EnactedAI Laws in California (CA)
Generative-AI providers with over 1,000,000 monthly users must offer a free AI-detection tool and embed a latent provenance disclosure in AI-generated image, video and audio content, plus an optional visible manifest disclosure. Operative August 2, 2026 (delayed from January 1, 2026 by AB 853).
What SB 942 requires
California has enacted SB 942 — AI Transparency Act. Generative-AI providers with over 1,000,000 monthly users must offer a free AI-detection tool and embed a latent provenance disclosure in AI-generated image, video and audio content, plus an optional visible manifest disclosure. Operative August 2, 2026 (delayed from January 1, 2026 by AB 853). This page explains what the law requires in plain language, who is in scope, the penalty for non-compliance, and what your business needs to do before the August 2, 2026 deadline.
Who is in scope
The law covers businesses that use AI to interact with consumers, make consumer-facing decisions (credit, pricing, recommendations, content delivery), or generate AI content that is presented to the public. Company size does not determine whether you are in scope — a startup with ten employees using an off-the-shelf AI hiring tool has the same disclosure obligations as an enterprise running a custom-built model. What matters is whether the AI system makes or substantially informs a decision that affects a California resident in a consequential way. Notably, the obligation extends to vendors: if your company deploys an AI tool built by a third party, you — as the deployer — are responsible for ensuring it meets California's requirements, even if you did not build it.
Key compliance requirements
California's consumer AI transparency requirements focus on two baseline obligations: disclosure and opt-out. Businesses must inform consumers when an AI system is involved in a consequential decision — meaning a decision that meaningfully affects a consumer's access to services, pricing, credit, or opportunities. The opt-out requirement gives consumers a mechanism to request human review or to decline AI-driven processing entirely. Meeting this standard is not just a notice-posting exercise: companies need to map every consumer-facing AI touchpoint, verify that their disclosure language is accurate and readable, and build a functioning human-review pathway that responds to opt-out requests within a defined window.
Penalties for non-compliance
The financial consequences of non-compliance under SB 942 are real and enforceable now. California sets a maximum civil penalty of $5,000 per violation; each day is a discrete violation. Penalties accumulate per violation — meaning a company that has deployed an AI tool to thousands of consumers without required disclosures faces compounding exposure, not a single capped fine. Consumer AI violations in California may also attract federal coordination: the FTC's Operation AI Comply sweep (September 2024) demonstrated that state and federal enforcers share intelligence on companies with widespread AI disclosure failures.
What to do now
Build your AI inventory first. You cannot comply with California's requirements if you do not know which systems are in scope. Map every AI or automated decision system your company uses that touches California residents — including third-party vendor tools integrated into your product.
Draft accurate disclosure language. Work with legal counsel to produce disclosure statements that accurately describe what your AI does, what data it uses, and what the consumer can do if they want human review. Vague or boilerplate disclosures will not satisfy California's requirements.
Build the opt-out pathway. Implement a functioning process for consumers to request human review or opt out of AI-assisted processing. Test it before the deadline — regulators will look for live, working mechanisms, not documented promises.
Assign a compliance owner. Designate someone — legal counsel, a privacy officer, or a dedicated AI governance lead — to track regulatory developments, own the audit documentation, and respond if an enforcement inquiry arrives. The compliance deadline is August 2, 2026. Don't wait until the deadline to start.
California AI law in the broader regulatory landscape
California's law does not exist in isolation. The trend across the United States is toward more regulation, not less: at least 20 states enacted or proposed AI-specific legislation in 2025 alone, and federal enforcement agencies — the FTC, EEOC, CFPB, and HHS — have all issued guidance making clear that existing laws apply to AI systems even where no AI-specific statute exists. For companies based in California that serve European customers, the EU AI Act (effective August 2026) adds a parallel compliance track with penalties reaching €35 million or 7% of global annual revenue — making California + EU compliance the most complex dual-jurisdiction stack currently in play.
Recent AI law developments in California
Updated August 23, 2026Recent news coverage of AI regulation and policy in California. Headlines are aggregated automatically; follow each link for the full story.
Coverage from TechCrunch on AI legislation and regulation relevant to California.
Coverage from Politico on AI legislation and regulation relevant to California.
Coverage from KQED on AI legislation and regulation relevant to California.
