Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
The Senate Commerce Committee on Thursday released its budget reconciliation text with a number of tech and telecom provisions, including a tweak to the House's AI moratorium language.
Why it matters: The Senate Commerce text diverges from the House reconciliation bill, which includes a 10-year moratorium on states passing AI legislation without conditions.
- Instead, this version holds back broadband deployment funding from states that want to regulate AI themselves.
Here's a quick glance at tech-relevant parts of the bill:
- It authorizes a spectrum pipeline estimated to raise $85 billion; giving the public access to 800 MHz of spectrum (the House version frees up 600 MHz).
- It forbids states from collecting from $500 million allocated for Broadband, Equity, Access and Deployment funds if they pass AI-regulating laws.
- That includes, with some narrow exceptions, "any law or regulation of that entity or political subdivision that limits, restricts, or otherwise regulates artificial intelligence models, artificial intelligence systems, or automated decision systems."
What's next: Republicans have a self-imposed deadline of July 4 to pass the reconciliation bill.
