Texas Legislators Battle Federal Overreach in State AI Regulation
An executive order issued by President Donald Trump has the potential to create a significant conflict between Texas and the federal government regarding a new state law aimed at regulating artificial intelligence (AI).
Last week, Trump signed an executive order that threatens to withhold federal broadband funding from states that enact AI regulations deemed “onerous and excessive” by the federal government. This poses a challenge for Texas, which has implemented one of the most comprehensive AI regulatory frameworks in the nation and has been allocated up to $3.3 billion through the federal broadband program to enhance broadband access across the state.
A bipartisan coalition of Texas legislators is actively defending the state law, which is set to take effect on January 1. They argue that an unregulated AI industry could pose risks to children and consumers alike. State Senator Angela Paxton, a Republican from McKinney, emphasized, “All of the Texas actors are going to say we want Texas to be a leader in AI, and I am one of those. I want Texas to be a leader in AI, but you know what, I don’t want Texas to be a leader in AI-generated child porn.”
Paxton, who has a background in education, highlighted the challenges posed by the rise of the internet during her teaching career. Reports of AI being used to generate child pornography and chatbots encouraging self-harm have motivated her to advocate for reasonable regulations on the technology’s use in Texas.
In November, Paxton led a group of 16 state senators—comprising eight Republicans and seven Democrats—in writing a letter to U.S. Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn. They urged support for Texas’ law and opposed any federal attempts to restrict state AI regulations. The letter stated, “If an AI moratorium is put in place, our important work on preventing child pornography, protecting data privacy, preventing discrimination, and holding Big Tech accountable in Texas will be rendered moot.”
State Senator Carol Alvarado, a Democrat from Houston and caucus chair, dismissed the notion that an executive order could override state law, asserting that only Congress holds that power. “I think we … have a better grasp of what needs to be done,” Alvarado remarked. “We just had the government shut down, so I just don’t have a lot of confidence in Washington being able to get something done that puts in protections for our constituents.”
The Texas law prohibits government agencies from using AI systems to assign “social scores” and restricts companies from creating AI tools that incite self-harm, violence, or criminal behavior. It also limits the use of AI in ways that could infringe on political content access or freedom of expression.
While Cornyn has previously expressed concerns about federal preemption of state AI regulations, Cruz stood alongside Trump during the executive order signing and is a strong advocate for a moratorium, arguing that a patchwork of state regulations could hinder AI development. “It’s a race, and whoever wins, the values of that country will affect all of AI,” Cruz stated during the signing ceremony. “We don’t want China’s values of surveillance and centralized control by the communist government governing AI. We want American values of free speech, individual liberty, and respect for the individual.”
Trump’s executive order does make an exception for state laws related to “child safety protections,” but the enforcement of this exception remains unclear. Paxton and other critics of the order worry it may create a chilling effect on state legislatures attempting to regulate AI.
Paxton and her fellow senators argue that Texas’ law effectively bans the misuse of AI while still allowing for innovation. Brendan Steinhauser, CEO of the nonprofit Alliance for Secure AI, praised Texas’ law as a necessary measure to “pump the brakes” on AI. He noted the frequent deadlocks in Washington, D.C., over controversial issues, asserting that states are better positioned to make regulatory decisions about rapidly advancing technologies.
“You can’t get Republicans and Democrats to hardly agree on anything, and we were able to do that in Texas,” Steinhauser remarked. “I just think people in their local communities have the right to speak on this … If we proceed without safeguards, we could find ourselves in a situation where big tech runs the country without accountability.”
Paxton expressed her alignment with Cruz and Trump’s goals of fostering AI innovation but found it “baffling” that Congress has yet to establish a national regulatory framework to facilitate safe advancements. “It’s something that’s important for all of us to work together on, but the reality is, it’s hard for Congress to do stuff,” she said. “In the meantime, I don’t think the states should be locked down to take care of those things … A measured approach, especially when we already know they’re dangerous, makes all the sense in the world.”
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
Photo: Texas Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, and 15 other state senators have asked Texas’ two U.S. senators to support the state’s new AI law against the Trump administration’s efforts to quash state laws aimed at regulating AI. Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune
Topics
InsurTech
Texas
Legislation
Data Driven
Artificial Intelligence
An executive order issued by President Donald Trump has the potential to create a significant conflict between Texas and the federal government regarding a new state law aimed at regulating artificial intelligence (AI).
