State attorneys general across the U.S. signed a bipartisan letter on Tuesday urging Congress “not to implement an AI moratorium” in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
The letter raised concerns about a number of risks posed by AI, including “deception” and “AI output that generates delusions” that put mental health at risk, and that AI tools “implicate children in highly inappropriate ways.” He warned that the federal government’s rush to preempt state rules could have serious consequences and could prevent states from responding quickly to new risks. The letter also noted that many states have already taken steps to close these gaps, with 20 of them adopting comprehensive data privacy laws. Other states have gone further, with California enacting the Frontier Artificial Intelligence Transparency Act (TFIA) in September, requiring developers to take a number of transparency, safety, and accountability measures.
An effort to ban AI regulations for 10 years was defeated by a 99-1 Senate vote in July on an amendment to the Budget Reconciliation Act. House Republicans are reportedly considering adding a similar last-ditch measure to the NDAA, a bill that provides spending for “defense-related activities.” In a Nov. 18 post on TruthSocial, President Trump said that “overregulation by states threatens to undermine this engine of growth” and called for “one federal standard.” On Monday, an executive order titled “Launching the Genesis Mission,” a national effort aimed at ushering in a new era of AI-driven innovation and scientific advancement, was issued. Additionally, a draft executive order is circulating that would create an AI Litigation Task Force to “challenge state AI laws.”
More than 270 state legislators supported the attorney general’s letter. Eric Gastfriend, executive director of Americans for Responsible Innovation (ARI), said preemptive action would face “broad opposition from lawmakers and consumer protection groups across the political spectrum.”
