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A 2364

Protects valuable community services affected by the sale, mortgage and lease of real property of religious corporations

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Emily Gallagher

Creates a state Deepfake Technology Unit to detect, authenticate, and support prosecutions of deceptive media, offer expert testimony, training, and annual reports.

REFERRED TO CORPORATIONS, AUTHORITIES AND COMMISSIONS
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Bill Summary · A 2364

Summary — Assembly Bill A2364 (1R)

Note: The bill text and committee statements provided with A-2364 establish a Deepfake Technology Unit. (The title shown in the prompt about “religious corporations” appears to be inconsistent with the bill content.)

Purpose

Create a specialized state unit to help detect, analyze, and respond to deceptive audio or visual media (commonly called “deepfakes”), and to build law enforcement, prosecutorial, and judicial capacity to address deepfake‑related investigative and evidentiary issues.

Key provisions

  • Establishes the Deepfake (Deep Fake) Technology Unit within the Division of Criminal Justice, Department of Law and Public Safety.
  • Definition: “Deceptive audio or visual media” (deepfake) means a video, sound recording, electronic image, photograph, or technological representation of speech/conduct that appears to authentically depict a person who did not actually engage in that speech/conduct and whose production was substantially dependent on technical means rather than physical or verbal impersonation.
  • Unit responsibilities include:
    • Analyzing, authenticating, and developing evidence related to deceptive audio/visual media to support state and local investigations and prosecutions.
    • Providing expert testimony in court on such evidence.
    • Offering training and technical assistance to State and local law enforcement, prosecutors, and State courts.
    • Collaborating with federal agencies, private sector entities, and academic institutions to share resources and best practices.
    • Beginning one year after formation, issuing an annual report to the Governor and Legislature covering unit activity, technological developments and detection methods, legal changes, collaborations, and legislative/regulatory recommendations.
  • Administrative Director of the Administrative Office of the Courts may designate a court representative to act as liaison and training coordinator with the unit.
  • Attorney General (in consultation with the NJ Chief Technology Officer) establishes the unit and may adopt implementing guidelines; Attorney General appoints the unit manager and staffs the unit as necessary.

Fiscal impact and timeline

  • Appropriates $2,000,000 from the General Fund to the Department of Law and Public Safety to implement the bill.
  • Effective six months after enactment; Attorney General may take administrative steps earlier to implement.

Committee action & status

  • Introduced: January 9, 2024.
  • Reported with amendments by Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee (3/4/24) — committee amendments adjusted the definition of “deceptive audio or visual media” and made technical corrections.
  • Reported favorably by Assembly Judiciary Committee (5/20/24).
  • Referred to Assembly Appropriations Committee (5/20/24).
  • Later referred to Corporations, Authorities and Commissions (1/16/2025).

Who is affected / potential impact

  • Directly affects: Division of Criminal Justice staffing and operations; Department of Law and Public Safety budget; State and local law enforcement, prosecutors, and State courts (training, expert support).
  • Indirectly affects: private sector and academic partners (via collaboration); members of the public and media consumers (through improved detection, prosecution, and guidance on deepfake-related threats).
  • Broader implications: strengthened state capacity to authenticate multimedia evidence, support prosecutions involving deepfakes, and inform policy and legal responses to advances in synthetic media.

Related legislation

  • Companion: S-2545
  • Prior-session related bill: A-10232

If you want, I can prepare a short explainer on how the unit’s annual report items could influence future legislation or courtroom practice.

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

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