The Alabama Child Protection Act of 2024 is a comprehensive bill that updates the Code of Alabama 1975 to enhance protections against child sexual abuse material. It revises legal definitions, such as increasing the age of a child from under 17 to under 18 years old in the context of sexual abuse material, and introduces the term "child sexual abuse material" to replace "obscene." The bill also modifies terms like "disseminate" and "display publicly," and makes it a Class B felony to knowingly engage in activities related to the dissemination or possession with intent to disseminate such material. Additionally, the bill provides for the forfeiture of items used in the production or distribution of child sexual abuse material and establishes civil liability for offenders, including the possibility of punitive damages.

Furthermore, HB168 mandates the State Board of Education to require local school boards to develop policies addressing the distribution and production of private images and child sexual abuse material by the 2024-2025 school year. These policies must also prohibit the generation of explicit images using artificial intelligence. The bill repeals Section 13A-12-195, which dealt with the commercial exploitation of obscene material, and is exempt from additional funding requirements as it pertains to criminal law. The act is scheduled to take effect on October 1, 2024, and has been passed by the Senate as of April 11, 2024.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 13A-6-240, 13A-12-190, 13A-12-191, 13A-12-192, 13A-12-193, 13A-12-194, 13A-12-196, 13A-12-197, 13A-12-198
Engrossed: 13A-6-240, 13A-12-190, 13A-12-191, 13A-12-192, 13A-12-193, 13A-12-194, 13A-12-196, 13A-12-197, 13A-12-198
Enrolled: 13A-6-240, 13A-12-190, 13A-12-191, 13A-12-192, 13A-12-193, 13A-12-194, 13A-12-196, 13A-12-197, 13A-12-198