Coverage from SFGATE on AI legislation and regulation relevant to California.
Coverage from FOX40 on AI legislation and regulation relevant to California.
AI bills moving through the California legislature
Updated October 13, 2026AI-related bills currently tracked in the California legislature, updated automatically from Open States and the state legislature's own official record. Follow each link for the official bill text, sponsors, and status history.
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Existing law requires, on or before September 1, 2024, the Department of Technology, within the Government Operations Agency, to conduct, in coordination with other interagency bodies as it deems appropriate, a comprehensive inventory of all high-risk automated decision systems that have been proposed for use, development, or procurement by, or are being used, developed, or procured by, any state agency. Existing law requires the department to annually submit a report of that comprehensive inventory to the Assembly Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection and the Senate Committee on Governmental Organization. Existing law, the Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act, among other things related to ensuring the safety of certain artificial intelligence models, requires a large frontier developer to write, implement, and clearly and conspicuously publish on its internet website a frontier AI framework that applies to the large frontier developer’s frontier models and describes how the large frontier developer approaches, among other things, incorporating national standards, international standards, and industry-consensus best practices into its frontier AI framework. This bill would require, on or before January 1, 2028, the Government Operations Agency to take certain actions related to the selection and regulation of certain entities, defined as “independent verification organizations,” designated by the agency as having demonstrated expertise in assessing the risks posed by an AI system or model and identifying the metrics and methodologies that form the basis for that assessment. The bill would require the agency to convene working groups to solicit stakeholder input in the identification of standards and the development and revision of procedures and criteria, as specified. The bill would require the agency to provide a report to the Legislature on the findings of the working groups and would require a designated IVO to submit annually, and no sooner than 12 months after initial designation as an IVO, to the agency and Legislature a report, as specified.
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The California Privacy Protection Agency's Automated Decisionmaking Technology (ADMT) regulations: businesses subject to the CCPA that use ADMT to make a "significant decision" about a consumer must give pre-use notice, explain the logic and effect of the decision, and offer an opt-out and an appeal, with phased compliance deadlines running through 2030. Adopted by the CPPA Board 2025-09-22/2025-07-24; approved by the Office of Administrative Law 2025-09-23; effective 2026-01-01.
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Existing law requires the Secretary of Government Operations to develop a coordinated plan to, among other things, investigate the feasibility of, and obstacles to, developing standards and technologies for state departments to determine digital content provenance. For the purpose of informing that coordinated plan,…
In Senate. Consideration of Governor's veto pending.
Existing law establishes the Instructional Quality Commission and requires the commission to, among other things, recommend curriculum frameworks and the adoption of instructional materials to the State Board of Education. Existing law requires the commission to consider incorporating the Model Library Standards int…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 927, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law requires the Secretary of Government Operations to develop a coordinated plan to, among other things, investigate the feasibility of, and obstacles to, developing standards and technologies for state departments to determine digital content provenance. For the purpose of informing that coordinated plan,…
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 928, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of health facilities and clinics by the State Department of Public Health. Existing law, the Medical Practice Act, establishes the Medical Board of California for the licensing, regulation, and discipline of physicians and surgeons. Existing law, the Osteopathic…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 848, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law requires the Department of Technology, in coordination with other interagency bodies, to conduct, on or before September 1, 2024, a comprehensive inventory of all high-risk automated decision systems, as defined, that have been proposed for use, development, or procurement by, or are being used, develop…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 817, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to establish procedures within the State Department of Education to, among other things, annually identify the critical needs for which effective educational programs and practices are to be identified, developed, and disseminated to public schools. This…
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 893, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law establishes the Government Operations Agency, which is governed by the Secretary of Government Operations. Existing law requires the Secretary of Government Operations to develop a coordinated plan to, among other things, evaluate the impact of the proliferation of deepfakes, defined to mean audio or vi…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 843, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law requires all contracts for the acquisition of information technology goods and services related to information technology projects, as defined, to be made by or under the supervision of the Department of Technology. Existing law requires all other contracts for the acquisition of information technology …
In Senate. Consideration of Governor's veto pending.
