Regulon — IL-SB-3384 · IL SB 3384 (AI Companion Model Safety Act)

2026-02-04 introduced Filed with Secretary by Sen. Laura Ellman

2026-02-04 introduced First Reading

2026-02-04 committee referral Referred to Assignments

2026-02-17 committee referral Assigned to Executive

2026-02-18 To AI and Social Media

2026-03-13 Rule 2-10 Committee Deadline Established As March 27, 2026 Rule 2-10 Committee Deadline Established As March 27, 2026

2026-03-27 Rule 2-10 Committee Deadline Established As April 24, 2026 Rule 2-10 Committee Deadline Established As April 24, 2026

2026-04-10 Added as Co-Sponsor Sen. Rachel Ventura

2026-04-24 Rule 2-10 Committee/3rd Reading Deadline Established As May 15, 2026 Rule 2-10 Committee/3rd Reading Deadline Established As May 15, 2026

2026-05-15 Rule 2-10 Committee/3rd Reading Deadline Established As May 22, 2026 Rule 2-10 Committee/3rd Reading Deadline Established As May 22, 2026

Summary

Imposes safety and disclosure obligations on operators of AI companion systems in Illinois. Operators may not operate or provide an AI companion unless it contains a protocol to detect and address suicidal ideation or self-harm expressions, including referral to crisis services such as the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Operators must unconditionally disclose to users that they are not communicating with a human at the start of every interaction and at least every three hours during continuing interactions. Enforcement is exclusively through the Attorney General, who may seek injunctive relief and civil penalties of up to $15,000 per day of violation. Penalties are deposited into the Statewide 9-8-8 Trust Fund. Effective January 1, 2027.

Enforcement & Penalties

Enforcement Authority

Attorney General enforcement only. The Attorney General may bring an action to enjoin an operator from continuing unlawful conduct and may seek civil penalties if the Attorney General believes based on satisfactory evidence that an operator has engaged in or is about to engage in conduct that violates the Act. Enforcement is agency-initiated; no private right of action is created. All moneys collected are deposited into the Statewide 9-8-8 Trust Fund.

Penalties

Civil penalties of up to $15,000 per day that a violation occurs. Injunctive relief and other remedies as the court may deem appropriate. No statutory minimum floor — the $15,000 figure is a cap, not a minimum. All moneys collected are deposited into the Statewide 9-8-8 Trust Fund.

Who Is Covered

"Operator" means any person, partnership, association, firm, or business entity, or any member, affiliate, subsidiary or beneficial owner of any partnership, association, firm, or business entity who operates for or provides an artificial intelligence companion to a user.

What Is Covered

"Artificial intelligence companion" means a system using artificial intelligence, generative artificial intelligence, or emotional recognition algorithms designed to simulate a sustained human or human-like relationship with a user by: (1) retaining information on prior interactions or user sessions and user preferences to personalize the interaction and facilitate ongoing engagement with the artificial intelligence companion; (2) asking unprompted or unsolicited emotion-based questions that go beyond a direct response to a user prompt; and (3) sustaining an ongoing dialogue concerning matters personal to the user. "Artificial intelligence companion" does not include any system that is: (1) used by a business entity solely for customer service or to provide users with information about available commercial services or products provided by the entity, customer service account information, or other information strictly related to its customer service; (2) primarily designed and marketed for providing efficiency improvements, research, or technical assistance; or (3) used by a business entity solely for internal purposes or employee productivity.

Compliance Obligations 4 obligations · click obligation ID to open requirement page

S-02 Prohibited Conduct & Output Restrictions · S-02.7 · Deployer · Chatbot

Section 10

Plain Language

Operators may not operate or provide an AI companion at all unless it has an active protocol that takes reasonable efforts to detect and address user expressions of suicidal ideation or self-harm. At minimum, the protocol must detect these expressions and then refer the user to crisis service providers such as the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, a crisis text line, or other appropriate crisis services. This is a continuous operating prerequisite — the protocol must remain in place as a condition of operation, not merely documented at launch. The statute uses a reasonableness standard ('reasonable efforts') rather than requiring perfect detection.

Statutory Text

An operator shall not operate or provide an artificial intelligence companion to a user unless the artificial intelligence companion contains a protocol to take reasonable efforts to detect and address suicidal ideation or expressions of self-harm by a user to the artificial intelligence companion. The protocol shall include, but shall not be limited to, detection of user expressions of suicidal ideation or self-harm and a notification to the user that refers them to crisis service providers, such as the 9-8-8 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, a crisis text line, or other appropriate crisis services upon detection of the user's expressions of suicidal ideation or self-harm.

S-04 AI Crisis Response Protocols · S-04.1 · Deployer · Chatbot

Section 10

Plain Language

This is the same operative provision mapped above under S-02, viewed through the crisis response protocol lens. The operator must implement and maintain a protocol that detects user expressions of suicidal ideation or self-harm and responds by referring the user to crisis service providers such as 988. Unlike CA SB 243, this obligation applies to all users — not only minors — and there is no separate annual reporting requirement for crisis referral counts. The protocol must be active as a condition of operation.

Statutory Text

T-01 AI Identity Disclosure · T-01.1 T-01.2 · Deployer · Chatbot

Section 15

Plain Language

Operators must unconditionally disclose to every user — verbally or in text — that they are not communicating with a human. This disclosure is required at two points: (1) at the beginning of every AI companion interaction, and (2) at least every three hours during continuing interactions. Unlike CA SB 243's general disclosure, which is conditional on whether a reasonable person could be misled, this Illinois provision is unconditional — the disclosure must be given to all users at all times, regardless of whether deception is likely. The three-hour periodic reminder also applies to all users, not just minors.

Statutory Text

An operator shall provide a clear and conspicuous notification to a user that states, either verbally or in text, that the user is not communicating with a human, at the following times: (1) the beginning of any artificial intelligence companion interaction; and (2) at least every 3 hours for continuing artificial intelligence companion interactions.

Other · Chatbot

Section 20

Plain Language

This provision establishes the Attorney General as the sole enforcement authority, authorizes injunctive relief and civil penalties of up to $15,000 per day, and directs all collected moneys to the Statewide 9-8-8 Trust Fund. It creates no new compliance obligation for operators beyond what Sections 10 and 15 require — it is the enforcement mechanism for those obligations.

Statutory Text

If the Attorney General believes based on satisfactory evidence that an operator has engaged in or is about to engage in conduct that violates this Act, the Attorney General may bring an action to enjoin an operator from continuing the unlawful conduct, and may seek civil penalties of up to $15,000 per day that a violation occurs and other remedies as the court may deem appropriate. All moneys collected under this Act shall be deposited into the Statewide 9-8-8 Trust Fund.