Trahan faces progressive pushback over federal AI regulation plan
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Rep. Lori Trahan speaks during a roundtable discussion on college sports at the White House in Washington, D.C., on March 6, 2026. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Massachusetts progressives are pushing back on one of their own over a sweeping federal AI proposal.
Why it matters: Rep. Lori Trahan (D-Westford) is a House Democratic point-person for the debate over regulation of artificial intelligence and federal restrictions on state-level AI laws.
State of play: Trahan co-authored the "Great American Artificial Intelligence Act" with Rep. Jay Obernolte (R-Calif.), a 269-page discussion draft that, if enacted, would freeze state AI development regulation for three years.
Between the lines: The backlash from her constituents over the bipartisan plan is a preview of the political minefield awaiting liberal Democrats who find common ground with the GOP on tech issues.
Zoom in: A coalition of Massachusetts advocacy groups, including Common Cause Massachusetts, the Disability Law Center and local Indivisible chapters, sent Trahan a letter June 17 urging her to reconsider the draft's preemption of state laws.
- The groups flagged that Massachusetts researchers have been leading investigations into the dangers of AI, from chatbots dispensing questionable medical advice to tools providing alarming content to minors.
- They argue regulators are already falling behind the pace of AI development and a three-year pause on state action would be dangerous.
The other side: In a May op-ed in CommonWealth Beacon, Trahan compared the threat posed to American workers by AI to the 2020 closure of a Brooks Brothers factory in Haverhill, writing that Congress watched jobs disappear without acting.
- Trahan says the plan doesn't strip state power but reshapes it.
- Under her plan, federal law would govern AI model development, while states would retain authority over AI use and deployment.
- Discrimination, deception and consumer harm would still be the purview of states, according to Trahan.
On Beacon Hill, State Sen. Michael Moore joined a group of state lawmakers from around the country warning Trahan that a federal framework could gut Massachusetts consumer protections, including data privacy laws.
- Moore, along with Rep. Tricia Farley-Bouvier, has expressed concerns to Trahan as Massachusetts and other states grapple with a data center construction boom that's straining energy supplies.
On June 16, more than 200 state legislators (104 Democrats, 98 Republicans, and one Independent) wrote to Congress demanding the state law preemption be stripped from the plan.
- The letter warned the freeze would hamstring legislators while AI is advancing quickly.
What we're watching: If Democrats retake the House in November, the party's own AI framework — not necessarily Trahan's bipartisan deal — would likely become the vehicle for federal regulation.
- Democrats could produce more aggressive and consumer-focused regulations with fewer concessions to the tech industry on preemption.
The bottom line: Trahan is caught between working out bipartisan compromises and a party moving in the other direction.
- Parts of her Massachusetts base aren't giving her much runway.