The addition of a ten-year moratorium on state laws regulating A.I. to the budget reconciliation bill passed by the House Energy & Commerce Committee last week and the House Budget Committee late last night has drawn swift condemnation from a broad range of voices:
“Late last night, while America was sleeping, House Republicans advanced a massive free pass to the biggest companies in the world that would handcuff every state in the country from regulating A.I. for the next ten years. This is one of the Big Tech lobby’s most brazen power grabs yet – a naked attempt to throw kids, seniors, startups, and small businesses under the bus and handcuff democratically elected leaders. Both Republicans and Democrats in Congress should listen to the outcry from bipartisan state Attorneys General, state and federal lawmakers, and groups across civil society and reject this insane demand.” – Sacha Haworth, Executive Director, The Tech Oversight Project
Reuters: AI regulation ban meets opposition from state attorneys general over risks to US consumers
“The impact of such a broad moratorium would be sweeping and wholly destructive of reasonable state efforts to prevent known harms associated with AI. This bill will affect hundreds of existing and pending state laws passed and considered by both Republican and Democratic state legislatures. Some existing laws have been on the books for many years.” – 40 bipartisan State Attorneys General
CNN: House Republicans want to stop states from regulating AI. More than 100 organizations are pushing back
“This moratorium would mean that even if a company deliberately designs an algorithm that causes foreseeable harm — regardless of how intentional or egregious the misconduct or how devastating the consequences — the company making or using that bad tech would be unaccountable to lawmakers and the public.” – 141 civil society organizations
Business Insider: Republicans want to block states from regulating AI for 10 years
“I would think that, just as a matter of federalism, we’d want states to be able to try out different regimes that they think will work for their state.” – U.S. Senator Josh Hawley
N.Y. Senate: 50+ New York State Legislators Sign Letter Opposing the House Republicans’ Proposed Moratorium on State and Local AI Legislation
“This moratorium, if passed, would undermine the work of state legislatures at a time when big tech’s influence has never been greater, and when companies are placing profit motives ahead of the need to protect people’s privacy, autonomy, and livelihoods.” – New York State Senator Kristen Gonzalez, Chair, Internet and Technology Committee
National Conference of State Legislatures: NCSL Urges Congress to Oppose AI Moratorium on States
“States have demonstrated leadership on critical issues in the technology space, often well in advance of federal action … This provision is an infringement on states’ authority to effectively legislate in this rapidly evolving and consequential policy domain, and in our view, is a violation of the Byrd Rule.” – Executive Director Tim Storey
California Privacy Protection Agency: Letter Re: Budget Reconciliation Bill
“Unfortunately, the Enforcement Moratorium seeks to strip away many crucial protections that consumers in California and across the country currently enjoy under state laws related to the privacy risks associated with profiling and the automated processing of personal information.” – Executive Director Tom Kemp
North American Securities Administrators Association: NASAA Cautions Against Decade-Long Moratorium on Enforcing State Artificial Intelligence Laws or Regulations
“Considering the rapidly evolving nature of AI and the growing adoption of technology by industry, we caution against pursuing legislation that assumes no changes to the state securities laws with respect to AI will be necessary.” – Leslie M. Van Buskirk, President and Administrator, Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions Division of Securities
CalMatters: Californians would lose AI protections under bill advancing in Congress
“The action is in the states, not D.C. That’s why some people in D.C. are trying to stop states … particularly California, who’s leading the pack.” – Gus Rossi, Director of Public Policy, Omidyar Network
American Economic Liberties Project: Bill Would Block States from Protecting the Public Against AI and Automated Decision-making Abuses by Powerful Corporations
“While Congress is deadlocked and the administrative state is being gutted, this bill would block states from considering laws that protect children from being exposed to online predators and addictive algorithms. It would preempt laws that protect workers from abusive quotas and surveillance. It would open the floodgates to censorship, fraud, gambling addiction, mass market manipulation, healthcare and insurance denials, and much more.” – Senior Legal Counsel Lee Hepner
Brookings Institution: States are legislating AI, but a moratorium could stall their progress
“If the national provision passes, it will override states’ legal authority and make it harder to tailor legislative solutions to local concerns. Congress should lead on setting national standards and related laws, but in the meantime, a blanket preemption would halt oversight on privacy and civil rights.” – Director & Senior Fellow Nicol Turner-Lee
NYU Center on Technology Policy & NYU Center for Social Media & Politics: A dangerous plan to ‘win’ the AI race is circulating
“Congress is moving to undermine the only concerted legislative effort aimed at balancing AI’s myriad risks and benefits without offering federal legislation in its place. Given the speed at which companies are developing increasingly powerful AI systems, the resulting regulatory gap is especially concerning.” – Director Scott Brennen & Executive Director Zeve Sanderson
Center for American Progress: The House Is Close To Passing a Moratorium on State Efforts To Regulate AI
“The preemption of state laws regulating AI is a top goal of Big Tech and AI companies, and this moratorium proposal offers an unprecedented giveaway to industry at a time when the president and the majority in the House of Representatives have spent years claiming that these companies are too powerful and must be held accountable.” – Vice President Adam Conner
The Lever: GOP Chooses AI Dominance Over Democracy
“Generative artificial intelligence giant OpenAI previously included federal AI preemption and “ensuring the freedom to innovate” on a recent policy wish list for the Trump administration … Sam Altman, OpenAI’s CEO and a former Trump critic, is now intent on courting the president’s good graces. He donated $1 million to Trump’s inauguration fund. Other Big Tech giants who’ve publicly urged the Trump administration to embrace federal AI preemption include Meta, IBM, and Google.” – Veronica Riccobene & Lucy Dean Stockton, reporters
