Table of Contents
Institutions Across the World Weigh In on AI Debate
While Americans will be kicking off their summer activities in the coming days, Pope Leo XIV will take center stage to address artificial intelligence and humanity. Earlier this month, the religious leader signed his first encyclical, a pastoral letter aimed at individuals who follow the Catholic faith to provide guidance on the topic and approved a new commission on AI. On Monday, the document will be officially released and discussed by a panel, including one of the founders of a leading AI company, Anthropic.
Meanwhile, as widely reported in media outlets across the U.S., a release of a federal executive order on AI was postponed that would have created a voluntary oversight process for advanced AI systems by the federal government before release.
State Policy Action
CO: Last week, the Governor signed an update to Colorado’s comprehensive AI law (SB 189), a long-debated compromise. The bill focuses on disclosures of AI in consequential decisions in areas like education, housing and lending and allows consumers to request human review of a decision. The new law will no longer require audits, among other elements. Other AI-focused bills passed the Colorado General Assembly this month and are awaiting the Governor’s signature:
HB 1139 creates new requirements for AI systems that are used to conduct utilization reviews related to health care services.
HB 1195 is a bill that outlines AI may be used in psychotherapy services through administrative support but prohibits AI from interacting with clients and providing treatment plans without the approval of a licensed professional.
HB 1210 prohibits certain computational processes from setting prices or wages.
HB 1263 creates new requirements for AI chatbots, with additional requirements targeted at minor users.
CA: Earlier this month, the Governor launched a “digital democracy program” aimed at engaging California residents around general AI usage questions and suggestions on how the government should respond. A new questionnaire is available now and live forums will start later this summer. This week, the Governor signed an executive order focused on AI’s impact on the workforce.
IL: The Illinois General Assembly is debating an AI-safety bill (SB 315) that is quickly moving its’ way through the process with its next hearing in the House Executive Committee on 5/27. The bill creates new requirements for large frontier AI developers to update an AI framework annually with elements addressing catastrophic-risk assessment, cybersecurity, third-party evaluations and risks.
MD: Last week, the Governor signed HB 264, which focuses on how the state collects, use, keeps and protects constituents’ personal information. The new law also creates additional security and data requirements for third-party contracts.
OK: Earlier this month, the Governor signed HB 2992 to protect customers from increased electricity rates due to “large-load” customers like data centers and AI-computing facilities. Another bill that passed the finish line this month was HB 3244 which creates protections for elderly and other vulnerable communities from AI-generated fraud and exploitation.
TX: Last month, the Governor signed SB 14, creating the new Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office dubbed, “Texas DOGE.” Last week, the new Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office launched a new AI-driven website created for residents to navigate state rules and regulations and allows users to make recommendations to make government more efficient.
This week, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a Surgeon General’s Advisory warning on the harms of screen use in youth. The advisory includes recommendations for youth, families, schools, health care providers, researchers, policymakers and technology companies.
A few days ago, the Federal Trade Commission launched a website to help enforce the new “TAKE IT DOWN Act” allowing victims to submit complaints about platforms that have failed to act on requests to remove nonconsensual intimate images. The new law aimed at AI-generated deepfakes requires covered platforms to give people a way to request the removal of intimate photos or videos shared online without their consent and to remove those intimate images within 48 hours.
Rocky decided to take off early for the holiday weekend. He ran to the mountains to start his summer vacation early and take a break from the controversy. He will be bark, I mean back, in June!
Tech Policy & Governance Jobs
Company/Organization: | Title: | Closing Date: |
|---|---|---|
Google.org | Ongoing | |
R Street | Ongoing | |
Code for America | Ongoing | |
Knight-Georgetown Institute | June 1, 2026 | |
Office of the Mayor, San Francisco | Ongoing |
Do you have leads, tips, corrections, feedback or resources you would like to share? Send your advice to [email protected].
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. 😊
