CA SB 243

enacted

Companion chatbots.

California · 2025-2026 Regular Session · upper

Description

Existing law requires a social media platform to take various steps to prevent cyberbullying of minors on the platform, including by requiring the platform to establish a prominent mechanism within its internet-based service that allows any individual, whether or not that individual has a profile on the internet-based service, to report cyberbullying or any content that violates the existing terms of service related to cyberbullying. Existing law authorizes the State Department of Public Health to establish the Office of Suicide Prevention in the department, as prescribed. This bill would, among other things related to making a companion chatbot platform safer for users, if a reasonable person interacting with a companion chatbot would be misled to believe that the person is interacting with a human, require an operator of a companion chatbot platform to issue a clear and conspicuous notification indicating that the companion chatbot is artificially generated and not human. The bill would also require an operator to take certain actions with respect to a user the operator knows is a minor, including disclose to the user that the user is interacting with artificial intelligence. The bill would also require an operator to prevent a companion chatbot on its companion chatbot platform from engaging with users unless the operator maintains a protocol for preventing the production of suicidal ideation, suicide, or self-harm content to the user, as specified, and would require an operator to publish details on that protocol on the operator's internet website. This bill would, beginning July 1, 2027, require an operator to annually report to the Office of Suicide Prevention certain things, including protocols put in place to detect, remove, and respond to instances of suicidal ideation by users, and would require the office to post data from that report on its internet website. The bill would authorize a person who suffers injury in fact as a result of noncompliance with the bill to bring a certain civil action.

Introduced: 2025-01-30
Status date: —
Latest action: 2025-10-13 — Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 677, Statutes of 2025.
Bill type: bill
Last updated: —

Subjects

Companionchatbots

Committees

Not provided by source.

Action timeline

2025-01-30
Introduced. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment. To print.
introduction,reading-1,referral-committee
2025-02-03
From printer. May be acted upon on or after March 2.
2025-02-14
Referred to Coms. on JUD. and HEALTH.
referral-committee
2025-03-24
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-03-25
Set for hearing April 1.
2025-03-25
April 1 set for first hearing canceled at the request of author.
2025-03-26
Set for hearing April 8.
2025-03-28
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-04-08
Set for hearing April 30 in HEALTH pending receipt.
2025-04-09
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on HEALTH. (Ayes 12. Noes 0. Page 705.) (April 8). Re-referred to Com. on HEALTH.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-04-21
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on HEALTH.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-05-01
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 8. Noes 0. Page 965.) (April 30). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-05-02
Set for hearing May 12.
2025-05-12
May 12 hearing: Placed on APPR. suspense file.
2025-05-16
Set for hearing May 23.
2025-05-23
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 5. Noes 0. Page 1192.) (May 23).
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-05-23
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-06-03
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 28. Noes 5. Page 1442.) Ordered to the Assembly.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-06-04
In Assembly. Read first time. Held at Desk.
reading-1
2025-06-09
Referred to Coms. on P. & C.P. and JUD.
referral-committee
2025-06-11
June 24 set for first hearing canceled at the request of author.
2025-07-03
From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on P. & C.P.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,reading-1,reading-2,referral-committee
2025-07-09
Coauthors revised.
2025-07-09
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on JUD. (Ayes 11. Noes 1.) (July 8). Re-referred to Com. on JUD.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-07-16
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 9. Noes 1.) (July 15). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable,referral-committee
2025-08-20
August 20 set for first hearing. Placed on APPR. suspense file.
2025-08-29
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 13. Noes 1.) (August 29).
committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-09-02
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-2,reading-3
2025-09-04
Read third time and amended.
amendment-passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-09-04
Ordered to third reading.
reading-1,reading-3
2025-09-10
Read third time. Passed. (Ayes 59. Noes 1. Page 3189.) Ordered to the Senate.
passage,reading-1,reading-3
2025-09-10
In Senate. Concurrence in Assembly amendments pending.
2025-09-11
Assembly amendments concurred in. (Ayes 33. Noes 3. Page 2880.) Ordered to engrossing and enrolling.
amendment-passage,committee-passage,committee-passage-favorable
2025-09-22
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 11 a.m.
executive-receipt
2025-10-13
Approved by the Governor.
executive-signature
2025-10-13
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 677, Statutes of 2025.
became-law

Versions

01/30/25 - Introduced — 2025-01-30Compare
03/24/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-03-24Compare
03/28/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-03-28Compare
04/21/25 - Amended Senate — 2025-04-21Compare
07/03/25 - Amended Assembly — 2025-07-03Compare
09/04/25 - Amended Assembly — 2025-09-04Compare
09/13/25 - Enrolled — 2025-09-13Compare
10/13/25 - Chaptered — 2025-10-13Compare
SB243Compare
(document, no version)Compare

