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House Study Bill 647 - IntroducedA Bill ForAn Act 1relating to chatbots, including deployer requirements
2and interactions with minors.
3BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 554J.1 Definitions.
21. “Artificial intelligence” means a machine-based system
3that, for any explicit or implicit objective, infers from the
4input the system receives to generate output that can influence
5physical or virtual environments.
62. “Chatbot” means an artificial intelligence that interacts
7with users by simulating human conversation.
83. “Deployer” means a person that owns an artificial
9intelligence available for public use.
104. “Minor” means an individual who is under eighteen years
11of age.
125. “Output” means new content an artificial intelligence
13generates based on a user’s input in relation to the data used
14to train the artificial intelligence. “Output” includes but
15is not limited to audio-visual media, images, predictions,
16recommendations, and text.
176. “Reasonable age verification” means verifying the age of
18a user through any of the following:
19a. Government-issued identification.
20b. Financial documents that are reliable evidence of an
21individual’s age.
22c. A widely accepted practice that reliably evidences an
23individual’s age.
24 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 554J.2 Chatbots — general deployer
25requirements.
26A deployer of a chatbot shall do all of the following:
271. Implement and maintain protocols meant to detect,
28respond to, report, and mitigate harm the chatbot may cause a
29user in a manner that prioritizes the safety and well-being of
30users over the deployer’s interests.
312. Limit the collection and storage of user information
32collected by the chatbot to what is necessary to fulfill the
33deployer’s purpose for making the chatbot publicly available.
34 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION. 554J.3 Chatbot interactions with
35minors.
-1- 11. A deployer shall implement reasonable age verification
2measures to ensure that a minor cannot use or purchase a
3chatbot the deployer makes publicly available.
42. Notwithstanding subsection 1, a deployer may make a
5chatbot available for a minor’s use or purchase if all of the
6following apply:
7a. The chatbot was designed for the primary purpose of
8providing mental health support, counseling, or therapy by
9diagnosing, treating, mitigating, or preventing a mental health
10condition.
11b. The chatbot provides a clear and conspicuous disclaimer
12at the beginning of each interaction with the chatbot that the
13chatbot is an artificial intelligence and is not a licensed
14professional.
15c. The chatbot was recommended for the minor’s use by an
16individual licensed under chapter 154B or 154D after performing
17an evaluation of the minor.
18d. The chatbot’s developer has significant documentation of
19how the chatbot was tested.
20e. Peer-reviewed clinical trial data exists demonstrating
21the chatbot would be a safe, effective tool for the minor’s
22diagnosis, treatment, mitigation, or prevention of a mental
23health condition.
24f. The chatbot’s deployer provided clear disclosures of the
25chatbot’s functions, limitations, and data privacy policies to
26the individual recommending the chatbot under paragraph “c”,
27and to the minor’s parents, guardians, or custodians.
28g. The chatbot’s deployer developed and implemented
29protocols for testing the chatbot for risks to users,
30identifying possible risks the chatbot poses to users,
31mitigating risks the chatbot poses to users, and quickly
32rectifying harm the chatbot may have caused a user.
33 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION. 554J.4 Enforcement.
341. The attorney general may bring an action on behalf of the
35state to enforce the provisions of this chapter and may seek an
-2-1injunction for violations of this chapter.
22. a. A court may issue a civil penalty of not more than
3two thousand five hundred dollars for each violation of this
4chapter, or seven thousand five hundred dollars if a person
5violates an injunction issued under this chapter.
6b. Penalties assessed under this subsection shall be
7deposited into the general fund of the state.
83. The parent, guardian, or custodian of a minor who uses
9a chatbot that does not comply with this chapter may bring an
10action to recover a civil penalty of not less than one hundred
11dollars but not more than seven hundred fifty dollars or actual
12damages, whichever is greater.
13EXPLANATION
14The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
15the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
16This bill relates to chatbots.
17The bill defines “artificial intelligence” as a
18machine-based system that, for any explicit or implicit
19objective, infers from the input the system receives to
20generate output that can influence physical or virtual
21environments.
22The bill defines “chatbot” as an artificial intelligence
23that interacts with users by simulating human conversation.
24The bill defines “deployer” as a person that owns an
25artificial intelligence available for public use.
26The bill also defines “minor”, “output”, and “reasonable age
27verification”.
28The bill requires a deployer of a chatbot to implement
29and maintain protocols meant to detect, respond to, report,
30and mitigate harm the chatbot may cause a user in a manner
31that prioritizes the safety and well-being of users over the
32deployer’s interests, and limit the collection and storage of
33user information collected by the chatbot to what is necessary
34to fulfill the deployer’s purpose for making the chatbot
35publicly available.
-3- 1The bill requires a deployer to implement reasonable age
2verification measures to ensure that a minor cannot use or
3purchase a chatbot the deployer makes publicly available.
4However, the bill permits a deployer to make a chatbot
5available for a minor’s mental health support, counseling, or
6therapy if the chatbot meets certain requirements as detailed
7in the bill.
8The bill allows the attorney general to bring an action on
9behalf of the state to enforce the bill’s provisions and seek
10an injunction for violations of the bill. A court may issue a
11civil penalty of not more than $2,500 for each violation of the
12bill, or $7,500 if a person violates an injunction issued under
13the bill. Penalties awarded to the state under the bill shall
14be deposited into the general fund of the state.
15The bill allows a parent, guardian, or custodian of a minor
16who uses a chatbot that does not comply with the bill to bring
17an action to recover a civil penalty of not less than $100 but
18not more than $750 or actual damages, whichever is greater.
-4-dg/jh
2and interactions with minors.
3BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
1 Section 1. NEW SECTION. 554J.1 Definitions.
21. “Artificial intelligence” means a machine-based system
3that, for any explicit or implicit objective, infers from the
4input the system receives to generate output that can influence
5physical or virtual environments.
62. “Chatbot” means an artificial intelligence that interacts
7with users by simulating human conversation.
83. “Deployer” means a person that owns an artificial
9intelligence available for public use.
104. “Minor” means an individual who is under eighteen years
11of age.
125. “Output” means new content an artificial intelligence
13generates based on a user’s input in relation to the data used
14to train the artificial intelligence. “Output” includes but
15is not limited to audio-visual media, images, predictions,
16recommendations, and text.
176. “Reasonable age verification” means verifying the age of
18a user through any of the following:
19a. Government-issued identification.
20b. Financial documents that are reliable evidence of an
21individual’s age.
22c. A widely accepted practice that reliably evidences an
23individual’s age.
24 Sec. 2. NEW SECTION. 554J.2 Chatbots — general deployer
25requirements.
26A deployer of a chatbot shall do all of the following:
271. Implement and maintain protocols meant to detect,
28respond to, report, and mitigate harm the chatbot may cause a
29user in a manner that prioritizes the safety and well-being of
30users over the deployer’s interests.
312. Limit the collection and storage of user information
32collected by the chatbot to what is necessary to fulfill the
33deployer’s purpose for making the chatbot publicly available.
34 Sec. 3. NEW SECTION. 554J.3 Chatbot interactions with
35minors.
-1- 11. A deployer shall implement reasonable age verification
2measures to ensure that a minor cannot use or purchase a
3chatbot the deployer makes publicly available.
42. Notwithstanding subsection 1, a deployer may make a
5chatbot available for a minor’s use or purchase if all of the
6following apply:
7a. The chatbot was designed for the primary purpose of
8providing mental health support, counseling, or therapy by
9diagnosing, treating, mitigating, or preventing a mental health
10condition.
11b. The chatbot provides a clear and conspicuous disclaimer
12at the beginning of each interaction with the chatbot that the
13chatbot is an artificial intelligence and is not a licensed
14professional.
15c. The chatbot was recommended for the minor’s use by an
16individual licensed under chapter 154B or 154D after performing
17an evaluation of the minor.
18d. The chatbot’s developer has significant documentation of
19how the chatbot was tested.
20e. Peer-reviewed clinical trial data exists demonstrating
21the chatbot would be a safe, effective tool for the minor’s
22diagnosis, treatment, mitigation, or prevention of a mental
23health condition.
24f. The chatbot’s deployer provided clear disclosures of the
25chatbot’s functions, limitations, and data privacy policies to
26the individual recommending the chatbot under paragraph “c”,
27and to the minor’s parents, guardians, or custodians.
28g. The chatbot’s deployer developed and implemented
29protocols for testing the chatbot for risks to users,
30identifying possible risks the chatbot poses to users,
31mitigating risks the chatbot poses to users, and quickly
32rectifying harm the chatbot may have caused a user.
33 Sec. 4. NEW SECTION. 554J.4 Enforcement.
341. The attorney general may bring an action on behalf of the
35state to enforce the provisions of this chapter and may seek an
-2-1injunction for violations of this chapter.
22. a. A court may issue a civil penalty of not more than
3two thousand five hundred dollars for each violation of this
4chapter, or seven thousand five hundred dollars if a person
5violates an injunction issued under this chapter.
6b. Penalties assessed under this subsection shall be
7deposited into the general fund of the state.
83. The parent, guardian, or custodian of a minor who uses
9a chatbot that does not comply with this chapter may bring an
10action to recover a civil penalty of not less than one hundred
11dollars but not more than seven hundred fifty dollars or actual
12damages, whichever is greater.
13EXPLANATION
14The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
15the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
16This bill relates to chatbots.
17The bill defines “artificial intelligence” as a
18machine-based system that, for any explicit or implicit
19objective, infers from the input the system receives to
20generate output that can influence physical or virtual
21environments.
22The bill defines “chatbot” as an artificial intelligence
23that interacts with users by simulating human conversation.
24The bill defines “deployer” as a person that owns an
25artificial intelligence available for public use.
26The bill also defines “minor”, “output”, and “reasonable age
27verification”.
28The bill requires a deployer of a chatbot to implement
29and maintain protocols meant to detect, respond to, report,
30and mitigate harm the chatbot may cause a user in a manner
31that prioritizes the safety and well-being of users over the
32deployer’s interests, and limit the collection and storage of
33user information collected by the chatbot to what is necessary
34to fulfill the deployer’s purpose for making the chatbot
35publicly available.
-3- 1The bill requires a deployer to implement reasonable age
2verification measures to ensure that a minor cannot use or
3purchase a chatbot the deployer makes publicly available.
4However, the bill permits a deployer to make a chatbot
5available for a minor’s mental health support, counseling, or
6therapy if the chatbot meets certain requirements as detailed
7in the bill.
8The bill allows the attorney general to bring an action on
9behalf of the state to enforce the bill’s provisions and seek
10an injunction for violations of the bill. A court may issue a
11civil penalty of not more than $2,500 for each violation of the
12bill, or $7,500 if a person violates an injunction issued under
13the bill. Penalties awarded to the state under the bill shall
14be deposited into the general fund of the state.
15The bill allows a parent, guardian, or custodian of a minor
16who uses a chatbot that does not comply with the bill to bring
17an action to recover a civil penalty of not less than $100 but
18not more than $750 or actual damages, whichever is greater.
-4-dg/jh