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The New Battle Line in Data Governance
This week, the federal House Energy and Commerce Committee released a Republican-led draft of the SECURE Data Act (Securing and Establishing Consumer Uniform Rights and Enforcement), a comprehensive federal consumer privacy bill. The new proposal would establish a federal baseline for consumer data rights, serving as a counterpoint to state efforts to create consumer data privacy rights and to provide oversight of artificial intelligence (AI) systems.
The new proposal creates a major shift by no longer allowing states to add additional protections for their residents, like creating specific oversight for the collection and use of geolocation data, minor data, and biometric data, among other areas in which states have acted on over the past few years. The proposed law states that states will no longer be able to legislate on data privacy and potentially AI, reigniting the tension between the federal government and the states over who can and should regulate in these areas.
This proposal follows a year-long process by the committee’s Data Privacy Working group, which sought feedback from states, industry, and advocates on comprehensive privacy legislation. The business community and civil society have differing views on the proposal. A hearing led by the House Financial Services Committee on “Updating America’s Financial Privacy Framework for the 21st Century” gave some insight into the differences of opinion on how Congress should approach legislation in this area.
The Bank Policy Institute supports a federal framework that continues to set a privacy standard for financial institutions and prohibits states from legislating in this area. The group further supports enforcement by federal agencies rather than opening it up to private litigation. Further, their remarks focus on keeping privacy laws technology-neutral and not focusing specifically on AI systems.
The US Chamber of Commerce also supports creating a federal privacy standard and opposes state legislation in this area.
UnidosUS disagreed with the current approach and emphasized the need for states to legislate beyond a federal standard, create a private right of action, and require AI testing for discriminatory outcomes prior to deployment.
The National Conference of State Legislatures sent a letter to the House Financial Services Committee to preserve the current law’s role, “as a floor, not a ceiling, for consumer financial data protections,” in contrast to the draft’s broad preemption language. In early April, Sen. Mark Kelly and Congressman Fitzpatrick sent a letter to President Trump urging the administration to enact a human-centered AI policy.
State Policy Action
AL: Last week, the Governor signed HB 351, adding to the twenty states that have passed comprehensive data privacy laws in the last few years. Earlier in the session, the Governor also signed a new law (HB 161) targeting digital app store providers and developers requiring age verification and parental consent.
CO: The Senate Committee on Business, Labor, & Technology passed (HB 1210). The bill prohibits certain computational processes from setting prices or wages based on surveillance data. With the legislative session nearing its end, this legislation is close to the finish line.
CA: Earlier this week, the Senate Appropriations Committee heard (SB 867), which would prohibit the manufacture or sale of toys that include AI companion chatbot capabilities.
CT: This week, a bill (SB 4) expanding consumer privacy laws made its way through the Senate. The bill focuses on pricing based on consumer surveillance data and adds additional requirements related to biometric, genetic, and geolocation data.
HI: A bill (HB 1782) focused on children’s interactions with AI systems has been moving quickly through the legislature this session. The bill focuses on disclosures and prohibits systems from being designed to interact with minors in specific contexts, such as companionship, mental health, and romantic relationships, among other contexts. Another fast-moving bill (SB 3001), close to the finish line, focuses on AI chatbot disclosures, new requirements related to suicidal ideation content, new requirements for minor accounts, and required annual reports to the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs. State legislators from both chambers are meeting today to resolve differences among their members and submit the bill to the Governor.
LA: Earlier this month, the Senate passed SB 386, a comprehensive data privacy law, after adopting amendments to the original draft, which include removing the private right of action.
ME: A bill (LD 2162) focused on AI systems' interaction with children is close to the finish line. The bill prohibits AI products with human-like chatbots from being accessible to minors and requires deployers to implement age-verification measures to prevent children from accessing these products.
MD: Two pieces of legislation focused on personal data processing related to price setting (HB 711) and immigration enforcement (HB 895) are awaiting the Governor’s signature.
MA: Earlier this month, a bill (SB 2581) passed the House, according to sponsors, to promote student learning and mental health and provide a distraction-free learning environment. The bill prohibits the use of cell phones during the school day and minors 14 and under from using social media platforms unless they receive parental consent.
