ultimately did not reach a vote before the end of the session. A group of six entities, including the company NetChoice and Computer & Communications Industry Association, signed testimony in opposition to the bill. The organizations expressed concern that the watermark requirement in the bill may not currently be technologically feasible. Game against Columbus Blades boosts Buckeyes' spirits 'Responsible digital service providers have already taken aggressive steps to moderate dangerous and illegal content, consistent with their terms of service,' the written testimony reads. 'SB 217 is not limited to high-risk cases, but instead, is targeted towards any AI-developed product.' Three individuals testified in support of the bill, including the Center for Christian Virtue, the consumer rights nonprofit Public Citizen and Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost's Office, who originally brought the issue to Blessing's attention. 'We need to ensure there are guardrails on the use of AI so that, intentionally or unintentionally, it doesn't ruin a kid's life,' a spokesperson with the attorney general's office said. SB 163 awaits proponent and opponent testimony. It currently has two Democrat cosponsors. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Legislature protects Native students' right to wear regalia at school ceremonies
Bella Davis New Mexico In Depth Native American students' right to wear tribal regalia at school ceremonies could soon be enshrined in state law. The House unanimously passed Senate Bill 163 on Wednesday, sending it to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham for her signature. Students who are enrolled in or eligible for enrollment in a federally recognized tribe would be allowed to wear their tribe's traditional clothing and objects of religious or cultural significance, including jewelry, beading and feathers, to important school events, like graduation, without interference from officials. The bill would go into effect immediately so that students graduating this spring are protected. Last year, Farmington High School staff members were recorded confiscating an Indigenous student's beaded graduation cap that had an eagle plume attached, which staff later cut. The video gained national attention and widespread condemnation from tribal and state leaders. Lawmakers this year have heard from other young Native people who had similar experiences at their schools. 'My great grandmother was only able to attend up to the sixth grade, and so when I graduated high school, I shared that accomplishment with her,' Alysia Coriz (Santo Domingo Pueblo), a lobbyist for the nonprofit NM Native Vote, told the House Education Committee last month. 'However, due to restrictions from my high school, I was unable to wear my tribal regalia.' Coriz said she and other students she's talked with were told their regalia was 'distracting and doesn't conform.' But 'our identity is our strength, our culture is our strength,' Coriz told the committee. New Mexico will join over a dozen other states in protecting Native American students' right to wear regalia, assuming Lujan Grisham signs the bill. The Indian Affairs and Public Education departments, which fall under her authority, developed it, according to a spokesperson. This story was originally published by New Mexico In Depth.
Yahoo
19-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Governor signs bill protecting students' right to wear Native American regalia
SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) – Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham has signed a bill that will ensure students across the state can freely express their cultural heritage. Senate Bill 163 will allow Indigenous students to wear tribal regalia at graduation ceremonies or public school events. this comes after a high school graduate in Farmington had to remove their cap adorned with Native American beads. Bill would have New Mexico join interstate compact to ease doctor shortage The bill unanimously cleared the Senate and House and will take effect immediately. Tribal leaders from across the state attended the signing ceremony in celebration of the meaningful legislation. New Mexico joins 18 other states that have enacted similar protections. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
