Topic: state legislation
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New Robotaxi Law Could Block Tesla
New Jersey lawmakers have proposed a bill requiring fully autonomous vehicles to use cameras plus at least two other sensing technologies (like lidar and radar), effectively blocking Tesla’s camera-only Robotaxi system from operating in the state. The bill’s sponsor, Senator Andrew Zwicker, argue...
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Illinois passes landmark law curbing Trump’s control over AI regulation
Illinois lawmakers passed SB 315, the strictest AI safety law in the country, requiring major AI companies to submit public safety plans, annual third-party test reports, and report critical safety incidents within 72 hours (or 24 hours for imminent risks), with whistleblower protections for empl...
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Minnesota bans fake AI nudes; app makers face $500K fines
Minnesota has become the first U.S. state to pass a law specifically targeting AI nudification apps, with unanimous legislative approval and Governor Tim Walz expected to sign it, taking effect in August. The law enables victims to sue developers for extensive damages, allows the attorney general...
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Wisconsin governor rejects mandatory age verification for porn sites
Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers vetoed a bill that would have required age verification for accessing adult content online, calling it an intrusive burden on adults. The veto contrasts with a national trend, as over two dozen other states have enacted similar laws aimed at protecting minors. The de...
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Justice Dept. backs xAI in fight over Minnesota nudify ban
The US Department of Justice has sided with Elon Musk's xAI in its legal challenge to a Minnesota law banning AI-powered "nudification" software, with a judge indicating a ruling on a preliminary injunction is imminent. xAI argues the statute is overly broad and violates First Amendment rights by...
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US State Laws Mandate Age Verification in Operating Systems
Several U.S. states are proposing laws that would require operating system providers to collect and confirm user ages, shifting responsibility from apps to the core system software to protect minors. These mandates pose significant challenges for open-source software communities, which may lack t...
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Texas App Store Age Verification Law Blocked by Judge
A federal judge has blocked a Texas law requiring app stores to verify user ages, issuing a preliminary injunction and indicating the law likely violates First Amendment free speech protections. The law, part of a novel state legislative model, would have made app stores like Apple's and Google's...
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New York Moves to Regulate Roblox Gaming Platform
New York is proposing new regulations, led by Governor Kathy Hochul, to enhance children's digital safety on online gaming platforms like Roblox, filling gaps left by stalled federal action. The proposed rules would require platforms to verify user ages, set the strictest privacy defaults for min...
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App Store ID Check: What You Need to Know
The focus for online age verification is shifting to app stores like Apple's and Google's, aiming to centralize responsibility on these gatekeepers rather than individual app developers. App stores are targeted as a strategic choke point because they are centralized marketplaces, making age check...
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NY AI Bill Sponsor Defies a16z Super PAC Targeting Him
Assembly member Alex Bores is targeted by a super PAC, Leading the Future, backed by major tech investors with over $100 million, opposing his support for AI regulation in his congressional campaign. Bores sponsors the bipartisan RAISE Act in New York, which would require large AI labs to impleme...
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Net Neutrality's Brief Return: What Happened?
The FCC has dismantled federal net neutrality rules, leaving the future of an open internet uncertain and shifting the regulatory battle to the state level. State laws, like California's strong 2018 statute, have become crucial consumer safeguards, but are now threatened by federal efforts to lin...
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Your Right to Repair: The Battle Heats Up
The right-to-repair movement has achieved significant legislative progress, with three U.S. states passing laws this year, reflecting a shift toward consumer autonomy and product longevity. Advocates argue that restricting repair creates a costly, non-competitive service market and contributes to...
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New Road Safety Group Takes Aim at Self-Driving Cars
SAVE-US is advocating for stricter autonomous vehicle regulations, focusing on Tesla as a key example of inadequate safety oversight and pushing for clearer operational disclosures and crash data reporting. The organization plans to target large states like Illinois, New York, and New Jersey to i...
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California's AI Safety Law: Proving Innovation and Regulation Can Coexist
California's SB 53 mandates that major AI labs disclose safety protocols and adhere to security standards, particularly for catastrophic risks, enforced by the Office of Emergency Services. The law reinforces existing industry practices to uphold corporate safety commitments and prevent cutting c...
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New York enacts first US data center moratorium
New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed an executive order enacting a temporary halt on new hyperscale data center construction over 50 megawatts, making it the first state to do so, in order to protect residents from rising energy costs and environmental harm. The moratorium, which could last up t...
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New York Lawmakers Approve One-Year Ban on New Data Centers
The New York State Legislature has approved a one-year moratorium on new large data centers, a first-of-its-kind statewide ban, to study their impact on energy prices, the environment, and local communities. Under the bill, the state must produce a report on data center resource consumption, and ...
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xAI races to block Minnesota’s anti-nudification app law
xAI has sued Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison to block a state law targeting nudification apps, arguing the statute is overbroad and violates the First Amendment by forcing it to restrict Grok Imagine’s image-editing features. The lawsuit comes after Grok generated millions of sexually ex...
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$100M AI Super PAC's Attack on Democrat Alex Bores May Have Backfired
A political attack by an AI super PAC unintentionally boosted the profile of candidate Alex Bores, allowing him to advocate for AI regulation and frame the opposition as helpful in raising public awareness. Bores co-authored the RAISE Act, which passed New York's legislature and would impose fine...
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Linux Developers Battle Age-Gated Internet
Colorado's SB26-051, which required operating systems to collect user ages for app developers, initially threatened open-source systems like System76's Pop!_OS, but was amended on May 1st to exempt open-source operating systems after CEO Carl Richell's advocacy. Age verification laws remain conte...
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New York Rejects Robotaxi Legalization, Dealing Blow to Waymo
New York has rejected a proposal to legalize commercial robotaxi services, dealing a setback to companies like Waymo due to insufficient legislative support. The decision highlights ongoing regulatory and public acceptance challenges for autonomous vehicles, even in key urban markets targeted for...
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