TX HB 581: Relating to the creation of artificial sexual material harmful to minors.

In one paragraph

Texas's HB 581 extends the state's age verification law (Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 129B) to AI-generated sexual material harmful to minors in which a real person is recognizable. A commercial entity whose website has a publicly accessible tool for creating it, or that offers an app for creating it, must use reasonable age verification to confirm users are 18 or older, may not keep identifying information from the check, and must ensure anyone used as a source is an adult who consented to use of their face and body. Entities whose terms ban such material and that use technical tools to limit it are exempt. Signed June 20, 2025; effective September 1, 2025.

Plain-English summary, written with AI assistance. The official text controls.

What it means for business

Companies with a public website tool or app for creating AI sexual material harmful to minors of recognizable people must age-verify users without keeping ID data and use only consenting adult sources, unless their terms ban it and they take technical steps to limit it. The AG may seek penalties.

Key provisions

1. 1Artificial sexual material harmful to minors: computer-generated sexual material harmful to minors produced, adapted or modified with an AI application or other software in which a person is recognizable as an actual person by face, likeness or another distinguishing characteristic
2. 2A commercial entity operating a website with a publicly accessible tool for creating such material, or making publicly available an app for creating sexual material harmful to minors, must use reasonable age verification to verify that anyone attempting to access the tool is 18 or older (§ 129B.002(a-1))
3. 3Age verification methods: digital identification, or a commercial age verification system using government-issued ID or a commercially reasonable method relying on public or private transactional data; the entity or a third-party verifier may not retain any identifying information of the individual
4. 4The entity must ensure any individual used as a source for the material is 18 or older and has consented to use of their face and body as a source (new § 129B.0045)
5. 5Exemption from the age verification and source rules for an entity whose terms or use policies, acknowledged before access, prohibit generating such material and that takes affirmative technical steps to limit it, such as training the tool to identify likely sexual material, reporting tools, or filtering outputs or training datasets
6. 6Internet service providers, search engines and cloud service providers are not liable solely for providing access, transmission or storage, to the extent they are not responsible for creating the material
7. 7Civil penalties (§ 129B.006, now also covering § 129B.0045): up to $10,000 per day of operating the site or app in violation of the age verification requirements, up to $10,000 per instance of retaining identifying information, and up to $250,000 more if minors access sexual material harmful to minors as a result; the Attorney General may sue an entity it believes is knowingly violating the chapter, in the public interest, for an injunction and penalties
8. 8Signed by the Governor June 20, 2025 (Chapter 720); effective September 1, 2025

Latest legislative action

Jun 20, 2025. Signed by the Governor