Palmetto State News

Attorney General Alan Wilson leads endorsement of the Child Exploitation and Artificial Intelligence Expert Commission Act of 2024

Jun 11, 2024

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – Attorney General Alan Wilson today led a bipartisan coalition of 44 state and territory attorneys general in a letter by the National Association of Attorneys General (NAAG) to Rep. Nick Langworthy (R-NY) and U.S. House leadership endorsing the Child Exploitation and Artificial Intelligence Expert Commission Act of 2024. The Act was sponsored by Rep. Langworthy (R-NY) and co-sponsored by a bipartisan 16-member coalition.

“This is a situation where our laws have not kept up with technology,” Attorney General Wilson said. “Someone can use artificial intelligence to create child sexual abuse material of a child that doesn’t really exist, or by taking innocent photos of a real child off social media and using AI to put that child’s face on sexual abuse material.”

The Act would establish a commission to “investigate and make recommendations on solutions to improve the ability of law enforcement agencies to prevent, detect, and prosecute child exploitation crimes committed using artificial intelligence.”

In the letter, the attorneys general note that while AI can be a useful tool for changing the world for the better, it also carries risks. “A knife or hammer is a useful tool in the right hands. But in the wrong hands, it's a dangerous weapon. It's the same with AI,” the attorneys general wrote in the letter. “We are hopeful the creation and work of this commission will result in appropriate safety measures and updates to existing laws so we can protect children from being digitally exploited and hold criminals accountable.”

The Child Exploitation and Artificial Intelligence Expert Commission Act of 2024 was sponsored following a September 2023 letter coordinated by NAAG that was signed by 54 state attorneys general.

The South Carolina-led letter is co-sponsored in a bipartisan effort by Mississippi, North Carolina, and Oregon. They are also joined by Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Guam, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Dakota Tennessee U.S Virgin Islands Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Wyoming.

The full letter is located on the Association’s website here.