Existing law requires the Secretary of Government Operations to develop a coordinated plan to, among other things, investigate the feasibility of, and obstacles to, developing standards and technologies for state departments to determine digital content provenance. For the purpose of informing that coordinated plan,…
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 291, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law, the Political Reform Act of 1974, requires certain advertisements to contain specified disclosures. The Fair Political Practices Commission is charged with administering and implementing the act, and may, when it determines a violation has occurred, bring an administrative action and issue an order req…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 260, Statutes of 2024.
Existing law establishes requirements for the conduct of election campaigns, including requirements regarding the endorsement of candidates, political corporations, campaign funds, fair campaign practices, and libel and slander. Existing law, until January 1, 2027, prohibits any person, committee, or other entity fr…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 261, Statutes of 2024.
The Unruh Civil Rights Act provides that all persons within the jurisdiction of this state are free and equal and, regardless of their sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship, primary language, or immig…
Ordered to inactive file at the request of Senator Umberg.
The California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) grants to a consumer various rights with respect to personal information, as defined, that is collected by a business, as defined, including a requirement that a business have the affirmative authorization of the consumer or the consumer's parent or guardian, as pro…
In committee: Held under submission.
Existing law, generally, regulates state and local law enforcement agencies regarding subject matter that includes the selection and training of peace officers, the maintenance and release of records, the use of force, and the use of certain equipment. Previous law, until January 1, 2023, prohibited the use of real-…
In committee: Held under submission.
Existing law requires the Secretary of Government Operations to develop a coordinated plan to, among other things, investigate the feasibility of, and obstacles to, developing standards and technologies for state departments to determine digital content provenance. For the purpose of informing that coordinated plan,…
August 15 hearing: Held in committee and under submission.
Existing law requires the Superintendent of Public Instruction to establish procedures within the State Department of Education to, among other things, annually identify the critical needs for which effective educational programs and practices are to be identified, developed, and disseminated to public schools. This…
In committee: Held under submission.
(1) Existing law prohibits the false impersonation of another person in either their personal or official capacity with the intent to steal or defraud, as specified. This bill would define various terms related to artificial intelligence and synthetic content, and would clarify that use of such synthetic content, as…
May 16 hearing: Held in committee and under submission.
Existing law requires the Secretary of Government Operations, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to evaluate, among other things, the impact the proliferation of deepfakes, as defined, has on state government, California-based businesses, and residents of the state, and the risks, including privacy risks, associ…
April 24 set for first hearing canceled at the request of author.
Existing law establishes the Attorney General as the head of the Department of Justice, with charge of all legal matters in which the state is interested, except as specified. Existing law imposes various requirements on the Attorney General related to consumer protection, including, among others, the supervision of…
Set for hearing April 23.
Existing law requires the Employment Development Department to implement and administer the unemployment insurance program in this state, and provides for the payment of unemployment compensation benefits to eligible individuals who are unemployed through no fault of their own. Under existing law, unemployment compe…
In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
Existing law, the State Bar Act, regulates the conduct of attorneys. Existing law provides that it is the duty of an attorney to, among other things, support the Constitution and laws of the United States and this state, and to maintain inviolate the confidence, and at every peril to the attorney to preserve the sec…
In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
Existing law requires the Secretary of Government Operations to develop a coordinated plan to, among other things, investigate the feasibility of, and obstacles to, developing standards and technologies for state departments to determine digital content provenance. For the purpose of informing that coordinated plan,…
Referred to Coms. on P. & C.P. and JUD.
Existing law establishes within the Government Operations Agency the Department of Technology, which is supervised by the Director of Technology. Existing law authorizes the director and the department to exercise various powers in creating and managing the information technology policy of the state. This bill would…
From printer. May be heard in committee March 18.
Existing law establishes within the Government Operations Agency the Department of Technology, under the supervision of the Director of Technology, also known as the State Chief Information Officer. Existing law requires the director to, among other things, provide technology direction to agency and department chief…
Returned to Secretary of Senate pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
The Unruh Civil Rights Act provides that all persons within the jurisdiction of this state are free and equal, and regardless of their sex, race, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship, primary language, or immig…
From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
Existing law, generally, regulates state and local law enforcement agencies regarding subject matter that includes the selection and training of peace officers, the maintenance and release of records, the use of force, and the use of certain equipment. Previous law, until January 1, 2023, prohibited the use of real-…
From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
Existing law establishes the Department of Technology within the Government Operations Agency and requires the Director of Technology to supervise the Department of Technology and report directly to the Governor on issues relating to information technology. This bill would require the department, in coordination wit…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 800, Statutes of 2023.
