SB20

Regular Session

Relating to the creation of the criminal offense of possession, promotion, or production of certain obscene visual material appearing to depict a child.

CriticalImmediate action required

Medium Cost

Effective:2025-09-01

Enforcing Agencies

Texas Department of Public Safety • Local Law Enforcement Agencies • County and District Attorneys

Compliance Analysis

Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation

Implementation Timeline

Effective Date: September 1, 2025
Compliance Deadline: September 1, 2025 (There is no grace period. Possession is a continuous offense; material residing on servers after this date constitutes a felony.)
Agency Rulemaking: No administrative rulemaking is required. Enforcement relies on prosecutorial discretion by District Attorneys and the Attorney General, meaning definitions will be established through criminal indictments rather than regulatory guidance.

Immediate Action Plan

1. Audit Data Lakes Immediately: Scan all hosted user content and AI training datasets for material that could be classified as synthetic CSAM or prohibited training data.
2. Upgrade Moderation Tech: Transition from simple hash-matching (which catches known files) to predictive AI classifiers capable of flagging new, AI-generated images.
3. Purge Legacy Data: Ensure all "soft-deleted" content is permanently wiped from backups before September 1, 2025.
4. Segregate Duties: restrict access to raw training data to authorized personnel only to limit corporate exposure.
5. Issue Legal Holds: If suspicious material is found, preserve the audit trail of its deletion to prove compliance, then destroy the material.

Operational Changes Required

Contracts

Terms of Service (ToS) & AUP: You must amend user agreements to explicitly prohibit "synthetic, AI-generated, or animated depictions of minors in a sexual context."
Data Vendor Agreements: Insert strict indemnification clauses requiring data vendors to warrant that training datasets have been scrubbed of images of minors used for prohibited training purposes.
Insurance Policies: Review Directors & Officers (D&O) and Cyber Liability policies. Most contain "criminal conduct" exclusions; verify if defense costs are covered for executives charged under this statute.

Hiring/Training

Trust & Safety Teams: Staff reviewing flagged content require specific legal authorization and updated psychological support resources, as they are now handling material classified as a felony.
Developer Training: Engineering teams must be trained on the new criminal liability associated with "scraping" datasets that may inadvertently contain child images used for model training.

Reporting & Record-Keeping

Data Provenance Logs: Maintain immutable logs detailing the source of AI training data and the filtration methods applied *before* ingestion to establish a defense against "knowing" violations.
Deletion Certificates: Implement "hard delete" protocols. Removing content from a UI while retaining it on a backup server constitutes "possession." You must document the permanent destruction of non-compliant data.

Fees & Costs

Legal & Technical Audits: Budget for immediate legal review of datasets and technical costs to upgrade moderation tools (e.g., moving from hash-matching to AI-based visual classifiers).
Potential Penalties: Fines up to $10,000 per offense, plus legal defense costs which are likely uninsurable.

Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations

"Appears to be...": The statute applies to material where the depiction "appears to be" a minor. This is a subjective standard. A stylized cartoon or hyper-realistic AI generation may be viewed differently by a prosecutor than by a developer.
"Intent to Train": The law criminalizes using child images with the "intent" to train AI to create prohibited content. It is unclear if possessing a massive, uncurated dataset (like Common Crawl) that *happens* to contain such images constitutes "intent" through negligence.
Defining "Obscene" for AI: The definition relies on community standards (the *Miller* test). Texas courts have not yet established how these standards apply to purely synthetic, non-human entities.

Need Help Understanding Implementation?

Our government affairs experts can walk you through this bill's specific impact on your operations.

Schedule Consultation

Information presented is for general knowledge only and is provided without warranty, express or implied. Consult qualified government affairs professionals and legal counsel before making compliance decisions.

