Today, House Bill 47 addressing AI-generated Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) passed the Alaska House of Representatives unanimously, 39 to 0. I am proud to see this important legislation move forward with such strong bipartisan support.
I began working on this bill several years ago as chair of House Judiciary in the 33rd Legislature. From the outset, our goal was clear: protect children and give law enforcement and prosecutors the tools they need to hold offenders accountable, especially as technology evolves faster than our statutes. We developed this legislation carefully as part of a broader AI package and worked in close partnership with the Alaska Department of Law to ensure it met the real-world needs of investigators overseeing these horrific cases.
Recent reporting, including coverage by Alaska’s News Source, highlights a troubling reality: AI generated child abuse material is already being encountered by investigators, yet current law does not clearly allow prosecution. That gap is unacceptable, and HB 47 directly addresses it.
We also know that predators are increasingly turning to artificial intelligence to create and distribute this material. AI-generated CSAM is not a victimless crime. It fuels demand, retraumatizes victims, and normalizes exploitation. Study after study shows that a significant majority of convicted child sex offenders have directly harmed children. These are not abstract offenses. These are crimes committed by real predators against real kids. We cannot allow technology to become a shield for pedophiles.
FOR THE RECORD
When the bill reached the House Floor, several majority-member amendments were introduced that extended beyond the original CSAM focus and had not been vetted through committee or with the Department of Law. Understanding that the bill is likely headed to the Alaska Senate Judiciary Committee for further review, I chose not to obstruct amendments related to non-consensual AI generated images. However, I did oppose Amendment #5 due to serious First Amendment concerns regarding restrictions on minors’ access to social media.
It is important to be clear – constitutional concerns raised during floor debate were directed at those late amendments, not at the original bill. The underlying legislation was thoroughly developed, carefully vetted, and crafted specifically to withstand scrutiny while ensuring we can effectively prosecute pedophiles and protect children.
Protecting the most vulnerable, especially our children, remains my top priority. At the same time, I remain committed to ensuring that laws we pass are strong, focused, and constitutionally sound. Good policy requires both urgency and diligence.
I am excited to see HB 47 advance to the Senate, where it can receive further thoughtful review. I encourage Alaskans to contact your state senator and ask them to support HB 47 as it moves through the process. Alaska’s children deserve protections that are both effective and built to last.
The views expressed here are those of the author.
7 Comments
Get this one done!!
I wonder if Vance took a peek into rauchers office?
We’ll take Sarah seriously when House Bill 47 includes language making it a felony with mandatory jail time and registered sex-offender status for an Alaska librarian who allows sexually explicit books in school libraries and gives childrens sexually explicit books, school superintendents who allow tranvestites in schools, and school employees who, without parents’ knowledge or written consent. discuss, counsel, encourage, or indoctrinate children into body mutilation without parents’ knowledge or written consent.
(https://alaskawatchman.com/2026/02/26/hearing-set-for-bill-that-shields-alaska-librarians-who-give-kids-sexually-explicit-books/)
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Forget AI for the moment, what are you doing about this bill, Sarah? “Hearing set for bill that shields Alaska librarians who give kids sexually explicit books”
(https://alaskawatchman.com/2026/02/26/hearing-set-for-bill-that-shields-alaska-librarians-who-give-kids-sexually-explicit-books/)
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If technology evolves faster than our statutes, shouldn’t you, Sarah, know something about how the tech works so you can protect those wrongfully accused of AI-related crime knowing as you must that anyone with a score to settle, a victim to blackmail, and the requisite AI skills can do everything your bill is written to stop …and make it look like, say, a parent did it?
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Look at this way. Forget computers and artificial intelligence for a moment, you have Thomas Jack, the Hoonah Native guy, rotting in jail for the last 15 years for crime against a minor, which the minor said he didn’t do, which evidence shows he didn’t do, but thanks to a really nasty miscarriage of injustice he’s stuck in jail for 50 years and –no one– apparently yourself included, seems willing or able to correct Jack’s situation which doesn’t even involve computers and AI.
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So, if you can’t fix Jack’s situation which doesn’t involve computers and AI, how can you fix a similar situation that -does- involve computers and AI?
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You’re forging ahead with something you apparently don’t know much about, and letting unintended consequences of legislative ignorance fall where they may?
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Not saying your idea’s bad, Sarah. Just asking rather bluntly, how many more Thomas Jacks have to be locked up before it dawns on certain lawmakers they should have brought in expert testimony from computer whizzes and defense lawyers before passing your law?
God bless you Sarah!
Good job. No do the Epstein Class! the leader of the Republican Party is an adjudicated sexual offender convicted by a jury of his peers who he and his lawyers selected. And he advocates grabbing women’s genitalia and was good friends with a money laundering pedophile for years. Get all the perpetrators and hold them accountable. The files show how the wealthy expect and receive a pass for bad behaviors.
TDS creaping in again, Mark?
George rauscher needs to comment on this! After all, he’s the latest player in the hide& seek game!