This measure would express the support of the Legislature for the 23 Asilomar AI Principles as guiding values for the development of artificial intelligence and of related public policy.
Referred to Com. on JUD.
This measure would affirm the California Legislature's commitment to President Biden's vision for a safe AI and the principles outlined in the "Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights" and would express the Legislature's commitment to examining and implementing those principles in its legislation and policies related to …
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Res. Chapter 135, Statutes of 2023.
This measure would urge the United States government to impose an immediately moratorium on the training of AI systems more powerful than GPT-4 for at least 6 months to allow time to develop much-needed AI governance systems.
Referred to Com. on P. & C.P.
Existing law establishes the Government Operations Agency, which consists of several departments, including the Department of General Services. Existing law requires that the department develop and enforce policy and procedures and institute or cause the institution of those investigations and proceedings as it deem…
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Chapter 885, Statutes of 2022.
Existing law, until January 1, 2023, prohibits a law enforcement agency or law enforcement officer from installing, activating, or using any biometric surveillance system in connection with an officer camera or data collected by an officer camera. Existing law allows a person to bring an action for equitable or decl…
Ordered to inactive file.
Existing law, the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) , grants a consumer various rights with respect to personal information, as defined, that is collected or sold by a business, as defined, including the right to require a business to delete personal information about the consumer, as specified. This bi…
In committee: Held under submission.
Existing law establishes the Department of Business Oversight in the Business, Consumer Services, and Housing Agency, headed by the Commissioner of Business Oversight. Under existing law, the department has charge of the execution of specified laws relating to various financial institutions and financial services. E…
Referred to Com. on P. & C.P.
Existing law establishes within the Government Operations Agency the Department of Technology under the supervision of the Director of Technology, who also serves as the State Chief Information Officer. The department is generally responsible for the approval and oversight of information technology projects by, amon…
From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
Existing law establishes within the Government Operations Agency the Department of Technology, which is supervised by the Director of Technology, who also serves as the State Chief Information Officer. Existing law authorizes the director and the department to exercise various powers in creating and managing the inf…
Consideration of Governor's veto stricken from file.
AI systems collecting consumer data must provide opt-out rights, disclosure of data use, and non-discrimination for exercising privacy rights.
In force
Existing law states the intent of the Legislature to establish policies and procedures to address issues related to the downloading and storage of data recorded by a body-worn camera worn by a peace officer, and requires that those policies and procedures be based on best practices. Existing law requires law enforce…
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 579, Statutes of 2019.
Existing law establishes, within the Government Operations Agency, the Department of Technology under the supervision of the Director of Technology, who also serves as the State Chief Information Officer. The department is generally responsible for the approval and oversight of information technology projects by, am…
In committee: Held under submission.
Existing law establishes within the Government Operations Agency the Department of Technology, which is supervised by the Director of Technology, who also serves as the State Chief Information Officer. Existing law authorizes the director and the department to exercise various powers in creating and managing the inf…
August 14 set for first hearing canceled at the request of author.
This measure would urge the President and the Congress of the United States to develop a comprehensive Artificial Intelligence Advisory Committee and to adopt a comprehensive artificial intelligence policy.
Chaptered by Secretary of State. Res. Chapter 112, Statutes of 2019.
Seven guidance areas: confidentiality, competence and diligence, compliance with rules on communications regarding services, fees, supervision of subordinate attorneys and nonlawyers, candor to tribunal, and duty to communicate with client about AI use.
In force
Applicable laws
↗ Each law links to its primary government source. Full source list below.
Landmark AI laws in California
Dedicated pages for California's headline AI laws — status, penalty, effective date, and the official text.
Signed into law by
California AI compliance by industry
AI compliance by company size
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Quick resources for California
Industry risk levels in California
Do you also serve EU customers?
The EU AI Act applies to any company serving EU customers, even if you're based in California. Penalties reach €35M or 7% of global revenue. Deadline: August 2, 2026.
Other states with active AI laws
Anchored to the primary government source (statute, bill text, or agency rule) and verified directly against it · Last verified Jul 10, 2026. See our methodology.
- ↗leginfo.legislature.ca.govhttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=20232024…
- ↗leginfo.legislature.ca.govhttps://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=2025202…