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SB 1025

Commercial Law - Voice and Visual Likeness - Digital Replication Rights (Nurture Originals, Foster Art, and Keep Entertainment Safe Act - NO FAKES Act)

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Johnny Mautz

Creates a property right to control and license a person's voice or likeness in digital replicas, lasting during life (up to 10 years) and posthumously (up to 70 years after death).

Hearing 3/11 at 1:00 p.m.
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Bill Summary · SB 1025

SB 1025 — Commercial Law: Voice and Visual Likeness — Digital Replication Rights (NO FAKES Act)

Status: Introduced January 30, 2025. Hearing scheduled 3/11 at 1:00 p.m. (Fiscal note: Department of Legislative Services, Maryland)

Purpose / Intent

Establish a statutory property right in an individual’s voice or visual likeness when used in a “digital replica” (computer‑generated, highly realistic reproductions). The bill is intended to give individuals and their successors control over creation, licensing, and postmortem use of realistic digital recreations, and to create enforcement mechanisms and administrative processes to register and renew postmortem rights.

Key definitions

  • Digital replica: a newly created, computer‑generated, highly realistic electronic representation of an individual’s voice or visual likeness embodied in a sound recording, image, audiovisual work, or transmission, where the actual individual did not perform/appear or the original performance has been materially altered. Excludes certain uses when authorized by the copyright holder (e.g., electronic reproduction of a sound recording, sampling, remixing/mastering/digital remastering).
  • Individual: a human being, living or dead.
  • Right holder: the individual whose voice/visual likeness is at issue or a person who acquired the authority to authorize use (licensee, heir, etc.).

Major provisions

  • Property right: Each individual (and, after death, specified right holders) has a property right to authorize the use of their voice or visual likeness in a digital replica.
    • Not assignable during the individual’s life; licensable (exclusive/non‑exclusive) by the right holder.
    • License duration limits: while living, licenses may not exceed 10 years; for minors, a license may not exceed 5 years and terminates at age 18. Written, signed agreements with reasonably specific intended‑use descriptions are required.
  • Postmortem rights and term:
    • On death, the right transfers to executors/heirs/devisees and may be conveyed or bequeathed as personal property.
    • Exclusivity: the right holder holds exclusive rights for 10 years after death, with possible 5‑year renewals if the right holder demonstrates authorized public use during the 2‑year period prior to renewal.
    • Renewal cycles may continue in additional 5‑year increments under the same demonstration requirement.
    • Rights terminate on the earlier of (a) failure to renew at the applicable expiration, or (b) 70 years after death.
  • Secretary of State (SOS) duties:
    • Maintain an up‑to‑date public online directory of registered postmortem digital replication rights and designated agents.
    • Accept renewal notices filed during the two‑year renewal window and may collect a reasonable filing fee based on directory maintenance costs.
  • Online services:
    • Required to designate an agent to receive notifications alleging violations (notice-and-notice/takedown administrative mechanism referenced).
    • May be permitted to restore removed material in certain circumstances (details in bill text).
  • Liability and enforcement:
    • Civil liability for producing, publishing, distributing, displaying, transmitting, or otherwise making a digital replica available without consent of the applicable right holder.
    • The bill contains specified exceptions and limitations (e.g., authorized copyright uses, collective bargaining agreements) and a severability clause.
  • Nonretroactivity:
    • The statutory right applies regardless of whether an individual died before or after the bill’s effective date, but the bill does not create liability for conduct or licenses executed before its effective date.

Who is affected

  • Individuals (living and deceased) and their heirs/executors (gain or preserve control over digital replicas).
  • Creators, studios, musicians, and technology businesses producing or distributing digital replicas.
  • Online platforms and digital music providers (must designate agents and maintain procedures).
  • Small businesses in digital media/AI may face meaningful compliance costs and potential liability exposure.
  • Secretary of State: minimal administrative duties and costs to create/maintain directories (general fund impact likely small).

Fiscal and procedural notes

  • Fiscal note: SOS will incur minimal increases in general fund revenues/expenditures to create and maintain the directories; filing fees may offset costs. No material impact on State/local operations otherwise. Small businesses may be meaningfully affected by compliance and licensing costs.
  • Procedural: bill establishes registration/renewal timelines (two‑year renewal windows) and license duration limits. The right’s postmortem renewal relies on demonstrated authorized public use in the two years before each renewal.

For full statutory language, liability details, and exceptions, review the bill text (Subtitle 17, Article — proposed sections 11‑1701 through 11‑1707).

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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