S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                  9678--A
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 17, 2024
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. GONZALEZ -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee  on  Elections  --  committee
   discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
   to said committee
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend the election law, in relation to materially deceptive
   media in political communications

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraph  (b)  of subdivision 5 of section 14-106 of the
 election law, as added by section 1 of subpart B of part MM  of  chapter
 58  of  the laws of 2024, is amended and a new subdivision 7 is added to
 read as follows:
   (b) (i) A person, firm, association, corporation, campaign, committee,
 or organization that distributes or  publishes  any  political  communi-
 cation  that  was produced by or includes materially deceptive media and
 [knows or should know] HAS ACTUAL KNOWLEDGE that it is materially decep-
 tive shall be required to disclose this use.
   (ii) (1) For visual media the disclosure shall be printed or typed  in
 a  legible  font  size  easily readable by the average viewer that is no
 smaller than other text appearing in the visual media and  in  the  same
 language  used  on  the  communication to read as follows: "This (image,
 video, or audio) has been manipulated".
   (2) For communication that is auditory, such  as  radio  or  automated
 telephone  calls, clearly speaking the statement at the beginning of the
 audio, at the end of the audio, and, if the audio is  greater  than  two
 minutes  in  length,  interspersed  within the audio at intervals of not
 greater than two minutes each and in the same language as  the  rest  of
 the  audio  used in the communication, and in a pitch that can be easily
 heard by the average listener satisfies the requirements of  clause  one
 of this subparagraph.
   (iii) This paragraph shall not apply to the following:
   (1) materially deceptive media that constitutes satire or parody;
   (2)  materially deceptive media [created for the purposes of] DISTRIB-
 UTED BY A bona fide news [reporting  when  the  required  disclosure  is

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD15622-02-4
 S. 9678--A                          2

 included]  MAGAZINE,  BONA FIDE NEWS BROADCASTER, OR BONA FIDE NEWS WIRE
 SERVICE FOR THE PURPOSE OF NEWS REPORTING OR COVERAGE, IF THE  REPORTING
 CLEARLY  ACKNOWLEDGES  THROUGH CONTENT OR A DISCLOSURE, IN A MANNER THAT
 CAN  BE  EASILY  READ  OR  HEARD BY THE AVERAGE LISTENER OR VIEWER, THAT
 THERE ARE QUESTIONS ABOUT THE AUTHENTICITY OF THE  MATERIALLY  DECEPTIVE
 MEDIA; [or]
   (3)  A  RADIO  OR  TELEVISION  BROADCASTING STATION, INCLUDING A CABLE
 TELEVISION, SATELLITE TELEVISION OR STREAMING SERVICE OPERATOR, PROGRAM-
 MER OR PRODUCER, THAT BROADCASTS AN ADVERTISEMENT WHEN  THE  STATION  OR
 STREAMING  SERVICE IS PAID TO BROADCAST THE ADVERTISEMENT IF THE STATION
 OR STREAMING SERVICE CAN SHOW THAT IT HAS DISCLAIMER  REQUIREMENTS  THAT
 ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE REQUIREMENTS PROVIDED IN THIS PARAGRAPH AND THAT
 IT  PROVIDED THOSE DISCLAIMER REQUIREMENTS TO EACH PERSON OR ENTITY THAT
 PURCHASED THE BROADCAST OR STREAMING OF THE ADVERTISEMENT; OR
   (4) initial dissemination by a platform or service including, but  not
 limited to, a website, regularly published newspaper, or magazine, where
 the  content  disseminated  is  materially  deceptive  media provided by
 another information content provider [when a good faith effort has  been
 made to establish that the depiction is not materially deceptive media].
   (iv)  A candidate whose voice or likeness appears in materially decep-
 tive media in violation of this subdivision may  seek  reasonable  court
 costs and attorneys' fees and injunctive relief prohibiting the distrib-
 ution,  publication or broadcasting of any materially deceptive media in
 violation of this subdivision against  such  individual  or  entity  who
 disseminated  or  published such media without the consent of the person
 depicted and who knew or should have known that it was materially decep-
 tive. An action under this paragraph shall be  initiated  by  filing  an
 application  for  an  order to show cause in the supreme court where the
 materially deceptive media at issue could deceive and influence electors
 in an upcoming election. Such action shall be entitled to  an  automatic
 calendar  preference  and  be  subject  to  expedited pretrial and trial
 proceedings.
   (v) In any action alleging a violation of this subdivision in which  a
 plaintiff seeks preliminary relief with respect to an upcoming election,
 the court shall grant relief if it determines that:
   (A) plaintiffs are more likely than not to succeed on the merits; and
   (B)  it  is  possible  to  implement  an appropriate remedy that would
 resolve the alleged violation in the upcoming election.
   (vi) In any action commenced under  this  subdivision,  the  plaintiff
 bears  the  burden of establishing the use of materially deceptive media
 by clear and convincing evidence.
   7. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE  CONSTRUED  TO  REQUIRE  BROADCAST
 SERVICE  PROVIDERS TO CANCEL, EDIT, OR INSERT VIDEO OR AUDIO LABELS INTO
 POLITICAL COMMUNICATIONS WHERE SUCH ACTION IS INCONSISTENT WITH  FEDERAL
 LAW.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.