President Donald Trump is considering signing an executive order as soon as Friday that would give the federal government unilateral power to regulate artificial intelligence, including the creation of an “AI Litigation Task Force” overseen by the attorney general, “whose sole responsibility would be to challenge state AI laws.”
As per the draft order received by The Verge, The task force will be able to sue states whose laws are deemed to hinder the growth of the AI industry, citing recent California laws on AI safety and “catastrophic risks” and a Colorado law prohibiting “algorithmic discrimination.” The task force will occasionally consult with a group of White House special advisers, including David Sachs, the billionaire venture capitalist and special adviser on AI and crypto.
In recent days, Trump has repeatedly expressed his desire to put a halt to state AI legislation, and reiterated it during his appearance at the US-Saudi Investment Forum on Wednesday, calling it a way to fight “woke” ideology. “You can’t go through 50 states. You have to get an endorsement. 50 is a disaster. Because you’ll have one wok state and you have to do all the woks. You’ll be back in the wok business. We don’t have woks anymore in this country. It’s virtually illegal. You’ll have few woksters.”
As part of the AI Action Plan released earlier this year, Trump directed several federal agencies, including the FCC, to explore ways they can circumvent “onerous” state and local regulations to spur industry growth and innovation. The full executive order sets out a 90-day roadmap for several key agencies to implement that plan along with the Justice Department: the Federal Trade Commission, the Commerce Department and the Federal Communications Commission.
Within 90 days of the order being signed, the Secretary of Commerce will be directed to publish a report detailing which states are violating Trump’s AI policy directives, as well as research which states may be ineligible for the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) program, which funds rural broadband access for many states. Meanwhile, the FTC will be directed to issue a statement on whether states that require AI companies to change their algorithms would violate laws prohibiting unfair and deceptive practices.
During an appearance at POLITICO’s AI and Tech Summit in September, FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr offered a possible interpretation of the Communications Act that would allow him to overrule state law. “Effectively, if there is a state or local law effectively prohibiting the deployment of this ‘modern infrastructure,’ the FCC has the authority to step in there,” he told POLITICO’s Alex Burns.
Carr also raised the possibility that the FCC’s regulatory powers could overrule a potential new law in California that would require AI companies to disclose their security testing models, saying it would further Trump’s goal of blocking “conscious AI” with ideological biases.
He cited the EU’s Digital Security Act and expressed his concern “Their AI models will not be truth-seeking AI models, but they will be woke AI models, AI models that are promoting DEI. And so, President Trump, as part of his action plan, has taken steps to make sure that we don’t have those types of woke DEI embedded AI models being developed here. When it comes to California, again, it’s all “Not at all familiar with the intricacies, but to the extent that they are moving in that direction and away from the pursuit of truth, that could be a problem.”
The notion that the FCC should have veto power over state AI laws—as well as other parts of Trump’s order—could easily be challenged in court. But steps like the litigation task force could still create hurdles for states regulating AI.
Punchbowl News reported on Wednesday that the executive order is the White House’s backup plan if Congress fails to pass the state AI law moratorium, this time through the upcoming reauthorization of the National Defense Authorization Act — a bill the government must pass to fund its national security apparatus.
Earlier this year, Congress attempted to block Trump’s draft of a “big, beautiful bill” containing spending provisions for his second term agenda, but it failed after a bipartisan group of senators voiced opposition to the act. Earlier this week, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise told Punchbowl News that Congress is considering another measure by attaching it to the NDAA.
But like the Big, Beautiful bill fight, there could be opposition to the NDAA’s passage with hidden stops inside, especially if the punishment is the same: blocking rural broadband funding. “The real question is how big of a grant is needed to pressure state lawmakers to change their AI rules?” Thierer said. “This came up in the last moratorium fight and some people were concerned that, for example, California would ignore budget threats related to BEAD. It might take multiple budget repeals or limitations to really put pressure on a large state like California.”