NE: Last week, the Governor signed LB 525, which focuses on privacy rights related to agricultural producers' data in Nebraska and disclosure requirements for AI chatbots, among other requirements. Non-partisan Legislative Council Staff for the Colorado General Assembly recently released a policy brief on agricultural data sharing.
OH: Recently, the Columbus City Schools Board of Education unanimously approved an AI policy. Requires AI tools to undergo a risk assessment before implementation. The policy specifies that the tool should support student teaching and learning, not substitute for student effort or educators. The policy focuses on data privacy and security, emphasizing the use of AI tools only if approved by the school district.
OK: The Oklahoma State Legislature is considering an AI chatbot and minor-focused bill (SB 1521). The bill establishes new requirements for operators of AI chatbots that interact with minors and requires platforms to provide parents with parental management tools for minor accounts. Recently, the Governor signed SB 546, bringing the state into the ranks of states with new comprehensive consumer privacy laws.
SC: A bill (SB 268) focused on minor data collection and digital platform design, intended to protect children from online harms, is gaining traction and making it close to the finish line.
TN: Yesterday, the Governor signed SB 837, clarifying that an AI system is not a “person” under the law.
The President of the European Commission presented the EU age verification app, an open-source technical solution that implements a privacy-preserving age verification method to assist with the implementation of the Digital Services Act. The presentation was a part of a series of meetings convened by the Special Panel on Child Online Safety.
The European Commission sent proposed measures for Google to adhere to, in order to meet requirements under the Digital Markets Act. The measure aims to allow third-party online search engines to optimize their search services, in the new age of data and AI.
Brookings Institute
Brookings Institute
Center for Humane Technology
Center for Democracy & Technology
Chicago Council of Lawyers
Data & Society
Harvard Kennedy School Experts
Institute of Family Studies
Institute for Law & AI at Cambridge
MIT Researchers
National Association of State Chief Information Officers
OpenAI
OpenAI
Public Knowledge
Stanford University Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence
Target
One of the many questions that have emerged during leader deliberations on how to regulate and oversee AI systems and tools is who bears the responsibility for the actions of the “intelligent system,” especially when it creates harm. Proposals from states have approached this question differently. For example, state legislators in Missouri debated a proposal (SB 1012) that would clarify that liability for harm caused by an AI system would rest with a person or organization, such as the system's designer or deployer. The bill would also prohibit an AI system from being granted legal personhood, including prohibiting marriage with AI systems and the ownership of property. In Illinois, proposals moving through the process focus on protecting AI developers from liability and ensuring safety.
Not only are states approaching these challenges with differing solutions, but leading AI companies also do not agree. Anthropic and OpenAI are supporting opposing bills in the Illinois General Assembly.
OpenAI supports SB 3444, while Anthropic opposes it. The bill protects an AI frontier model from liability for critical harms if the developer did not intentionally cause the harm and publishes a safety and security protocol and transparency report on its website.
In contrast, Anthropic supports SB 3261. The bill requires an AI frontier model developer and a large chatbot provider to publish a public safety and child protection plan. The bill creates a mechanism to report a safety incident related to AI models and chatbots under the Attorney General.
Tech Policy & Governance Jobs
Company/Organization: | Title: | Closing Date: |
|---|---|---|
Department of Information Systems, State of Arkansas | Ongoing | |
Box | Ongoing | |
Paragon Policy Fellowship | 04/30/2026 | |
The University of Alabama | 07/01/2026 | |
Sony | 06/15/2026 Start Date |
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Disclosure: This is a human-written and driven publication. As a small business owner and mighty team of 1, I use AI tools to optimize my small business operations as a part of my admin tech stack. Regarding this publication, AI is mainly used to help with catchy titles, as a thesaurus when writing and a partner when creating cartoons. (Thanks, Canva, and not an ad!) As a secret doodler, I add my human touch using my digital pad and pen. I also use Grammarly, with AI built in, to help with copy editing/grammar check (again, mighty team of one!) Thanks for reading. 😊