Update 12/11: President Trump signed an executive order on Thursday intended to override some state laws related to AI.
The EO has asked various department heads to determine which state-level AI laws the administration considers objectionable. For example, Attorney General Pam Bondi has 30 days to establish an AI Litigation Task Force, which will challenge “burdensome” state AI laws.
Within 90 days, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick must publish an assessment of existing state AI laws and identify laws that “contradict (White House) policy,” though he could also identify laws favored by the Trump administration. States with stricter laws may be ineligible to receive funds from the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program.
Meanwhile, FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson has 90 days to develop a policy that would block a state law based on violations of the FTC Act. And FCC Chair Brendan Carr will need to begin determining whether to adopt federal reporting and disclosure standards for AI models that feature conflicting state laws.
Sen. Cruz, President Trump, Secretary Lutnick, and crypto czar David Sachs (Credit: Alex Wang/Getty Images)
All of these agencies will consult with Trump’s special adviser on AI and crypto, David Sachs.
The executive order calls for Colorado’s AI law to ban algorithmic discrimination, which the White House says “even AI models can be forced to produce false results to avoid ‘disparate treatment or impact’ on protected groups.”
EO notes that, ideally, Congress would move forward with national AI legislation. But “Until such national standards are in place, however, it is imperative that my administration take action to check overly restrictive and excessive laws emerging from states that threaten innovation.”
The White House does not want Congress to enact any legislation that preempts state AI laws with child safety concerns. AI compute and data center infrastructure, in addition to generally applicable permitting improvements. Or state government procurement and use of AI.
On X, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who was in the Oval Office when Trump signed the EO, said the president “took an important step today to advance American leadership in AI. We don’t want Chinese values of surveillance and communist control over AI. We want free speech, American values of individual freedom, and respect for the individual.”
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In a statement, Cody Wenzke, senior policy attorney with the ACLU, noted that Congress has twice allegedly attacked state-level AI regulation, arguing that Trump’s EO is “not just dangerous, it’s unconstitutional,” particularly as it relates to funding.
“The Supreme Court has made clear that the president cannot unilaterally and retroactively change the conditions of federal grants to states after the fact,” Wenzke says. “Each of these grants is a contract between states and the federal government, and threatening to withhold funding for schools, broadband buildouts, nutrition assistance, and unrelated AI policy battles will unnecessarily harm the American people.”
Original story 12/8:
President Trump is preparing to block US states from regulating AI, claiming that a patchwork of potentially conflicting laws could kill the technology’s development.
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“There should be only one rulebook if we continue to lead in AI,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post on Monday. “We’re beating all the countries at this point in the race, but that won’t last long if we have 50 states, many of them poor performers.”
(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
In response, the president plans to announce a “one-role executive order” this week that will follow state-level AI laws. “There can be no doubt about it! AI will be destroyed in its infancy!” Trump further warned. “You can’t expect a company to get 50 approvals every time they want to do something. It will never work!”
A draft EO seen by Politico suggests the White House will use the Justice Department to go after state laws it doesn’t like through an “AI Litigation Task Force.” It also said Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick would be able to withhold federal broadband funds from states whose AI laws the White House doesn’t approve. However, these efforts will face legal challenges.
Several states, including California and Texas, have introduced or enacted laws to ensure the safe use of AI. However, the White House is pushing Congress to pass federal AI legislation that would precede state laws. For example, Trump’s Big Beautiful bill initially included a provision that would have imposed a 10-year deadline on state-level AI regulation. He was removed in July by a vote of 99-1. Lawmakers tried again with the pending National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), but watered down that provision as well.
So, Trump faces an uphill battle, which is why he’s going the executive order route. Whatever happens, it’s likely a win for technology companies building new data centers and deploying new models, despite concerns about AI’s impact on society and the environment.
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