Senate strikes AI provision from GOP bill after uproar from the states

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Written by Matt O’Brien and Matt Brown

Washington (AP) The U.S. Senate decisively rejected a proposal on Tuesday that would have prevented states from regulating AI for ten years, preventing attempts to include the item in President Donald Trump’s massive tax and spending cut package.

Following weeks of opposition from state leaders and governors of both parties, the Senate voted 99-1 to remove the AI provision from the measure.

In order to ensure that only states that backed off on AI legislation could receive subsidies for broadband internet or AI infrastructure, lawmakers first proposed a 10-year moratorium on states taking any action to control AI.

In a last-ditch Republican attempt to preserve the clause, the time limit was shortened to five years, and certain popular AI laws—like those that shield children or country music artists from dangerous AI tools—were to be exempted.

However, that attempt was shelved when Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, a Democrat, and Sen. Marsha Blackburn, a Republican from Tennessee, joined forces Monday night to propose an amendment that would nullify the entire idea.

On the floor, Blackburn expressed frustration about Congress’s inability to enact laws addressing new technologies, including as online privacy and AI-generated deepfakes that mimic the voice or appearance of artists. But who has passed it, do you know? According to Blackburn, it is our states. They are the ones keeping kids safe in the cyber world. They are the ones out there guarding the names, likenesses, and images of our entertainers, including podcasters, writers, and broadcasters.

The amendment was put to a vote after 4 a.m. Tuesday during an overnight session in which Republican leaders aimed to win support for the tax cut bill while thwarting other changes that were put up, primarily by Democrats who wanted to thwart the package.

A patchwork of state and local AI legislation, according to proponents of an AI moratorium, is impeding the advancement of the AI sector and the capacity of American businesses to compete with China.

At a hearing in May, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, the head of the Senate Commerce committee, introduced the notion, which was embraced by some notable tech CEOs. It is very hard to picture us figuring out how to comply with fifty different sets of regulations, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman told Cruz.

However, state and local legislators as well as proponents of AI safety contended that the provision is a favor given to a business that wishes to escape responsibility for its goods. The majority of Republican governors opposed it in a letter to Congress, led by Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the governor of Arkansas.

Sanders, the White House press secretary during Trump’s first term, gave Blackburn credit for spearheading the movement to support states’ authority to control artificial intelligence.

This is a huge victory for the American people, Republican governors, and President Trump’s one, big, beautiful bill. On Tuesday, Sanders wrote on X.

A group of parents of children who have lost their lives due to damages they have experienced online also urged lawmakers to repeal the measure.

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Over the weekend, Cruz attempted to work with Blackburn to salvage the provision by negotiating a last-ditch agreement. The amendments contained wording intended to safeguard Tennessee’s so-called ELVIS Act, which is supported by the country music business and prohibits AI tools from mimicking an artist’s voice without that artist’s permission. Cruz claimed that if Blackburn hadn’t backed out, it could have passed with ease. Blackburn stated on Tuesday that there were issues with the amendment’s wording.

According to Cruz, President Trump told me last night that the accord was fantastic. Both children and creative artists’ rights were safeguarded under the pact. However, that arrangement was rejected by outside parties.

Cruz pulled the compromise amendment and blamed a variety of individuals and organizations that he claimed detested the moratorium, such as China, Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom, a leader of the teachers union, transgender organizations, and radical left-wing organizations that seek to impose woke AI through blue state laws.

He made no mention of the large number of Republican governors, attorneys general, and state lawmakers who were also against it. Cruz’s proposal, according to critics, would have impacted states’ enforcement of any AI regulations if it had been discovered that they placed an excessive or disproportionate burden on AI systems, even though it included several exclusions.

Jim Steyer, president and CEO of children’s advocacy group Common Sense Media, noted in a statement that the now-removed planned prohibition would have prevented states from protecting their citizens while providing no federal compensation. Hours after the moratorium appeared to have survived, 99 senators ultimately voted to remove the language.

From Providence, Rhode Island, O Brien reported.

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