AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 25, 2024

AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 15, 2024

AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 21, 2024

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2023–2024 REGULAR SESSION

94

CHAPTER 316

Statutes of 2024

[ Approved by Governor September 20, 2024. Filed with Secretary of State September 20, 2024. ]

Introduced by Assembly Members Low and Jim Patterson

February 15, 2024

An act to amend Section 2874 of the Public Utilities Code, relating to telecommunications.

Vote: majority   Appropriation: no   Fiscal committee: yes   Local program: yes

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

Existing law authorizes the Public Utilities Commission to control and regulate the connection of an automatic dialing-announcing device, as defined, to a telephone line. Existing law imposes various requirements on the use of an automatic dialing-announcing device, including that whenever telephone calls are placed through the use of an automatic dialing-announcing device, the device may be operated only after an unrecorded, natural voice announcement has been made to the person called by the person calling. Existing law requires the announcement to state the nature of the call and provide specified information about the business or organization being represented, if any, and inquire as to whether the person called consents to hear the prerecorded message.

This bill would require the announcement to also inform the person called if the prerecorded message uses an artificial voice, as defined.

Under existing law, a violation of any order, decision, rule, direction, demand, or requirement of the commission is a crime.

Because a violation of a commission action implementing this bill’s requirements would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.

This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 2874 of the Public Utilities Code is amended to read:

2874.

(a) Whenever telephone calls are placed through the use of an automatic dialing-announcing device, the device may be operated only after an unrecorded, natural voice announcement has been made to the person called by the person calling. The announcement shall do all of the following:

(1) State the nature of the call and the name, address, and telephone number of the business or organization being represented, if any.

(2) Inquire as to whether the person called consents to hear the prerecorded message of the person calling.

(3) Inform the person called if the prerecorded message uses an artificial voice.

(b) The person calling, as described in subdivision (a), shall disconnect the automatic dialing-announcing device from the telephone line upon the termination of the call by either the person calling or the person called.

(c) For purposes of this section, both of the following definitions apply:

(1) “Artificial intelligence” means an engineered or machine-based system that varies in its level of autonomy and that can, for explicit or implicit objectives, infer from the input it receives how to generate outputs that can influence physical or virtual environments.

(2) “Artificial voice” means a voice that is generated or significantly altered using artificial intelligence.

SEC. 2.

No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIIIB of the California Constitution.