The latest proposal to include a ban on states regulating AI in the annual defense bill reportedly failed after bipartisan opposition.
According to The Hill, House Minority Leader Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana) said Tuesday that Republican leaders would look for “another place” to include the bill (an effort that President Trump also supports).
The proposal, which would pre-empt states from enacting their own AI regulations, comes months after Republican lawmakers tried to include a 10-year moratorium on state AI laws in President Trump’s tax and spending bill earlier this year. This provision failed at the time due to strong resistance from both parties.
Silicon Valley has supported such measures, arguing that state regulations create a patchwork of unworkable rules that can stifle innovation.
Critics argue that most state AI bills focus on safety, transparency, and consumer protection, and that in the absence of a federal AI law to accomplish these tasks, blocking state regulation would effectively hand over control to Big Tech without oversight.
Scalise reportedly conceded that such a provision was not the place in the defense bill, echoing President Trump’s previous insistence on introducing the ban as a separate bill. A leaked draft executive order suggests President Trump is considering taking matters into his own hands, but those efforts have reportedly been paused for now.
