S. 3813 — CLEAR Act

This section requires a person using a training dataset containing registered copyrighted works (i.e., works protected under title 17, U.S. Code, and registered under section 408 or scheduled under section 1401) to train or release a generative AI model (i.e., code and values using artificial intelligence to generate expressive material such as text, images, audio, or video) to submit a notice to the Register of Copyrights containing a detailed summary of each such work and, if publicly available online, the dataset's URL. The notice must be filed not later than 30 days before commercial use (including internal) or release for models first used or released on or after the effective date (180 days after enactment), or not later than 30 days after the Register issues regulations for earlier models; the Register must issue regulations on notice form, content, and procedures within 180 days of the effective date and maintain a public online database of submitted notices. This section establishes a private right of action for owners of affected copyrighted works against noncompliant persons, authorizing district courts to impose civil penalties of not less than $5,000 per instance (capped at $2,500,000 total per person per year, paid to the Register to offset Copyright Office operating costs), issue injunctions halting use of the work until notice submission, and award attorney's fees and expenses. (Thus, the penalties incentivize compliance while limiting aggregate liability, with injunctive relief and fees remaining available notwithstanding the cap.)