CA SB 867
California Senate Bill 867 - Toys: Companion Chatbots
Prohibits manufacturing, selling, exchanging, possessing with intent to sell, or offering for sale or exchange to a retailer any toy that includes a companion chatbot, where a toy is a physical product designed, marketed or manufactured for use in play by children under 16 years of age. Adds Business and Professions Code section 22604.5, which is repealed on January 1, 2031.
Jurisdiction
California
Enacted
Sep 10, 2026
Effective
Jan 1, 2027
Enforcement
Private right of action under Business and Professions Code section 22605; no agency enforcement mechanism is specified in the act
Approved by Governor Newsom on September 10, 2026 and chaptered the same day as Chapter 189, Statutes of 2026. Adds Section 22604.5 to the Business and Professions Code. Introduced January 5, 2026 by Senator Padilla; passed the Senate 39-0 on May 28, 2026; reported out of Assembly Appropriations 11-0 on August 13, 2026, amended on the Assembly floor on August 27, 2026, and passed the Assembly on August 31, 2026, with Senate concurrence in the Assembly amendments 39-0 the same day. Enrolled and presented to the Governor on September 9, 2026. No urgency clause, so the prohibition takes effect January 1, 2027 under Article IV, Section 8(c) of the California Constitution and remains in effect only until January 1, 2031, on which date the section is repealed.
California Legislative Information: SB 867, Chapter 189, Statutes of 2026 (chaptered text)Why It Matters
First US state statute to prohibit outright a category of consumer product because it embeds a companion chatbot, rather than regulating the conduct of the chatbot. Notable for the under-16 age line, which is higher than the under-13 threshold common in US child privacy law, and for a fixed four-year sunset that returns the question to the Legislature in 2031.
Recent Developments
Signed September 10, 2026 as Chapter 189, Statutes of 2026. The enacted text differs from the version described when the bill was announced: the prohibition covers toys designed, marketed or manufactured for use in play by children under 16 years of age rather than under 12, and no task force is established by the act. The statute is a standalone prohibition that sunsets by its own terms on January 1, 2031, giving a four-year moratorium from its January 1, 2027 effective date.
At a Glance
Applies to
Harms addressed
Requires
Who Must Comply
- Toy manufacturers supplying the California market
- Toy retailers and distributors selling or offering toys in California
- Physical products designed, marketed or manufactured for use in play by children under 16 years of age that include a companion chatbot
Obligations fall on:
Applicability thresholds:
Safety Provisions
- Prohibits manufacture, sale, exchange, possession with intent to sell or exchange, and offering for sale or exchange to a retailer of any toy that includes a companion chatbot
- Defines toy as a physical product designed, marketed or manufactured for use in play by children under 16 years of age
- Sunsets automatically on January 1, 2031, creating a fixed-term moratorium rather than a permanent ban
Compliance & Enforcement
Key Dates
Jan 1, 2027
Prohibition on manufacturing, selling or offering toys that include a companion chatbot takes effect
Jan 1, 2031
Business and Professions Code section 22604.5 is repealed by its own terms, ending the prohibition
Penalties
$1K/violation
Private Right of Action
Individuals can sue directly without waiting for regulatory action.
View on map
California
Focus Areas
Cite This
APA
California. (2026). California Senate Bill 867 - Toys: Companion Chatbots.
Related Regulations
CA AB 2
Requires a social media platform with more than $100 million in annual gross revenues to exercise ordinary care or skill in its interactions with minors, and makes it liable in damages for injury to a child caused by a failure to do so. Provides statutory damages of $5,000 per violation capped at $1 million per child, or treble actual damages, whichever is greater, and voids any waiver of the liability. Repealed January 1, 2035.
CA AB 1709
Prohibits a covered platform from providing an addictive feature to a user under 16 years of age and requires reasonable measures to ensure that under-16 users are not provided one. Establishes the e-Safety Advisory Commission within the Department of Justice as an independent advisory body reporting annually to the Legislature and the Governor, and authorises the Attorney General to adopt regulations expanding the definition of covered platform.
NJ Kids Code
Codifies a New Jersey Age-Appropriate Design Code requiring covered online service providers to design services likely to be accessed by minors around minors' safety and wellbeing, including high-privacy defaults, limits on engagement-maximising design features, and data protection impact assessments. Enforced by the Attorney General with a private right of action for minors and their parents.
IA SF 2417
Establishes requirements and guidelines for conversational AI services including AI disclosure to minors, prohibition on sexually explicit content for minors, prevention of deceptive human-like interactions, and parental controls for children under 13.
CO HB 1263
Imposes obligations on conversational AI service operators including minor-user protections, suicide and self-harm protocols, prohibition on emotional dependence and engagement gamification, and annual safeguard reporting.
OR SB 1546
Requires AI chatbot operators to implement evidence-based suicide and self-harm detection protocols, disclose AI nature to users, provide crisis referrals to 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, and apply additional protections for minors including prohibiting deceptive personification.
Last updated September 13, 2026. Verify against primary sources before relying on this information.