State AI Laws To Be Challenged Under Forthcoming Trump Order

President Donald Trump is preparing to sign an executive order that would allow the Department of Justice to sue states over artificial intelligence regulations it deems unconstitutional, according to a draft making the rounds on K Street, Capitol Hill, and seen by Bloomberg Government.

The draft order directs the attorney general to establish a task force that would challenge state AI laws should they “unconstitutionally regulate interstate commerce, are preempted by existing Federal regulations, or are otherwise unlawful.”

A White House official said that discussion about potential executive orders is speculation until orders are officially announced.

States with AI laws that are considered burdensome or restrictive would also lose eligibility for some federal broadband funding under the draft executive order.

The forthcoming action comes as Trump, White House officials, and the tech industry have publicly rallied against states enacting new AI laws they say threaten innovation and are difficult to comply with. The Trump administration and AI companies have called on Congress to implement a federal standard that would override state activity. Congress has yet to reach consensus to do so.

Trump repeated his call for Congress to act in a Truth Social post on Tuesday. House and Senate Republican leaders this week have been discussing adding language in an annual must-pass defense bill that would preempt state regulations on AI. But it's a longshot bid — Republicans previously clashed over the provision and Democrats are prepared to oppose it.

States have moved to pass AI laws largely aimed at protecting their citizens against harms posed by the technology in lieu of federal legislation. Republican governors, including Ron DeSantis of Florida and Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas, have decried attempts to limit state authority on regulating AI. Such an executive order is likely to face legal challenges.