Senate Judiciary Committee advances NO FAKES Act on June 18

The U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary unanimously advanced S. 4591, the Nurture Originals, Foster Art, and Keep Entertainment Safe Act of 2026, known as the NO FAKES Act, by voice vote on June 18, 2026. The bipartisan measure now moves to the full Senate for consideration. A companion bill has been introduced in the House of Representatives, though the House Judiciary Committee has not yet acted on it. The legislation would create a new federal intellectual property right that allows every individual to control the use of their voice and visual likeness in digital replicas generated by artificial intelligence. It would impose liability on individuals and companies that produce or distribute unauthorized replicas. Online platforms could also face liability if they host such content with knowledge that it was not authorized. The bill includes a notice-and-takedown process modeled on the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. Individuals could demand removal of unauthorized content from platforms, with a counter-notice option that requires restoration if no lawsuit follows within 14 days. Knowingly filing a false counter-notification would carry penalties of $25,000 or actual damages plus fees, whichever is greater. The measure provides exclusions for First Amendment-protected uses, including news reporting, parody and criticism. It also exempts nonprofit libraries, archives and accredited educational institutions engaged in noncommercial research. The bill grants subpoena powers to gather evidence and would preempt future state laws on digital replicas while preserving existing state causes of action as of January 2, 2025. Some senators raised concerns during the committee process about protections for legitimate First Amendment speech and said they would continue working with sponsors on the Senate floor. No uniform federal framework currently exists for addressing unauthorized digital replicas, and individuals currently rely on varying state right-of-publicity and privacy laws.