Trump, Republicans try again to stop states from regulating AI
(2025/11/20)
- Reference: 1763661734
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/11/20/trump_republicans_trying_again_to/
- Source link:
The Trump administration and congressional Republicans are trying again to eliminate state-level AI regulations in favor of a federal standard. The plan faces opposition from many state governments and civil-society organizations, while AI vendors have welcomed it.
Not a party to be dissuaded by their own long-held view that states' rights to self-determination should preempt federal overreach, Republicans are trying two different approaches to getting a state-level AI regulation ban on the books after [1]failing to pass the measure as a rider on Trump's budget reconciliation bill over the summer.
This time around, Republicans in the House of Representatives [2]want to find a way to add a ban on state-level AI regulation to the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The must-pass [3]bill has already made its way through the Senate without an AI ban amendment, and language for such a provision is currently in discussion, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) said earlier this week.
[4]
Trump came out in [5]support of the congressional measure, posting on his Truth Social platform that overregulation of AI threatens to undermine the industry's growth.
[6]
[7]
"We MUST have one Federal Standard instead of a patchwork of 50 State Regulatory Regimes," Trump said. "We can do this in a way that protects children AND prevents censorship."
The Trump administration has also [8]reportedly begun working on an executive order to block state-level AI regulation and penalize states that attempt to enforce such rules.
[9]
Per an allegedly leaked copy of the executive order [10]published by The Verge, the draft order would direct the US Attorney General to form a task force "whose sole responsibility shall be to challenge State AI laws, including on grounds that such laws unconstitutionally regulate interstate commerce."
The reported draft order would also require the Secretary of Commerce to publish a report on all state AI laws that should be referred to the task force, and direct the Commerce Secretary to begin withholding Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment ( [11]BEAD ) funding for rural broadband expansion from states with such laws on the books.
The draft EO also proposes having federal agencies withhold other discretionary grant funding from states with AI regulations, as well as asking the Federal Trade Commission to formalize legal reasoning that makes state-level AI rules illegal under the FTC Act's interstate commerce protections. Trump is also asking advisors to put together a framework for more formal federal AI regulation in the draft EO.
[12]
"A patchwork regulatory framework … forces compliance with the lowest common denominator and allows the most restrictive states to dictate national AI policy at the expense of America's domination of this new frontier," the draft EO argues.
The White House declined to tell The Register whether the draft EO we reviewed was legitimate, instead saying that any discussion about potential executive orders prior to their publication was purely speculative.
The AI industry would love to quash state regulations
There was [13]broad opposition to the previous attempt by the Trump administration and Republicans to block state-level AI regulations, and it's no different this time around.
A group of more than 250 organizations sent a letter to Congress on Wednesday [14]asking them not to add their proposed state AI law ban. Led by Demand Progress, signatories included Mozilla, SAG-AFTRA, the Tech Oversight Project and others.
[15]California lawmakers pretend to regulate AI, create a pile of paperwork
[16]AI can't be woke and regulators should be asleep, Senator Cruz says
[17]As AI gallops through the federal workforce, lawmakers once again call for expanded training
[18]Anarchy in the AI: Trump's desire to supercharge US tech faces plenty of hurdles
"The only people who want to ban states from enacting AI safeguards are Big Tech executives and the allies they bought in Congress and the White House," said Demand Progress policy director Emily Peterson-Cassin.
The Trump administration has been taking many of its AI regulation cues [19]from the AI industry itself since coming into office, leaving many worried that federal AI regulation under the current American regime would basically be a free-for-all.
"Larger players have the resources to manage a patchwork of state laws, but they see compliance with them as a burden that slows development and limits their freedom to deploy systems on their own terms," the Center for American Progress said in a [20]report on Wednesday, expressing concerns over this second attempt to ban state-level AI regulation.
"Preemption would reduce the scrutiny they face at the state level and shield their models and practices from accountability," CAP said. "It is crucial, then, that in any debate over federal preemption, it is clear who is asking for it, who stands to gain, and what will be lost if states are pushed out of the AI governance space."
As of now, there's still no comprehensive federal AI law, so if Congress blocks state AI rules without passing strong federal standards, much AI activity would remain governed by older, general-purpose laws and agency guidance.
"Congress has an important role to play in setting national rules for AI, but that work should not start by pushing states aside," CAP said in its report. "Congress should reject any push to centralize control at the expense of state power."
That call is likely to fall on deaf ears, even thought Republicans are [21]supposedly all about state power when it meets their policy goals. ®
Get our [22]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/01/senate_passes_trumps_big_beastly/
[2] https://punchbowl.news/article/tech/house-ai-preemption-ndaa/
[3] https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2296/all-actions
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[5] https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115572931492563128
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/19/white-house-prepares-executive-order-to-block-state-ai-laws-00660719
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26287992-trump-executive-order-on-ai-law-preemption/?mode=document
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/06/us_states_affordable_broadband/
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2025/05/20/trump_bill_regulation_free_ai/
[14] https://demandprogress.org/250-orgs-to-congress-dont-ban-state-ai-laws/
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/30/california_governor_signs_ai_safety_law/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/10/ai_cruz_sandbox/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/09/bill_federal_employees_ai_training/
[18] https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/20/opinion_us_govt_ai/
[19] https://www.theregister.com/2024/11/21/ai_policy_trump/
[20] https://www.americanprogress.org/article/moratoriums-and-federal-preemption-of-state-artificial-intelligence-laws-pose-serious-risks/
[21] https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jul/29/states-republicans-defy-washington-supreme-court
[22] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Not a party to be dissuaded by their own long-held view that states' rights to self-determination should preempt federal overreach, Republicans are trying two different approaches to getting a state-level AI regulation ban on the books after [1]failing to pass the measure as a rider on Trump's budget reconciliation bill over the summer.
