Author of California AI Legislation Calls Trump Executive Order 'Outrageous'
Wiener explains that his landmark state AI legislation faced backlash and roadblocks, but ultimately is a win for AI regulation.
WASHINGTON, Feb. 10, 2026 – California State Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, said the state’s recently passed artificial intelligence safety law would make a good national standard at the federal level, despite President Donald Trump’s AI executive order discouraging state regulation of AI.
Wiener was referring to the Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act, or SB 53, which was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 29, 2025. The law took effect on Jan. 1.
SB 53, a landmark AI safety measure proposed by Wiener, made California one of the first states to pass a law governing AI. In February 2024, he introduced a prior bill to regulate advanced AI models. Although the prior measure, SB 1047, passed the state legislature, it was vetoed by Newsom because of objections from the tech industry.
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