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Law / United States / Tennessee

AI-generated child sexual abuse material, tool possession and distribution offense

Tenn. Code Ann. Title 39, Ch. 17, Part 10 (Pub. Ch. 257, 2025)

In force since .

An AI prohibited practices rule binding public and private bodies.

Obligation class
Prohibition
Audit expectation
none
Setting the rule reaches
General

What it requires

  • Do not knowingly possess, distribute, or produce technology, software, or digital tools designed for the purpose of creating AI-generated or other material depicting a minor engaged in sexual activity or simulated sexual activity that is patently offensive.

These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text.

In the frameworks

NIST AI RMF
  • MAP 3.3Targeted application scope is specified and documented based on the system’s capability, established context, and AI system categorization.
NIST AI 600-1
MIT mitigations Draft
  • 1.5Safety Decision Frameworks
  • 3.3Access Management
FINOS AIGF
ETSI EN 304 223
  • 5.1.2-1Business need and security risks written down and assessed before deciding to build an AI system.
  • 5.1.4-5End-users told which uses of the system are prohibited.

Our reading of where this law's duties sit in each framework. It never says that running a control meets the law. How we read a framework against the law

Identifiers refer to ETSI EN 304 223 V2.1.1 (2025-12), © ETSI 2025, all rights reserved. ETSI owns the standard; no ETSI text (titles or sentences) is reproduced here. The standard is free to download from ETSI.

If you get it wrong

Criminal exposureYes

Criminal exposure note

Possession is a Class E felony (1 to 6 years, fine up to $3,000), distribution a Class C felony (2 to 12 years, fine up to $5,000), and production a Class B felony (3 to 15 years, fine up to $10,000).

Penalty structure

The Public Chapter itself states only the felony class for each tier; the fine ranges (possession up to $3,000, distribution up to $5,000, production up to $10,000) are stated in the General Assembly's own bill summary for SB 741.

Rule
Fixed only
As of
Currency
USD
Fixed cap
10,000

What it makes you log

Logging duty

The offense and the list of factors a court considers in deciding whether technology was designed to create the prohibited material are both read in full. Neither states a duty on any regulated party to create, keep, or produce a record; the factor list (statements, existing material, instructions, advertising, legitimate uses, expert testimony) is evidence a court may weigh at trial, not a record-keeping duty the statute imposes.

Kind
None
As of

What this law does

Drafted with AI

Drafted with AI from the cited sources under the direction of UnGovr staff. UnGovr holds editorial responsibility for this page. How this site is made

Research summary

Legal information, not legal advice. This is LexLint's own research summary of a public legal source, and it creates no attorney-client relationship. For decisions that matter, consult qualified counsel in the relevant jurisdiction. About LexLint

Adds a new section to Title 39, Chapter 17, Part 10 (Sexual Offenses) making it an offense for a person to knowingly possess, distribute, or produce technology, software, or digital tools designed for the purpose of creating material that includes a minor engaged in sexual activity or simulated sexual activity that is patently offensive, reaching an AI image-generation tool purpose-built for that use.

Possession is a Class E felony, distribution a Class C felony, and production a Class B felony; a court weighs factors including the defendant's own statements, advertising, and instructional materials in deciding whether a tool was so designed. The enacting Public Chapter leaves the new provision's codified section number to be assigned by the Tennessee Code Commission.

When LexLint raises it

When your app profile says your app generates images with AI or generates video with AI.

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