Governor Gavin Newsom signed SB 1119, known as Adam’s Law, on Sept. 10, 2026, as the centerpiece of a 13-bill child-safety package that the Office of the Governor is calling the country’s first comprehensive regulatory framework for AI companion chatbots. The framing is political, but the operational reality lands on any California business shipping a customer-facing chat product that a minor could plausibly reach.

Under the statute, operators must conduct mandatory risk assessments before releasing a new or substantially modified companion chatbot; implement age assurance using the OS-level, privacy-protective age-bracket signal established under AB 1043; provide in-app crisis referrals; and notify a parent on a credible threat of imminent self-harm. Independent audits go to the California Attorney General, which also runs an incident-reporting channel. Families get a private right of redress on the crisis-referral, parental-notice, and default-protection provisions.

The vote count matters. SB 1119, authored by Sen. Steve Padilla with Assemblymembers Buffy Wicks and Rebecca Bauer-Kahan, cleared the Senate unanimously and the Assembly 64-4. That isn’t a partisan fight; it’s a consensus that pre-launch review is now the baseline for consumer AI touching kids.

The scaffolding was set a day earlier. On Sept. 9, Newsom signed AB 1405 and SB 813, creating a state registry of AI auditors and a framework for independent verification organizations. Enforcement guidance from the AG and audit-firm accreditation timelines are still unpublished, which leaves smaller operators guessing at cost.

More is coming. Remaining AI bills sit against a Sept. 30 sign-or-veto deadline. California has decided the deployment decision is now a compliance decision.

Sources

Sources