Montana legislation · 2025 Regular Session
Montana HB514: Criminalize use of real and digitally fabricated sexually explicit images
Status: Signed into law, May 19, 2025
What the bill says
An act generally revising laws related to violating privacy in communications; expanding offenses to include obtaining money or valuables from a person; adding the act of possessing and threatening to disclose real or digitally fabricated media as a violation; providing penalties; defining digitally fabricated; and amending section 45-8-213, mca.
From the engrossed text:
AN ACT GENERALLY REVISING LAWS RELATED TO VIOLATING PRIVACY IN COMMUNICATIONS; EXPANDING OFFENSES TO INCLUDE OBTAINING MONEY OR VALUABLES FROM A PERSON; ADDING THE ACT OF POSSESSING AND THREATENING TO DISCLOSE REAL OR DIGITALLY FABRICATED MEDIA AS A VIOLATION; PROVIDING PENALTIES; DEFINING DIGITALLY FABRICATED; AND AMENDING SECTION 45-8-213, MCA. Section 1. Section 45-8-213, MCA, is amended to read: "45-8-213. Privacy in communications. (1) Except as provided in 69-6-104, a person commits the offense of violating privacy in communications if the person knowingly or purposely: (a) with the purpose to terrify, intimidate, threaten, harass, or injure, communicates with a person by electronic communication and threatens to inflict injury or physical harm to the person or property of the person or makes repeated use of obscene, lewd, or profane language or repeated lewd or lascivious suggestions; (b) uses an electronic communication to attempt to extort money or any other thing of value from a person or to disturb by repeated communications the peace, quiet, or right of privacy of a person at the place where the communications are received; (c) records or causes to be recorded a conversation by use of a hidden electronic or mechanical device that reproduces a human conversation without the knowledge of all parties to the conversation; or (d) with the purpose to terrify, intimidate, threaten, harass, or …
Sponsors
- Cohenour, Jill (D, 83) · primary sponsor
- Ricci, Vince (R, 27)
Latest actions
- : Chapter Number Assigned
- : (H) Signed by Governor
- : (H) Transmitted to Governor
- : (S) Signed by President
- : (H) Signed by Speaker
- : (H) Returned from Enrolling
- : (H) Sent to Enrolling
- : (S) 3rd Reading
- : (S) Scheduled for 3rd Reading
- : (S) Committee Report
Votes
- Do Concur (April 22, 2025): 50 yea, 0 nay, passed
- Do Concur (April 16, 2025): 49 yea, 0 nay, passed
- Do Pass (March 4, 2025): 99 yea, 0 nay, passed
- Do Pass (March 3, 2025): 97 yea, 0 nay, passed
Subjects: Crimes, Information Technology
Common questions
- What is HB514?
- HB514 is a bill in the Montana Legislature (2025 Regular Session): Criminalize use of real and digitally fabricated sexually explicit images.
- What does HB514 do?
- In its own words: An act generally revising laws related to violating privacy in communications; expanding offenses to include obtaining money or valuables from a person; adding the act of possessing and threatening to disclose real or digitally fabricated media as a violation; providing penalties; defining digitally fabricated; and amending section 45-8-213, mca.
- What is the status of HB514?
- Signed into law as of May 19, 2025. Latest action: Chapter Number Assigned (May 19, 2025).
- Who sponsored HB514?
- Cohenour, Jill (D, 83), with 1 co-sponsor.
- Where is the official record for HB514?
- On the Montana Legislature website: https://bills.legmt.gov/#/laws/bill/2/LC3972
Source: official Montana record. Tracked by Delilah, AI for legislation across all 50 states and Congress.