Lawmakers Introduce Draft of Bill Preempting Some State AI Regulations for 3 Years

Two House members introduced a discussion draft of a bill that develops a federal standard on artificial intelligence and preempts state limits on the development of artificial intelligence for a period of three years.

Rep. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., and Rep. Lori Trahan, D-Mass., introduced the draft on Thursday, answering the White House’s call to develop a federal AI standard. The Daily Signal obtained a copy of the draft legislation and reported it before its official release.

A discussion draft is meant to solicit feedback from lawmakers and experts before it would be formally introduced as a bill.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Dec. 11 ordering the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy to recommend federal AI legislation preempting any state laws in conflict with the administration’s policy on artificial intelligence. The White House released a draft framework in March to provide a template for federal legislation. 

Obernolte and Trahan’s draft bill could serve as a vessel for passing the first federal AI standard, although Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., has also made a bid to be the author of the first official framework. Her version contains strict child safeguards.

The 260-page House bill includes no mention of protection for children, but a spokesperson for Obernolte said the congressman intends for child protections to be enacted in separate legislation. Obernolte supports Congress passing multiple bills to accomplish the various aspects of the White House’s framework.

If the bill passes, no state will be able to “establish, continue in effect, or enforce any law or regulation specifically regulating the development of any artificial intelligence model.”

Some critics of that approach have argued that states present a first line of defense against threats posed by AI chatbots to children.

The bill does not limit state laws “applicable to activities occurring upon or after the deployment of an artificial intelligence model.”

The president recently signed an executive order “asking some artificial intelligence companies to give the federal government 30 days to review their frontier models before release.”

“This discussion draft is an important step toward building a clear federal framework that promotes innovation, protects Americans from emerging risks, and ensures the United States continues to lead the world in AI,” Obernolte said Thursday in a statement.

“The threats AI poses to our national security, our safety, and our workforce are here and growing by the day. This bipartisan framework is designed to meet the challenges posed by this rapidly advancing technology without smothering American innovation,” said Trahan in a statement.

This article was updated with lawmaker statements and the announcement of the draft legislation.