Legislative Timeline

This bill's path through the Texas Legislature

TopicsArtificial Intelligence Criminal Procedure Criminal Procedure--general Minors Minors--crimes Against Child Abuse Pornography Videotape & Film

Official Analysis

View HRO Analysis View All Bill Documents

BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 20
89R5262 JRR-F	By: Flores et al.
	Criminal Justice
	2/27/2025
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

S.B. 20 creates a new criminal offense related to obscene visual material. This bill reflects an effort to address the challenges posed by modern technology in the creation and distribution of harmful visual content, particularly concerning the protection of minors.

S.B. 20 creates a new criminal offense for the possession or promotion of obscene visual material that appears to depict a child. This bill specifically targets visual depictions of minors in obscene activities, regardless of whether the depiction is of an actual child, a cartoon or animation, or an image created using artificial intelligence or other computer software.

Key Provisions

Creation of Offense: This bill adds Section 43.235 to the Penal Code, which makes it an offense to knowingly possess, access with intent to view, or promote obscene visual material that appears to depict a child under 18 years of age engaging in certain activities.

Penalties: The offense is classified as a state jail felony. However, it can be elevated to a third-degree felony if the person has a prior conviction under this section or related sections (43.23, 43.26, 43.261, or 43.262). It can further escalate to a second-degree felony if there are two or more prior convictions.

Prosecution Options: If the conduct also constitutes an offense under another law, the actor may be prosecuted under either this section or the other law, but not both.

Sections of Code Affected

�Penal Code: This bill amends Subchapter B, Chapter 43, by adding Section 43.235.

�Section 71.02(a): This bill also amends this section of the Penal Code, which deals with engaging in organized criminal activity (RICO) by deleting two duplicative provisions.

As proposed, S.B. 20 amends current law relating to the creation of the criminal offense of possession or promotion of obscene visual material appearing to depict a child.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 43, Penal Code, by adding Section 43.235, as follows:

Sec. 43.235.� POSSESSION OR PROMOTION OF OBSCENE VISUAL MATERIAL APPEARING TO DEPICT CHILD.� (a)� Defines "promote" and "visual material."

(b) Provides that a person commits an offense if the person knowingly possesses, accesses with intent to view, or promotes obscene visual material containing a depiction that appears to be of a child younger than 18 years of age engaging in activities described by Section 43.21(a)(1)(B) (relating to defining "obscene" to mean material or a performance that depicts or describes certain sexual acts), regardless of whether the depiction is an image of an actual child, a cartoon or animation, or an image created using an artificial intelligence application or other computer software.

(c)� Provides that an offense under this section is a state jail felony, except that the offense is a felony of the third degree if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the person has been previously convicted one time of an offense under certain provisions or a felony of the second degree if it is shown on the trial of the offense that the person has been previously convicted two or more times of an offense under certain provisions.

(d) Authorizes the actor, if conduct constituting an offense under this section also constitutes an offense under another law, to be prosecuted under this section or the other law, but not both.

SECTION 2. Reenacts Section 71.02(a), Penal Code, as amended by Chapters 269 (S.B. 224), 369 (H.B. 1442), 462 (S.B. 1900), 885 (H.B. 4635), and 910 (H.B. 6), Acts of the 88th Legislature, Regular Session, 2023, and amends it as follows:

(a)� Provides that a person commits an offense if, with the intent to establish, maintain, or participate in a combination or in the profits of a combination or as a member of a criminal street gang or foreign terrorist organization, the person commits or conspires to commit certain offenses, including any offense under Section 43.235. Deletes existing text providing that a person commits an offense if, with the intent to establish, maintain, or participate in a combination or in the profits of a combination or as a member of a criminal street gang or foreign terrorist organization, the person commits or conspires to commit any unlawful possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance or dangerous drug or unlawful possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance listed in Penalty Group 1-B under Section 481.1022 (Penalty Group 1-B), Health and Safety Code. Makes nonsubstantive changes.

SECTION 3. Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 4. Effective date: September 1, 2025.