Documents

Votes

Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Health]
2025-04-08 · pass · 12-0
Member-level votes (13)
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Laird: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Allen: yes
- Stern: yes
- Niello: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Valladares: other
Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-04-30 · pass · 8-0
Member-level votes (11)
- Padilla: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Limón: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Valladares: other
- Rubio: other
- Grove: other
Placed on suspense file
2025-05-12 · pass · 7-0
Member-level votes (7)
- Wahab: yes
- Seyarto: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Dahle: yes
- Caballero: yes
Do pass
2025-05-23 · pass · 5-0
Member-level votes (7)
- Caballero: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Dahle: other
- Seyarto: other
3rd Reading SB243 Padilla et al.
2025-06-03 · pass · 28-5
Member-level votes (40)
- Rubio: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Allen: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Umberg: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Padilla: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
- Becker: yes
- Laird: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Limón: yes
- Niello: yes
- McGuire: yes
- Pérez: yes
- Stern: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Strickland: no
- Jones: no
- Alvarado-Gil: no
- Grove: no
- Choi: no
- Seyarto: other
- Grayson: other
- Ochoa Bogh: other
- Valladares: other
- Dahle: other
- Hurtado: other
- Reyes: other
Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Judiciary]
2025-07-08 · pass · 11-1
Member-level votes (15)
- Bryan: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Dixon: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Ward: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Haney: yes
- McKinnor: yes
- DeMaio: no
- Lackey: other
- Hoover: other
- Petrie-Norris: other
Do pass and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations]
2025-07-15 · pass · 9-1
Member-level votes (12)
- Stefani: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- Connolly: yes
- Papan: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Zbur: yes
- Sanchez: no
- Dixon: other
- Macedo: other
Do pass.
2025-08-29 · pass · 13-1
Member-level votes (15)
- Elhawary: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Fong: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Dixon: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Sanchez: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Ahrens: yes
- Solache: yes
- Tangipa: no
- Ta: other
SB 243 Padilla Senate Third Reading By Kalra
2025-09-11 · pass · 59-1
Member-level votes (80)
- Ahrens: yes
- Mark González: yes
- Dixon: yes
- Quirk-Silva: yes
- Gipson: yes
- Rogers: yes
- Addis: yes
- Ward: yes
- Haney: yes
- Hart: yes
- Fong: yes
- Calderon: yes
- Elhawary: yes
- Wilson: yes
- Carrillo: yes
- Bains: yes
- Ransom: yes
- Soria: yes
- Michelle Rodriguez: yes
- Berman: yes
- Wicks: yes
- Celeste Rodriguez: yes
- Arambula: yes
- Connolly: yes
- Schultz: yes
- Bauer-Kahan: yes
- Bennett: yes
- Papan: yes
- Schiavo: yes
- Bonta: yes
- Ávila Farías: yes
- Aguiar-Curry: yes
- Pacheco: yes
- Boerner: yes
- Alvarez: yes
- Lee: yes
- Patterson: yes
- Stefani: yes
- Caloza: yes
- Sharp-Collins: yes
- Ortega: yes
- Solache: yes
- Lowenthal: yes
- Blanca Rubio: yes
- Jackson: yes
- Bryan: yes
- Harabedian: yes
- Gabriel: yes
- Davies: yes
- McKinnor: yes
- Pellerin: yes
- Krell: yes
- Irwin: yes
- Ramos: yes
- Patel: yes
- Kalra: yes
- Sanchez: yes
- Rivas: yes
- Garcia: yes
- DeMaio: no
- Johnson: other
- Valencia: other
- Jeff Gonzalez: other
- Castillo: other
- Alanis: other
- Wallis: other
- Ta: other
- Hoover: other
- Nguyen: other
- Petrie-Norris: other
- Gallagher: other
- Macedo: other
- Ellis: other
- Zbur: other
- Muratsuchi: other
- Hadwick: other
- Tangipa: other
- Lackey: other
- Chen: other
- Flora: other
Unfinished Business SB243 Padilla et al. Concurrence
2025-09-11 · pass · 33-3
Member-level votes (40)
- Umberg: yes
- McGuire: yes
- Pérez: yes
- Cabaldon: yes
- Wiener: yes
- Reyes: yes
- McNerney: yes
- Dahle: yes
- Cervantes: yes
- Caballero: yes
- Menjivar: yes
- Allen: yes
- Archuleta: yes
- Limón: yes
- Durazo: yes
- Niello: yes
- Richardson: yes
- Hurtado: yes
- Blakespear: yes
- Gonzalez: yes
- Ashby: yes
- Padilla: yes
- Laird: yes
- Stern: yes
- Grayson: yes
- Rubio: yes
- Cortese: yes
- Smallwood-Cuevas: yes
- Grove: yes
- Becker: yes
- Weber Pierson: yes
- Arreguín: yes
- Wahab: yes
- Strickland: no
- Alvarado-Gil: no
- Choi: no
- Ochoa Bogh: other
- Valladares: other
- Seyarto: other
- Jones: other

Related bills

No related bills recorded for this bill.

Official source

http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202520260SB243

Attribution

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