Law / United States / Delaware
House Bill 316 (2024), use of deep fake technology to influence an election
Del. Code Ann. tit. 15, § 5145
A citation is an address, not a summary. The first part names the law; what follows narrows it to the exact section, article or paragraph.
In force.
An AI transparency rule binding public and private bodies.
As of 6 September 2026.
What it requires
- Do not distribute, or agree to distribute, a deep fake depicting a candidate or political party within 90 days of an election without the depicted individual's consent, if you know or reasonably should know the item is a deep fake.
- Include a clear, specified disclosure that the image, audio, or video has been altered or artificially generated to rely on the statute's safe harbor.
- The prohibition does not apply to bona fide news coverage, or to satire or parody.
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureYes
Private right of actionYes
Criminal exposure note
A violation is a class B misdemeanor, elevated to a class A misdemeanor if committed with intent to cause violence or bodily harm, or if committed within 5 years of a prior conviction under this section.
Who enforces it
Enforcement body
Private enforcement by a depicted candidate in the Delaware Court of Chancery; also prosecutable as a misdemeanor
What it reaches
Obligation class
Prohibition, Content labelling
What this law does
Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page.
House Bill 316 added this Title 15 provision, approved October 9, 2024. It makes it unlawful for a person to distribute, or contract to distribute, a deep fake depicting a candidate or political party within 90 days of an election, without the depicted individual's consent, if the person knows or reasonably should know the item is a deep fake.
Distribution is not a violation if the synthetic media carries a specified on-screen or spoken disclosure that it has been altered or artificially generated, or if it falls within the exceptions for a bona fide newscast, a news website or periodical that flags the media as inaccurate, or satire or parody; a further exception for a paid broadcaster meeting good-faith verification conditions was itself repealed by its own one-year sunset clause and no longer appears in the current code.
A depicted candidate may bring an expedited action for injunctive relief, damages, and attorney's fees in the Court of Chancery. A violation is a class B misdemeanor, elevated to a class A misdemeanor if committed with intent to cause violence or bodily harm, or on a repeat violation within 5 years.
When LexLint raises it
generates_content
Read the law
Delaware Code Online
current codified text of Title 15, Chapter 51, Subchapter II, sec. 5145 (enacted as House Bill 316, 84 Del. Laws, c. 487)