Senate Authors

Sen. Peter FloresRepublican · Primary Author

Joint Authors

Coauthors (11)

House Sponsors

Rep. Phil KingRepublican · Primary Sponsor

Joint Sponsors

Giovanni Capriglione (R)

Bill Text(with markup)

S.B. No. 20

View bill text in multiple formats on Texas Legislature website

Fiscal NoteView Original

	AN ACT
	relating to the creation of the criminal offense of possession,
	promotion, or production of certain obscene visual material
	appearing to depict a child.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 43, Penal Code, is amended
	by adding Section 43.235 to read as follows:
	Sec. 43.235. POSSESSION, PROMOTION, OR PRODUCTION OF
	CERTAIN VISUAL MATERIAL APPEARING TO DEPICT CHILD. (a) In this
	section:
	(1) "Promote" has the meaning assigned by Section
	43.25.
	(2) "Visual material" has the meaning assigned by
	Section 43.26.
	(b) A person commits an offense if the person:
	(1) knowingly possesses, accesses with intent to view,
	or promotes obscene visual material containing a depiction that
	appears to be of a child younger than 18 years of age engaging in
	activities described by Section 43.21(a)(1)(B), regardless of
	whether the depiction is an image of an actual child, a cartoon or
	animation, or an image created using an artificial intelligence
	application or other computer software; or
	(2) uses an image of an actual child younger than 18
	years of age at the time the image was made with the intent to train
	an artificial intelligence model to produce visual material
	constituting child pornography under Section 43.26.
	(c) An offense under this section is a state jail felony,
	except that the offense is:
	(1) a felony of the third degree if it is shown on the
	trial of the offense that the person has been previously convicted
	one time of an offense under this section or Section 43.23, 43.26,
	43.261, or 43.262; or
	(2) a felony of the second degree if it is shown on the
	trial of the offense that the person has been previously convicted
	two or more times of an offense under this section, Section 43.23,
	43.26, 43.261, or 43.262, or any combination of those offenses.
	(d) If conduct constituting an offense under this section
	also constitutes an offense under another law, the actor may be
	prosecuted under this section, the other law, or both.
	SECTION 2. Section 3.03(b), Penal Code, is amended to read
	as follows:
	(b) If the accused is found guilty of more than one offense
	arising out of the same criminal episode, the sentences may run
	concurrently or consecutively if each sentence is for a conviction
	of:
	(1) an offense:
	(A) under Section 49.07 or 49.08, regardless of
	whether the accused is convicted of violations of the same section
	more than once or is convicted of violations of both sections; or
	(B) for which a plea agreement was reached in a
	case in which the accused was charged with more than one offense
	listed in Paragraph (A), regardless of whether the accused is
	charged with violations of the same section more than once or is
	charged with violations of both sections;
	(2) an offense:
	(A) under Section 33.021 or an offense under
	Section 21.02, 21.11, 22.011, 22.021, 25.02, or 43.25 committed
	against a victim younger than 17 years of age at the time of the
	commission of the offense regardless of whether the accused is
	convicted of violations of the same section more than once or is
	convicted of violations of more than one section; or
	(B) for which a plea agreement was reached in a
	case in which the accused was charged with more than one offense
	listed in Paragraph (A) committed against a victim younger than 17
	years of age at the time of the commission of the offense regardless
	of whether the accused is charged with violations of the same
	section more than once or is charged with violations of more than
	one section;
	(3) an offense:
	(A) under Section 21.15 or 43.26, regardless of
	whether the accused is convicted of violations of the same section
	more than once or is convicted of violations of both sections; or
	(B) for which a plea agreement was reached in a
	case in which the accused was charged with more than one offense
	listed in Paragraph (A), regardless of whether the accused is
	charged with violations of the same section more than once or is
	charged with violations of both sections;
	(4) an offense for which the judgment in the case
	contains an affirmative finding under Article 42.0197, Code of
	Criminal Procedure;
	(5) an offense:
	(A) under Section 20A.02, 20A.03, or 43.05,
	regardless of whether the accused is convicted of violations of the
	same section more than once or is convicted of violations of more
	than one section; or
	(B) for which a plea agreement was reached in a
	case in which the accused was charged with more than one offense
	listed in Paragraph (A), regardless of whether the accused is
