Assembly Bill A8962

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8962
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              August 13, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. ROZIC -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Consumer Affairs and Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business law and the civil  rights  law,  in
   relation to enacting the "New York fundamental artificial intelligence
   requirements in news act"

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Short title. This act shall be known and be  cited  as  the
 "New  York fundamental artificial intelligence requirements in news act"
 or the "FAIR news act".
   § 2. The general business law is amended by adding a new article  42-A
 to read as follows:
                               ARTICLE 42-A
                   ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN NEWS MEDIA
 SECTION 1150. LEGISLATIVE INTENT.
         1151. DEFINITIONS.
         1152. DISCLOSURE TO NEWS MEDIA WORKERS.
         1153. DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMERS.
         1154. OVERSIGHT OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMS.
         1155. WORKPLACE PROTECTIONS.
   § 1150. LEGISLATIVE INTENT. THE LEGISLATURE HEREBY FINDS THAT:
   1.  NEW  YORK IS THE CENTER OF THE AMERICAN NEWS INDUSTRY AND JOURNAL-
 ISTS ARE A KEY PART OF THE STATE'S WORKFORCE.
   2. ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE CAN QUICKLY GENERATE  ARTICLES,  SUMMARIES,
 NEWS SCRIPTS, AUDIO/VISUAL AND OTHER MEDIA CONTENT THAT MAY SEEM PROFES-
 SIONALLY  DONE  TO A LAY OBSERVER. HOWEVER, THERE IS AMPLE EVIDENCE THAT
 CONTENT CREATED BY  GENERATIVE  ARTIFICIAL  INTELLIGENCE:  (A)  CONTAINS
 FALSE OR MISLEADING CONTENT; AND (B) PLAGIARIZES BY DERIVING ITS CONTENT
 FROM  ORIGINAL  SOURCE  MATERIAL  WITHOUT PERMISSION OR PROPER CITATION.
 THESE FAILURES ARE A DISSERVICE TO THE PUBLIC WHO RELIES ON THE NEWS FOR
 ACCURATE INFORMATION ABOUT THE WORLD.

