Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
More than 60 organizations are calling on the Biden administration to require government agencies to adhere to the White House's AI Bill of Rights.
Driving the news: Biden is expected to soon issue an AI executive order, which some groups say should make the AI Bill of Rights binding policy for federal agencies, contractors and grantees.
- In a letter to Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, leading civil rights, labor and tech policy groups say they're particularly interested in ensuring AI tools are safe, effective and free from algorithmic discrimination.
Why it matters: Congress doesn't have much time this year to pass AI legislation, and the White House is better poised to regulate an industry that's moving at breakneck speed.
- Industry groups argue making the AI Bill of Rights binding would be overly burdensome and harm competition.
The groups that signed the letter are also demanding that the White House:
- Make sure the whole federal government is subject to the requirements, including law enforcement and the national security community.
- Require agencies to submit implementation plans within 90 days and fully implement the bill of rights within one year of the executive order being issued.
- Direct agencies to pursue the new regulations needed in addition to enforcing current civil rights protections and antitrust law.
- Require agencies to adopt data minimization standards and support federal privacy legislation.
What they're saying: "It is critical that the administration's forthcoming AI EO implement the AI Bill of Rights," the letter states.
- "Our groups would not consider it sufficient to merely include the AI Bill of Rights in the forthcoming OMB AI guidance or direct agencies to assess their tools under the National Institute of Standards and Technology's AI Risk Management Framework."
- The Center for American Progress, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, and the Center for Democracy and Technology are among the signatories.
Of note: The White House previously has said its blueprint is a "guide," not enforceable by law and meant to be a voluntary strategy document.
