The bill was submitted to the lower house of parliament in late December 2025 by four United Russia deputies: Sergei Boyarsky, Anton Gorelkin, Anton Nemkin and Alexei Volotskov, Interfax reported.

It covers "audiovisual works" — cinema, video and songs — and their public distribution, including online. Liability would apply not only to citizens but also to the owners of streaming platforms and social networks.

For a first violation, fines for individuals would run from 5,000 to 10,000 rubles, for officials from 50,000 to 100,000, and for legal entities from 500,000 to 700,000. Repeat violations would raise the amounts to 50,000–150,000, 300,000–400,000 and 1–3 million rubles respectively.

Separate penalties would apply for failing to remove "discrediting" material, or content "advocating its denial," on the order of Roskomnadzor, Russia's media and internet regulator. Social networks and online cinemas currently have 24 hours to delete such content. If the order is not carried out, individuals face fines of 10,000–20,000 rubles, officials 100,000–200,000, and organizations 700,000–1 million. For repeat failures the amounts rise to 300,000, 800,000 and 5 million rubles.

Boyarsky, one of the bill's authors, said "citizens" refers to the owners of social networks rather than ordinary users. The text does not make clear what exactly would be treated as "discrediting" spiritual and moral values.

Administrative cases over the distribution of such material would be opened by the Culture Ministry, and cases over failure to comply with removal orders by Roskomnadzor. Hearings would be transferred to district courts.

The new fines would not affect works published on audiovisual services before March 1, 2026, or those holding a valid distribution certificate. That provision may be revised before the second reading, according to the committee's conclusion.

The list of "traditional Russian spiritual and moral values" is set out in presidential decree No. 809 of November 9, 2022, signed by Vladimir Putin. It includes patriotism, a strong family, humanism and the priority of the spiritual over the material, among other qualities. The document says the values are threatened by unfriendly countries, foreign NGOs, some media outlets and "certain organizations and individuals in Russia."

Lawmakers earlier submitted a bill to recognize as extremist all ideologies, teachings, cults and movements directed against Russia's "traditional spiritual and moral values." Its explanatory note said the absence of a "clear prohibition" on "destructive" currents poses a danger of an "existential nature" to the country.