SACRAMENTO, CA – In response to President Trump issuing an executive order attacking states’ robust protections on artificial intelligence (AI), State Senator Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park), Chair of California’s Senate Select Committee on Economic Development and Technological Innovation, issued the following statement:
“Trump’s reckless attacks on the ability for states to enact meaningful AI regulations in the public interest are unacceptable and literally put lives at risk. He tried this before and it was soundly rejected by both parties.
“We won’t let corporate interests and Washington bureaucrats take over this burgeoning industry and dictate the terms of innovation at the expense of the public while stripping states of their right to enact their own protections.
“Our job is to ensure AI works for people, not profits. I have worked diligently with the tech industry and consumer protection advocates to create thoughtful, forward-looking legislation in California that ensures AI is developed and deployed safely, transparently, and ethically. As a result, California’s AI regulations are international models that the federal government should adopt rather than attack.”
Senator Becker has previously authored AI legislation in the following areas:
- Creating the nation’s first ever AI transparency law.
- Prohibiting AI from being used as the sole determiner for denying medically necessary treatments.
- Creating an AI Workgroup in Education to incorporate the responsible use of AI in classrooms.
###