	charged with violations of the same section more than once or is
	charged with violations of more than one section;
	(6) an offense:
	(A) under Section 22.04(a)(1) or (2) or Section
	22.04(a-1)(1) or (2) that is punishable as a felony of the first
	degree, regardless of whether the accused is convicted of
	violations of the same section more than once or is convicted of
	violations of more than one section; or
	(B) for which a plea agreement was reached in a
	case in which the accused was charged with more than one offense
	listed in Paragraph (A) and punishable as described by that
	paragraph, regardless of whether the accused is charged with
	violations of the same section more than once or is charged with
	violations of more than one section; [or]
	(7) an offense under Section 43.235 or an offense for
	which a plea agreement was reached in a case in which the accused
	was charged with more than one offense under Section 43.235; or
	(8) any combination of offenses listed in Subdivisions
	(1)-(7) [~~(1)-(6)~~].
	SECTION 3. Section 71.02(a), Penal Code, as amended by
	Chapters 269 (S.B. 224), 369 (H.B. 1442), 462 (S.B. 1900), 885 (H.B.
	4635), and 910 (H.B. 6), Acts of the 88th Legislature, Regular
	Session, 2023, is reenacted and amended to read as follows:
	(a) A person commits an offense if, with the intent to
	establish, maintain, or participate in a combination or in the
	profits of a combination or as a member of a criminal street gang or
	foreign terrorist organization, the person commits or conspires to
	commit one or more of the following:
	(1) murder, capital murder, arson, aggravated
	robbery, robbery, burglary, theft, aggravated kidnapping,
	kidnapping, aggravated assault, aggravated sexual assault, sexual
	assault, continuous sexual abuse of young child or disabled
	individual, solicitation of a minor, forgery, deadly conduct,
	assault punishable as a Class A misdemeanor, burglary of a motor
	vehicle, or unauthorized use of a motor vehicle;
	(2) any gambling offense punishable as a Class A
	misdemeanor;
	(3) promotion of prostitution, aggravated promotion
	of prostitution, or compelling prostitution;
	(4) unlawful manufacture, transportation, repair, or
	sale of firearms or prohibited weapons;
	(5) unlawful manufacture, delivery, dispensation, or
	distribution of a controlled substance or dangerous drug, or
	unlawful possession of a controlled substance or dangerous drug:
	(A) through forgery, fraud, misrepresentation,
	or deception; or
	(B) with the intent to deliver the controlled
	substance or dangerous drug;
	(5-a) causing the unlawful delivery, dispensation, or
	distribution of a controlled substance or dangerous drug in
	violation of Subtitle B, Title 3, Occupations Code;
	[~~(5-b)~~ ~~any unlawful possession with intent to deliver~~
	~~a controlled substance or dangerous drug;~~
	[~~(5-b)~~ ~~unlawful possession with intent to deliver a~~
	~~controlled substance listed in Penalty Group 1-B under Section~~
	~~481.1022, Health and Safety Code;~~]
	(6) any unlawful wholesale promotion or possession of
	any obscene material or obscene device with the intent to wholesale
	promote the same;
	(7) any offense under Subchapter B, Chapter 43,
	depicting or involving conduct by or directed toward a child
	younger than 18 years of age;
	(8) any felony offense under Chapter 32;
	(9) any offense under Chapter 36;
	(10) any offense under Chapter 34, 35, or 35A;
	(11) any offense under Section 37.11(a);
	(12) any offense under Chapter 20A;
	(13) any offense under Section 37.10;
	(14) any offense under Section 38.06, 38.07, 38.09, or
	38.11;
	(15) any offense under Section 42.10;
	(16) any offense under Section 43.235;
	(17) any offense under Section 46.06(a)(1) or 46.14;
	(18) [~~(17)~~] any offense under Section 20.05, 20.06, or
	20.07;
	(19) [~~(18)~~] any offense under Section 16.02;
	(20) [~~(19)~~] any offense punishable under Section
	42.03(d) or (e);
	(21) [~~(19)~~] an offense under Section 28.03 that is
	punishable under Subsection (b)(4)(E) of that section;
	(22) [~~(20)~~] an offense under Section 31.21 that is
	punishable under Subsection (d) of that section; [or]
	(23) [~~(20)~~] any offense classified as a felony under
	the Tax Code; or
	(24) [~~(21)~~] any offense under Section 545.420,
	Transportation Code.
	SECTION 4. The change in law made by this Act applies only
	to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
	An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
	governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was committed,
	and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For
	purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the
	effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurred
	before that date.
	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


