HOW I VOTED ON H.5094 AND H.5093

On Wednesday, February 11, 2026 – The Massachusetts House of Representatives passed bills regulating the use of artificial intelligence in political advertisements.

These bills require the disclosure of AI use in political advertisements and ban deceptive communications about a candidate or about the electoral process within three months of an election.

H.5094 - An Act Enhancing Disclosure Requirements for Synthetic Media in Political Advertising.

I voted YES on House bill H.5094 (as amended). This bill requires that any synthetic media audio or video communication intended to influence voting for or against a candidate or ballot proposition must disclose at the beginning and end of the communication that it contains AI generated materials. Violations are punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000.

An amendment was offered by Minority Leader Jones, that ensures the penalties in this bill apply to those that produced the content and not the broadcasting media (broadly defined to include mobile application and streaming services).

I voted YES.

The amendment passed by a unanimous, bipartisan vote of 156 YES, 0 NO.

H.5094, as amended passed by a unanimous, bipartisan vote of 157 YES, 0 NO.

This bill now goes to the Senate for its consideration.

H.5093 -An Act to Protect against Election Misinformation

I voted YES on House bill H.5093.

This bill prohibits the distribution of deceptive communications within 90 days of an election, which includes:

• Audio or visual media which depicts a candidate with intent to injure their reputation or deceive a voter into voting for or against them.

  
  

• Media that concerns the safety or regular operations of an election with intent to disrupt the integrity of the electoral process.

  
  

• Content with the intent to mislead voters as to the date and time of an election; the requirements, methods, or deadlines to vote; the certification of an election; and the express endorsement of a candidate or ballot initiative by a political party, elected official, nonprofit organization, or another person.

The bill authorizes a political candidate whose voice or likeness appears in a materially deceptive audio or visual media to seek injunctive or other equitable relief prohibiting the distribution of the media, or to bring an action for damages and attorney’s fees against the party that distributed the media. Exemptions for the 90-day prohibition include: media outlets who air the ads or report on the ads as part of a newscast as long as they clearly acknowledge that there are questions about its authenticity; websites, newspapers, magazines and periodicals; and satire and parody, legislation that regulates the use of artificial intelligence in political advertisements.

The bills would require the disclosure of AI use in political advertisements and would ban deceptive communications about a candidate or about the electoral process within three months of an election.

Amendment #1 – offered by Rep. Sweezey sought to change the primary election date in Massachusetts. While worthy of further discussion, this bill is intended to be implemented during this election cycle, for which the primary date has already been set.

In essence, the amendment was outside of the scope of the matter being discussed.

The Chair of the Elections Committee has offered to continue this conversation.

Accordingly, I voted NO on this amendment.

The amendment was defeated 25 YES, 131 NO.

Amendment #3 – offered by Rep. Gaskey sought to significantly amend the underlying bill, such that the intent of the bill would no longer exist. The bill had the appropriate exemptions included and is focused on misinformation/intent and not free speech.

I voted NO on this amendment.

The amendment was defeated on a bi-partisan vote of 12 YES, 145 NO.

H.5093 was passed to be engrossed by a bipartisan vote of 153 YES and 3 NO.

It now goes to the Senate for consideration.