This time around, Republicans in the House of Representatives [2]want to find a way to add a ban on state-level AI regulation to the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The must-pass [3]bill has already made its way through the Senate without an AI ban amendment, and language for such a provision is currently in discussion, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) said earlier this week.
[4]
Trump came out in [5]support of the congressional measure, posting on his Truth Social platform that overregulation of AI threatens to undermine the industry's growth.
[6]
[7]
"We MUST have one Federal Standard instead of a patchwork of 50 State Regulatory Regimes," Trump said. "We can do this in a way that protects children AND prevents censorship."
The Trump administration has also [8]reportedly begun working on an executive order to block state-level AI regulation and penalize states that attempt to enforce such rules.
[9]
Per an allegedly leaked copy of the executive order [10]published by The Verge, the draft order would direct the US Attorney General to form a task force "whose sole responsibility shall be to challenge State AI laws, including on grounds that such laws unconstitutionally regulate interstate commerce."
The reported draft order would also require the Secretary of Commerce to publish a report on all state AI laws that should be referred to the task force, and direct the Commerce Secretary to begin withholding Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment ( [11]BEAD ) funding for rural broadband expansion from states with such laws on the books.
The draft EO also proposes having federal agencies withhold other discretionary grant funding from states with AI regulations, as well as asking the Federal Trade Commission to formalize legal reasoning that makes state-level AI rules illegal under the FTC Act's interstate commerce protections. Trump is also asking advisors to put together a framework for more formal federal AI regulation in the draft EO.
[12]
"A patchwork regulatory framework … forces compliance with the lowest common denominator and allows the most restrictive states to dictate national AI policy at the expense of America's domination of this new frontier," the draft EO argues.
The White House declined to tell The Register whether the draft EO we reviewed was legitimate, instead saying that any discussion about potential executive orders prior to their publication was purely speculative.
The AI industry would love to quash state regulations
There was [13]broad opposition to the previous attempt by the Trump administration and Republicans to block state-level AI regulations, and it's no different this time around.
A group of more than 250 organizations sent a letter to Congress on Wednesday [14]asking them not to add their proposed state AI law ban. Led by Demand Progress, signatories included Mozilla, SAG-AFTRA, the Tech Oversight Project and others.
[15]California lawmakers pretend to regulate AI, create a pile of paperwork
[16]AI can't be woke and regulators should be asleep, Senator Cruz says
[17]As AI gallops through the federal workforce, lawmakers once again call for expanded training
[18]Anarchy in the AI: Trump's desire to supercharge US tech faces plenty of hurdles
"The only people who want to ban states from enacting AI safeguards are Big Tech executives and the allies they bought in Congress and the White House," said Demand Progress policy director Emily Peterson-Cassin.
The Trump administration has been taking many of its AI regulation cues [19]from the AI industry itself since coming into office, leaving many worried that federal AI regulation under the current American regime would basically be a free-for-all.
"Larger players have the resources to manage a patchwork of state laws, but they see compliance with them as a burden that slows development and limits their freedom to deploy systems on their own terms," the Center for American Progress said in a [20]report on Wednesday, expressing concerns over this second attempt to ban state-level AI regulation.
"Preemption would reduce the scrutiny they face at the state level and shield their models and practices from accountability," CAP said. "It is crucial, then, that in any debate over federal preemption, it is clear who is asking for it, who stands to gain, and what will be lost if states are pushed out of the AI governance space."
As of now, there's still no comprehensive federal AI law, so if Congress blocks state AI rules without passing strong federal standards, much AI activity would remain governed by older, general-purpose laws and agency guidance.
"Congress has an important role to play in setting national rules for AI, but that work should not start by pushing states aside," CAP said in its report. "Congress should reject any push to centralize control at the expense of state power."
That call is likely to fall on deaf ears, even thought Republicans are [21]supposedly all about state power when it meets their policy goals. ®
Get our [22]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2025/07/01/senate_passes_trumps_big_beastly/
[2] https://punchbowl.news/article/tech/house-ai-preemption-ndaa/
[3] https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2296/all-actions
[4] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[5] https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/115572931492563128
[6] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[7] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[8] https://www.politico.com/news/2025/11/19/white-house-prepares-executive-order-to-block-state-ai-laws-00660719
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/26287992-trump-executive-order-on-ai-law-preemption/?mode=document
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/06/us_states_affordable_broadband/
[12] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_software/aiml&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aR-dixdGLNJsknA-B4-sJQAAAME&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2025/05/20/trump_bill_regulation_free_ai/
[14] https://demandprogress.org/250-orgs-to-congress-dont-ban-state-ai-laws/
[15] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/30/california_governor_signs_ai_safety_law/
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2025/09/10/ai_cruz_sandbox/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2025/06/09/bill_federal_employees_ai_training/
[18] https://www.theregister.com/2025/08/20/opinion_us_govt_ai/
[19] https://www.theregister.com/2024/11/21/ai_policy_trump/
[20] https://www.americanprogress.org/article/moratoriums-and-federal-preemption-of-state-artificial-intelligence-laws-pose-serious-risks/
[21] https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jul/29/states-republicans-defy-washington-supreme-court
[22] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/