H.R. 8915 · Where this bill is now
In committee
Introduced in the House, sent to the Committee on the Judiciary, May 20, 2026
What this bill does
In plain words · AI-written from the official summaryProtects voices and likenesses from unauthorized digital copies
Ever wonder who owns your face or voice in the digital world. This bill creates a new federal right that lets people control whether their voice or appearance can be used to create digital replicas without permission, like deepfakes made with artificial intelligence. It sets up a system where people can take down unauthorized digital copies and allows people to challenge removals if they believe they were wrongful, while protecting some uses like news reporting and satire.
How it affects you
If you're a public figure, performer, or anyone whose voice or likeness could be copied digitally, you'd gain the legal right to stop that use without your permission and take action against those who do it anyway. For most everyday people, this mainly means the digital replicas of you—whether real or created with AI—would be legally protected from being used by others. This doesn't affect parodies, news coverage, or broadcasts that use your image in normal ways.
Read the official summary (Introduced in House, May 20, 2026)
Nurture Originals, Foster Art, and Keep Entertainment Safe Act of 2026 or the NO FAKES Act of 2026
This bill creates a federal intellectual property right to protect individuals from unauthorized digital replicas (e.g., digital content made using generative artificial intelligence) of their voice and visual likeness.
Specifically, the bill gives each individual or right holder the right to authorize the use of the individual's voice or visual likeness (1) in a digital replica, or (2) for a product or service requiring authorization to avoid liability under the bill. This property right is not assignable during the individual’s lifetime but is licensable and does not expire upon the death of the individual.
Generally, any individual or entity that engages in specified prohibited activities (e.g., distributing a digital replica without authorization) shall be liable in a civil action and subject to related penalties. The bill exempts specified uses from liability, such as categories of conduct likely to involve protected speech under the First Amendment (e.g., news reporting, sports broadcasts, and satire).
The bill establishes (1) a notice-and-takedown process for unauthorized digital replicas; and (2) a counter-notification process, which allows an individual to contest the removal of a digital replica. The bill establishes penalties related to false or deceptive notice or counter-notice.
The bill expressly preempts state laws related to digital replicas except for causes of action under state statutes or common law in existence as of January 2, 2025.
Written by AI (Claude) using only the official summary by the Congressional Research Service, the Library of Congress’s nonpartisan research staff. It can miss nuance, so check the official summary and the bill text for details.
2nd SessionH. R. 8915
A BILL
NO FAKES Act of 2026
Sponsor: Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL-27) · Introduced May 20, 2026 · Commerce · 1 version of the text
Sources: Congress.gov actions and votes · bill text from GovInfo · latest official action May 20, 2026: “Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.”