Last week, Trump signed an executive order that threatens to withhold federal broadband funding from states that enact AI regulations deemed “onerous and excessive” by the federal government. This poses a challenge for Texas, which has implemented one of the most comprehensive AI regulatory frameworks in the nation and has been allocated up to $3.3 billion through the federal broadband program to enhance broadband access across the state.
A bipartisan coalition of Texas legislators is actively defending the state law, which is set to take effect on January 1. They argue that an unregulated AI industry could pose risks to children and consumers alike. State Senator Angela Paxton, a Republican from McKinney, emphasized, “All of the Texas actors are going to say we want Texas to be a leader in AI, and I am one of those. I want Texas to be a leader in AI, but you know what, I don’t want Texas to be a leader in AI-generated child porn.”
Paxton, who has a background in education, highlighted the challenges posed by the rise of the internet during her teaching career. Reports of AI being used to generate child pornography and chatbots encouraging self-harm have motivated her to advocate for reasonable regulations on the technology’s use in Texas.
In November, Paxton led a group of 16 state senators—comprising eight Republicans and seven Democrats—in writing a letter to U.S. Senators Ted Cruz and John Cornyn. They urged support for Texas’ law and opposed any federal attempts to restrict state AI regulations. The letter stated, “If an AI moratorium is put in place, our important work on preventing child pornography, protecting data privacy, preventing discrimination, and holding Big Tech accountable in Texas will be rendered moot.”
State Senator Carol Alvarado, a Democrat from Houston and caucus chair, dismissed the notion that an executive order could override state law, asserting that only Congress holds that power. “I think we … have a better grasp of what needs to be done,” Alvarado remarked. “We just had the government shut down, so I just don’t have a lot of confidence in Washington being able to get something done that puts in protections for our constituents.”
The Texas law prohibits government agencies from using AI systems to assign “social scores” and restricts companies from creating AI tools that incite self-harm, violence, or criminal behavior. It also limits the use of AI in ways that could infringe on political content access or freedom of expression.
While Cornyn has previously expressed concerns about federal preemption of state AI regulations, Cruz stood alongside Trump during the executive order signing and is a strong advocate for a moratorium, arguing that a patchwork of state regulations could hinder AI development. “It’s a race, and whoever wins, the values of that country will affect all of AI,” Cruz stated during the signing ceremony. “We don’t want China’s values of surveillance and centralized control by the communist government governing AI. We want American values of free speech, individual liberty, and respect for the individual.”
Trump’s executive order does make an exception for state laws related to “child safety protections,” but the enforcement of this exception remains unclear. Paxton and other critics of the order worry it may create a chilling effect on state legislatures attempting to regulate AI.
Paxton and her fellow senators argue that Texas’ law effectively bans the misuse of AI while still allowing for innovation. Brendan Steinhauser, CEO of the nonprofit Alliance for Secure AI, praised Texas’ law as a necessary measure to “pump the brakes” on AI. He noted the frequent deadlocks in Washington, D.C., over controversial issues, asserting that states are better positioned to make regulatory decisions about rapidly advancing technologies.
“You can’t get Republicans and Democrats to hardly agree on anything, and we were able to do that in Texas,” Steinhauser remarked. “I just think people in their local communities have the right to speak on this … If we proceed without safeguards, we could find ourselves in a situation where big tech runs the country without accountability.”
Paxton expressed her alignment with Cruz and Trump’s goals of fostering AI innovation but found it “baffling” that Congress has yet to establish a national regulatory framework to facilitate safe advancements. “It’s something that’s important for all of us to work together on, but the reality is, it’s hard for Congress to do stuff,” she said. “In the meantime, I don’t think the states should be locked down to take care of those things … A measured approach, especially when we already know they’re dangerous, makes all the sense in the world.”
This article first appeared on The Texas Tribune.
Photo: Texas Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, and 15 other state senators have asked Texas’ two U.S. senators to support the state’s new AI law against the Trump administration’s efforts to quash state laws aimed at regulating AI. Ronaldo Bolaños/The Texas Tribune
Topics
InsurTech
Texas
Legislation
Data Driven
Artificial Intelligence
