Bipartisan Senators Oppose 10-Year Ban on State AI Regulation
Top Republicans, including Sen. Blackburn and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, oppose AI moratorium in reconciliation bill
WASHINGTON, June 18, 2025 – Democratic and Republican leaders joined forces Wednesday to oppose a controversial provision buried in the budget reconciliation bill that would block states from regulating artificial intelligence until 2035.
Senators Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., joined state Attorneys General Jonathan Skrmetti, R-Tenn., and Nick Brown, D-Wash., at a press briefing Wednesday to denounce the proposed 10-year moratorium.
“We’ve certainly let Senator Cruz and his team know we don’t support this language,” Cantwell told members of the press. “Even Marjorie Taylor Greene, our Congressional counterpart on the other side of the Capitol, wants this language taken out,” Cantwell said, pointing to the breadth of opposition to the AI provision across both parties and chambers.
FROM SPEEDING BEAD SUMMIT
Panel 1: How Are States Thinking About Reasonable Costs Now?
Panel 2: Finding the State Versus Federal Balance in BEAD
Panel 3: Reacting to the New BEAD NOFO Guidance
Panel 4: Building, Maintaining and Adopting Digital Workforce Skills
The AI provision, tucked within Congress’ budget reconciliation bill, would prohibit any state from regulating AI until 2035. Following the House Commerce Committee’s introduction of the provision on May 12, sanctions were added by the Senate Commerce Committee that would withhold Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment funding from states that fail to comply.
The senators and AGs argued that the moratorium would undermine states’ efforts to combat the rising threats posed by AI.
States such as Washington and Tennessee have already passed laws prohibiting AI deception practices. Washington regulated deceptive AI election processes and Tennessee created the Elvis Act, aimed at protecting artists from AI impersonation.
Cantwell noted that 17 states including California, Indiana, and Montana, have all enacted privacy laws that give citizens the freedom to deny AI the right to personal data. Others, like Colorado, have prohibited AI deceptive rent-setting practices. And several other states passed laws regulating deepfakes.
“Last year, 24 states enacted regulating AI in some way, and they have adopted these laws that fill the gap while we are waiting for federal action,” Cantwell stated. “Now, Congress is threatening these laws, which will leave hundreds of millions of Americans vulnerable to AI harm. By abolishing those state law protections, the moratorium would erase hundreds of state laws that protect Americans from harm.”
Echoing this, Blackburn said, “We do not need a moratorium that would prohibit our states from stepping up and protecting citizens in their states.”
AI development could be a double-edged sword
While the group acknowledged that AI development is a double-edged sword, they warned it must not be underestimated, especially when unchecked.
“It can be used to supercharge fraud, rob musicians or artists, delay rights that go to creators of content, and deny individuals access to essential goods or services,” Cantwell proclaimed.
Skrmetti warned that the moratorium would give Big Tech companies a decade of regulatory immunity.
“Technology moves fast, and unfortunately, the federal government does not,” Skrmetti said. “And if there's a 10-year moratorium on state enforcement, that effectively means 10 years where we are at the mercy of the judgment of Big Tech, and we have no guarantees that they will be responsible with the incredible power this would give them. Our nation is built on checks and balances, and we have to be sure that the states are in a position to fulfill their mandate of protecting their citizens.”
Although Blackburn in the past has strongly advocated for the budget bill in which the AI moratorium is included, she could not support this provision.
“This is not the type of thing that we put into reconciliation bills,” Blackburn stated.
When asked about President Trump’s position on the provision, Cantwell responded, “The White House probably does not even understand all the implications here.”
Cantwell noted that she met with the Senate Parliamentarian Wednesday to discuss the moratorium’s implications, but was still awaiting a final response.