  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13382-02-5
              

 A. 8962                             2
 
   3. AS SUCH, THE GOVERNMENT HAS A STRONG INTEREST IN  THE  PRESERVATION
 OF  HUMAN  NEWS  WORK. THERE IS AN URGENT NEED TO PREVENT NEWS COMPANIES
 FROM USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE AT THE EXPENSE OF  BOTH  THE  BROADER
 PUBLIC  AND  OF  NEWS  WORKERS, INCLUDING HUMAN REPORTERS, EDITORS, NEWS
 WRITERS, DIRECTORS, PRODUCERS, VOICE ACTORS, GRAPHIC DESIGNERS AND OTHER
 NEWSROOM PROFESSIONALS.
   IT  IS  THEREFORE  THE  INTENT  OF THE LEGISLATURE TO ESTABLISH CLEAR,
 MEANINGFUL PROTECTIONS FOR BOTH JOURNALISTS AND THE  BROADER  PUBLIC  TO
 ENSURE THAT THE INTEGRITY OF THE NEWS AND ITS WORKFORCE ARE SAFEGUARDED.
   § 1151. DEFINITIONS. AS USED IN THIS ARTICLE:
   1. "ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE", "ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE TECHNOLOGY", OR
 "AI" MEANS A MACHINE-BASED SYSTEM THAT CAN, FOR A GIVEN SET OF HUMAN-DE-
 FINED OBJECTIVES, MAKE PREDICTIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS, OR DECISIONS INFLU-
 ENCING  REAL  OR VIRTUAL ENVIRONMENTS, AND THAT USES MACHINE- AND HUMAN-
 BASED INPUTS TO PERCEIVE REAL AND VIRTUAL  ENVIRONMENTS,  ABSTRACT  SUCH
 PERCEPTIONS  INTO  MODELS  THROUGH  ANALYSIS IN AN AUTOMATED MANNER, AND
 USES MODEL INFERENCE TO FORMULATE OPTIONS FOR INFORMATION OR ACTION.
   2. "AUTOMATED EMPLOYMENT DECISION-MAKING TOOL" MEANS ANY SOFTWARE THAT
 USES ALGORITHMS, COMPUTATIONAL MODELS, OR ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE  TECH-
 NIQUES,  OR  A  COMBINATION  THEREOF,  TO MATERIALLY AUTOMATE OR REPLACE
 HUMAN DECISION-MAKING REGARDING EMPLOYMENT, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO
 WAGES AND OTHER COMPENSATION, HIRING, SELECTION FOR RECRUITMENT,  DISCI-
 PLINE, PROMOTION, AND TERMINATION. "AUTOMATED EMPLOYMENT DECISION-MAKING
 TOOL"  SHALL NOT INCLUDE ANY SOFTWARE USED PRIMARILY FOR BASIC COMPUTER-
 IZED PROCESSES, SUCH AS CALCULATORS, SPELLCHECK TOOLS, AUTOCORRECT FUNC-
 TIONS, SPREADSHEETS, ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS, OR ANY TOOL THAT RELATES
 ONLY TO INTERNAL MANAGEMENT AFFAIRS SUCH AS ORDERING OFFICE SUPPLIES  OR
 PROCESSING  PAYMENTS,  AND  THAT  DO  NOT  MATERIALLY AFFECT THE RIGHTS,
 LIBERTIES, BENEFITS, SAFETY OR WELFARE  OF  ANY  INDIVIDUAL  WITHIN  THE
 STATE.
   3.  "GENERATIVE  ARTIFICIAL  INTELLIGENCE" MEANS A CLASS OF ARTIFICIAL
 INTELLIGENCE MODELS THAT ARE SELF-SUPERVISED AND EMULATE  THE  STRUCTURE
 AND CHARACTERISTICS OF INPUT DATA TO GENERATE DERIVED SYNTHETIC CONTENT,
 INCLUDING,  BUT  NOT  LIMITED TO, IMAGES, VIDEOS, AUDIO, TEXT, AND OTHER
 DIGITAL CONTENT.
   4. "NEWS MEDIA" MEANS ANY PUBLICATION OR  PROGRAMMING,  REGARDLESS  OF
 THE MEDIUM OR METHOD OF DISTRIBUTION, THAT PROVIDES NEWS, WEATHER, TRAF-
 FIC,  SPORTS, OR ENTERTAINMENT REPORTS OR PROGRAMMING. THIS INCLUDES BUT
 IS  NOT  LIMITED  TO  NEWSPAPERS,  MAGAZINES,   JOURNALS,   PERIODICALS,
 WEBSITES, NEWSLETTERS, TELEVISION OR CABLE PROGRAMMING, RADIO OR PODCAST
 PROGRAMMING, AND INTERNET OR SATELLITE-BASED CONTENT.
   §  1152.  DISCLOSURE TO NEWS MEDIA WORKERS. NEWS MEDIA EMPLOYERS SHALL
 FULLY DISCLOSE TO WORKERS WHEN AND HOW ANY GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL  INTEL-
 LIGENCE  TOOL  IS USED IN THE WORKPLACE AS IT RELATES TO THE CREATION OF
 CONTENT, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, WRITING,  RECORDINGS  AND  TRAN-
 SCRIPTS.  SUCH  DISCLOSURE SHALL INCLUDE A DESCRIPTION OF THE ARTIFICIAL
 INTELLIGENCE SYSTEM AND A SUMMARY OF THE PURPOSE AND USE OF SUCH SYSTEM.
   § 1153. DISCLOSURE TO CONSUMERS. ANY  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTENT  PUBLISHED,
 BROADCAST,  OR  OTHERWISE DISSEMINATED OR ACCESSIBLE WITHIN THE STATE OF
 NEW YORK, WHICH  WAS  SUBSTANTIALLY  COMPOSED,  AUTHORED,  OR  OTHERWISE
 CREATED  THROUGH  THE  USE  OF  GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SHALL
 CONSPICUOUSLY IMPRINT ON THE TOP OF THE PAGE, WEBPAGE,  IMAGE,  GRAPHIC,
 VIDEO  OR OTHER VISUAL OR AUDIO/VISUAL CONTENT, OR VERBALLY ORATE AT THE
 ONSET OF AUDIO CONTENT, THAT SUCH CONTENT WAS SUBSTANTIALLY  CREATED  BY
 GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE. IF THE CONTENT IS ELIGIBLE FOR COPY-
 RIGHT REGISTRATION THE DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENT SHALL NOT APPLY.
 A. 8962                             3
 
