Iowa House Republican Introduces Bill to Protect Kids from Chatbots Plying Sexual Content
The bill would ban deceptive AI personas and allow parental supervision of AI.
WASHINGTON, July 21, 2026 – Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, introduced a bill that protects children and teenagers from sexually explicit content generated by AI.
The representative introduced the Conversational AI Services Act on July 17 to implement protections for children while using AI. The bill will require AI to direct users expressing severe mental health issues to crisis hotlines and ban deceptive AI personas by prohibiting the technology from simulating romantic relationships, acting as a medical or mental health professional and claiming sentience.
The bill will also require AI operators to provide parental supervision tools for a minor’s account settings and screen time. It will also require strong guardrails against the generation of sexually explicit content for minors and ban gamification features that are designed to increase screen time.
“As a physician and former Director of the Iowa Department of Public Health, I am deeply concerned about the toll the digital world is taking on our youth’s mental health. We cannot allow the mistakes of the social media era to be repeated with Artificial Intelligence.” Miller-Meeks explained in a July 13 release.
The bill is modeled directly after Iowa’s SF 2417, a bill that established guidelines for AI chatbots and implemented extra protections for minors. The bill was signed into law by Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) earlier this year.
In the release, Reynolds said, “Iowa is leading the way in responsible AI legislation, first at the state and now at the federal level … Congress should pass Representative Miller-Meeks’ bill without delay to ensure no child in our nation is left unsafe.”
Miller-Meeks stated she is proud to introduce legislation that allows kids to safely interact with AI. She noted the leadership of Iowa’s governor has proven that a balance can be struck between keeping kids safe while also supporting the innovation of AI.
