Tennessee’s ELVIS Act is Bad to the Bone

Tennessee School Kids Deserve Better

History education is in shambles. According to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, just 13% of public school students are proficient in history.

We should be doing better by our students: the ongoing work to form a stronger democracy should be inspirational and captivating for our nation’s young people. Technology stands to be part of the solution: history can truly come alive for students statewide with generative artificial intelligence (“GenAI”) tools.

Unfortunately, lawmakers in Tennessee could make that impossible.

While many of us are familiar with chatbots such as ChatGPT, the underlying technology can be used to do much more. From simulating interactive voice to images or videos, the possibilities are endless.

Imagine a way to have a little more conversation *and* a little more action: by being able to learn about the colonies directly from the Founders. Or learn a lesson from Rosa Parks about the Montgomery Bus Boycott.

The ELVIS Act

Unfortunately, Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and his legislative allies are pushing legislation that would put a stop to all of that. The Ensuring Likeness Voice and Image Security or “ELVIS Act” currently working its way through the legislature is intended to protect performance artists from having their voice, image or likeness misappropriated.

In theory, the ELVIS Act prevents a shady car dealership from running hokey ads with an artificially-generated Garth Brooks endorsing Nissans. As written though, the ELVIS Act would have harmful unintended consequences. The bill is unnecessary and would deny Tennessee families of the benefits of AI.

Why is that? So-called “publicity rights” that protect individuals from having their likeness misappropriated are already enshrined in Tennessee and federal law.

Which brings us back to the classroom. The ELVIS Act states a person or company is liable:

“if the person distributes … an algorithm, software, tool, or other technology, service, or device, the primary purpose or function of which is the production of an individual’s photograph, voice, or likeness without authorization from the individual or … in the case of a deceased individual, the executor or administrator, heirs, or devisees of such deceased individual.”

What would the implications of the ELVIS Act be?

Imagine the school teacher who wants to use GenAI tools to bring George Washington into the classroom for a “guest lecture” on the Revolutionary War.

The ELVIS Act would hold both the teacher and the software company that created it liable for this. That is, until, the teacher tracks down one of President Washington’s heirs to sign a release. As Elvis himself said: only fools rush in, and this is a foolish reality to face.

From Beale Street to Broadway, lawmakers are slamming the door on the next generation of educational technology tools. The benefits aren’t just limited to history class — GenAI stands to transform education across disciplines, but not unless this bill is returned to its sender.

To paraphrase the King, “No thank you, no thank you very much.”

Chamber of Progress (progresschamber.org) is a center-left tech industry association promoting technology’s progressive future. We work to ensure that all Americans benefit from technological leaps, and that the tech industry operates responsibly and fairly.

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