March 3, 2025

TO:	Honorable Pete Flores, Chair, Senate Committee on Criminal Justice

FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	SB20 by Flores (Relating to the creation of the criminal offense of possession or promotion of obscene visual material appearing to depict a child.), As Introduced

Creating a new criminal offense may result in additional demands upon state and local correctional resources due to a possible increase in the number of individuals placed under supervision in the community or sentenced to a term of confinement. The fiscal implications of the bill cannot be determined due to a lack of data to estimate the prevalence of conduct outlined in the bill's provisions that would be subject to criminal penalties.

The bill would create the state jail felony offense of possessing, accessing, or promoting obscene visual material containing a depiction of a child who appears to be younger than 18 years of age, regardless of whether the image is an actual child or created using artificial intelligence. The penalty would be increased to a third degree felony in the case of a previous conviction of the offense or certain obscenity offenses, and be increased to a second degree felony in the case of two or more certain previous convictions. The bill would also add the new offense to the list of offenses involved in engaging in organized criminal activity.

The Office of Court Administration and the Comptroller of Public Accounts both indicate that the fiscal impact cannot be determined.

The impact on state correctional populations or on the demand for state correctional resources cannot be determined due to a lack of data to estimate the prevalence of the conduct outlined in the bill's provisions that would be subject to criminal penalties.

Local Government Impact

While the fiscal impact to units of local government cannot be determined, creating a new criminal offense may result in additional demands upon local correctional resources due to a possible increase in the number of individuals placed under supervision in the community or sentenced to a term of confinement.

Source Agencies:

212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 304 Comptroller of Public Accounts

LBB Staff:

JMc, MGol, AMr

Related Legislation

Explore more bills from this author and on related topics

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about SB20

What does Texas SB20 do?

SB20 fundamentally expands Texas penal code to classify AI-generated, animated, or synthetic obscene material depicting minors as a State Jail Felony, effective September 1, 2025. This legislation creates immediate criminal liability for AI developers, cloud hosts, and platforms that possess such data or use images of actual children to train generative AI models, regardless of when the data was originally acquired. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: September 1, 2025 Compliance Deadline: September 1, 2025 (There is no grace period.

Who authored SB20?

SB20 was authored by Texas Senator Peter Flores during the Regular Session.

When was SB20 signed into law?

SB20 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on June 20, 2025.

Which agencies enforce SB20?

SB20 is enforced by Texas Department of Public Safety, Local Law Enforcement Agencies and County and District Attorneys.

How urgent is compliance with SB20?

The compliance urgency for SB20 is rated as "critical". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.

What is the cost impact of SB20?

The cost impact of SB20 is estimated as "medium". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.

What topics does SB20 address?

SB20 addresses topics including artificial intelligence, criminal procedure, criminal procedure--general, minors and minors--crimes against.

Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025

Need Strategic Guidance on This Bill?

Need help with Government Relations, Lobbying, or compliance? JD Key Consulting has the expertise you're looking for.