In response to the state’s unmatched growth in artificial intelligence technology, state Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Solano, introduced on Wednesday the California AI Accountability Act to ensure state agencies promote safeguards and consumer protections.
In a press statement, Dodd spokesman Paul Payne wrote that the bill “incorporates and builds upon” recent AI directives from President Joe Biden and Gov. Gavin Newsom and seeks “to encourage continued innovation while ensuring the rights and opportunities of all Californians are protected.”
“By now we all recognize the tremendous capability of artificial intelligence to improve our lives and the functioning of government,” Dodd said in the prepared statement. “But we also see its potential downsides — specifically, the threat to consumer privacy, transparency and fairness. My proposal will help identify the risks of these emerging systems and develop appropriate guidelines to protect our state and the public.”
Dodd’s bill comes as California lawmakers returned to work in Sacramento for the start of an election-year session dominated not only by AI uses and concerns but also by the state’s significant well of budgetary red ink, an estimated $68 billion.
California tech companies at the forefront of the AI boom face lawmakers like Dodd, who are intent on forging new rules to govern AI before it can dominate daily life — much as social media has.
Payne noted the 2023 White House Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights, in addition to guidance from Newsom, establish ways for addressing concerns, including AI-driven algorithms that discriminate against people based on income levels or race, and the effects of automated machines on our workforce. Additionally, the president and governor have underscored threats posed by AI to data and consumer privacy, “and the potential for misusing the technology to deceive and defraud,” he added.
Payne noted that Dodd’s proposed bill will guide the decision-making of state agencies, departments and subdivisions “in the review, adoption, management, governance and regulations of automated decision-making technologies.”
One aspect of the bill would require the California Government Operations Agency, the California Department of Technology and the Office of Data and Innovation to produce a report that includes an examination of the most significant, potentially beneficial uses for AI tools by the state.
Another provision in the bill would require state agencies to notify users when they are interacting with AI. It also states the intent of the Legislature is to make sure the private sector adheres to these rights and safeguards, in addition to any specific statutory or regulatory requirements, and evolving best practices. And the act “encourages the state to invest in AI education and build AI competency in the state’s workforce,” Payne said in the statement.
One provision in the bill would require state agencies to notify users when they are interacting with AI. It also states the intent of the Legislature is to make sure the private sector adheres to these rights and safeguards, in addition to any specific statutory or regulatory requirements, and evolving best practices. And the act “encourages the state to invest in AI education and build AI competency in the state’s workforce,” Payne said in the statement.
The bill is a follow-up to Dodd’s Senate Concurrent Resolution 17, adopted last year, which sets forth many of the ideas and was the first AI-drafted state resolution in history.
Dodd represents the 3rd Senate District, which includes all or portions of Solano, Yolo, Napa, Sonoma, Sacramento and Contra Costa counties.
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