Exclusive: Schatz plots AI jobs bills
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Schatz last October. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call Inc. via Getty Images
Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i) is planning to introduce two AI labor bills in the coming months, his office exclusively told Axios.
Why it matters: Lawmakers are under increasing pressure to respond to fears that AI will upend the job market, and they're starting to throw out ideas for how to deal with it.
Schatz is working on one bill that would impose a "progressive non-deductible excise tax" on AI company revenues. The tax would fund a worker retraining program, including a living stipend and health benefits, per his office.
- It would subsidize state and local governments to employ displaced workers, and also require the federal government to retrain workers for jobs within agencies.
The second bill would trigger "an automatic, whole of government response" if unemployment exceeds 5.5% for two quarters.
- It would require grant and loan programs, regulators and policymakers to prioritize employment impacts in their decisions.
Friction point: AI's impact on the workforce could unfold faster than Congress can agree on what the government should do about it.
What they're saying: "AI is already changing how people work, and it's bringing real risks: massive job losses, increased workplace surveillance, and weaker bargaining power for workers. We need to get ahead of it," Schatz said in a statement to Axios.
- "That means investing in workforce training, strengthening worker protections, and making sure the benefits of AI are more broadly shared, and not concentrated just at the top."
What we're watching: Concerns about AI's economic impact are gaining traction on Capitol Hill, so expect lawmakers to float more proposals focused on workforce issues.
- In the House, Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) recently introduced a bipartisan bill that would create a federal tax credit for companies that invest in AI training for employees.