   §  1154.  OVERSIGHT OF ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMS. ANY NEWS MEDIA
 CONTENT, INCLUDING STORIES, ARTICLES, AUDIO, VISUALS  OR  IMAGES,  WHICH
 ARE CREATED IN WHOLE OR IN MATERIAL PART BY GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTEL-
 LIGENCE  SHALL  BE  REVIEWED  BY A HUMAN WORKER WHO HAS THE AUTHORITY TO
 APPROVE,  DENY,  OR MODIFY ANY DECISION RECOMMENDED OR MADE BY THE AUTO-
 MATED SYSTEM BEFORE SUCH CONTENT MAY BE PUBLISHED  WITH  THE  DISCLOSURE
 REQUIRED PURSUANT TO SECTION ELEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY-THREE OF THIS ARTICLE.
   §  1155.  WORKPLACE PROTECTIONS. 1. NEWS MEDIA EMPLOYERS SHALL NEITHER
 DIRECTLY NOR THROUGH A THIRD PARTY AUTHORIZE THE TRAINING OF  A  GENERA-
 TIVE  ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEM ON THE WORK PRODUCT OF A NEWS MEDIA
 WORKER WITHOUT NOTICE, CONSENT AND AN OPPORTUNITY TO BARGAIN OVER APPRO-
 PRIATE REMUNERATION. A NEWS MEDIA EMPLOYER SHALL  NOT  PENALIZE  A  NEWS
 MEDIA  WORKER FOR DECLINING TO CONSENT TO ALLOW THEIR WORK PRODUCT TO BE
 USED TO TRAIN A GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEM.
   2. (A) THE USE OF  GENERATIVE  ARTIFICIAL  INTELLIGENCE  OR  AUTOMATED
 EMPLOYMENT  DECISION-MAKING  TOOLS  SHALL  NOT DIMINISH (I) THE EXISTING
 RIGHTS OF EMPLOYEES PURSUANT TO AN EXISTING COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREE-
 MENT, OR (II) THE EXISTING REPRESENTATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS AMONG EMPLOYEE
 ORGANIZATIONS OR THE BARGAINING RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE  EMPLOYER  AND
 AN EMPLOYEE ORGANIZATION.
   (B)  THE  USE  OF GENERATIVE ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE SYSTEMS SHALL NOT
 RESULT IN: (I) DISCHARGE, DISPLACEMENT OR LOSS  OF  POSITION,  INCLUDING
 PARTIAL  DISPLACEMENT  SUCH  AS A REDUCTION IN THE HOURS OF NON-OVERTIME
 WORK, WAGES, OR EMPLOYMENT BENEFITS, OR  RESULT  IN  THE  IMPAIRMENT  OF
 EXISTING COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS; OR
   (II)  TRANSFER OF EXISTING DUTIES AND FUNCTIONS CURRENTLY PERFORMED BY
 EMPLOYEES OR WORKERS.
   § 3. Section 79-h of the civil rights law is amended by adding  a  new
 subdivision (h) to read as follows:
   (H) EMPLOYERS OF PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS AND NEWSCASTERS SHALL ESTAB-
 LISH SAFEGUARDS TO PROTECT JOURNALISTIC SOURCES AND CONFIDENTIAL MATERI-
 ALS,  GATHERED  THROUGH  LOCATION  TRACKING,  SURVEILLANCE  OR ANY OTHER
 MEANS, WHICH CAN BE ACCESSED BY ANY ARTIFICIAL  INTELLIGENCE  TECHNOLOGY
 AS DEFINED IN ARTICLE FORTY-TWO-A OF THE GENERAL BUSINESS LAW.
   §  4.  Severability.  If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision,
 section or part of this act shall be adjudged by any court of  competent
 jurisdiction  to  be invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair, or
 invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation
 to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part thereof
 directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment  shall  have
 been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of the legislature
 that  this  act  would have been enacted even if such invalid provisions
 had not been included herein.
   § 5. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day  after  it  shall
 have become a law.