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Last Update: 10/27/2026 at 5:34 AM EST
State AI Laws and Federal Preemption
Coverage from Winzheng, Americans for Responsible Innovation, and others
U.
S. states have pursued or considered rules for frontier AI safety, transparency, reporting, and independent audits, with California, New York, Illinois, and Massachusetts among the recurring settings. Companies take different positions on how these laws should relate to national policy: OpenAI has argued for a unified federal framework and preemption, while Anthropic has backed stronger state-level safeguards. The debate turns on how to balance consistent requirements across states with the protections and enforcement that state measures may provide, and on what role federal institutions such as CAISI should play.
Looking Back
119 Day Timeline
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History
09/29/2026
The proposals are now more specifically framed: House drafts would temporarily preempt some state rules on AI development while preserving state authority over downstream uses. White House efforts to link preemption to children’s online-safety measures add a new negotiating front and complicate compromise.
All Articles34 articles
Important
The White House released the National AI Policy Framework on March 20, 2026, and negotiated federal AI preemption with Congress in Washington alongside child-safety legislation.
8/22/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Americans for Responsible Innovation proposes a federal frontier AI licensing framework for evaluation, red teaming, documentation, and government-backed assurance in the United States.
7/26/2026 • Model Oversight & Frontier Governance • General
OpenAI published a Public Policy Agenda detailing youth risk-based regulation, education and workforce proposals, and frontier-model safety governance while ongoing lawsuits allege insufficient child protection.
7/17/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Anthropic and Cesar Fernandez argue US states should adopt third-party audited safety processes for frontier AI models after earlier transparency and self-reporting laws.
7/16/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Representatives Jay Obernolte and Lori Trahan released a draft AI bill on July 6 that preempts state regulation of frontier AI model development for three years while keeping state oversight after deployment.
7/6/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
On June 4, Representatives Jay Obernolte and Lori Trahan released the Great American Artificial Intelligence Act discussion draft with three-year preemption and CAISI-supervised frontier model disclosure and audits.
7/6/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
State lawmakers urged Congress to oppose the Great American AI Act after draft release, citing proposed federal preemption that would limit state AI development rules.
6/16/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
The White House seeks federal AI preemption by chaining it to the Kids Online Safety Act ahead of a congressional recess, amid House-Senate version conflicts and Senate vote uncertainty.
6/15/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Senator Marsha Blackburn negotiates with the White House in 2026 to preempt state AI rules and advance KOSA, NO FAKES, and federal age verification.
6/11/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
OpenAI released a national AI regulation blueprint in Washington, D.C., proposing independent model evaluations and CAISI governance changes tied to transparency and compliance enforcement mechanisms.
6/4/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
203 state lawmakers asked Congress on Tuesday to reject a three-year AI regulatory preemption proposal, warning that broad federal override could constrain state protections.
6/16/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Industry groups and congressional lawmakers are debating in the United States whether federal AI legislation should preempt state laws while preserving selected state safeguards.
9/15/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
OpenAI urges Congress in the United States to create a preemptive national frontier-AI framework, potentially overriding state rules, with CAISI providing model evaluation and mitigations advice.
7/16/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
White House and Senate and House leaders negotiate children online safety bills tied to federal AI preemption ahead of the US midterms.
6/12/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
OpenAI lobbyist Chris Lehane outlines reverse federalism targeting state legislatures and governors in California, New York, and Illinois after stalled federal AI talks.
5/20/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Interesting
White House support for a combined KOSA and AI preemption package has reportedly created uncertainty about which Kids Online Safety Act version will advance in Congress.
6/15/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Over 200 state lawmakers petition Congress, with Wisconsin lawmakers Clinton Anderson and Adam Neylon, to reject Great American AI Act preemption limits on state AI regulation.
7/1/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
OpenAI proposed a CAISI-centered federal AI governance blueprint with reverse federalism as U.S. executive AI orders and copyright litigation continue.
6/6/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
OpenAI appointed three policy leaders in the United States to influence state AI regulations across northeastern, southeastern, and cybersecurity policy areas.
9/6/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Missouri's House Future Caucus released nonbinding AI data-center evaluation guidance in St. Charles on August 11, 2026, while lawmakers disputed OpenAI metadata indicating possible AI-assisted drafting.
8/13/2026 • Export Controls, Chips & Compute Governance • General
Senate Democrats will propose amendments during an upcoming Commerce Committee markup in Washington to strengthen child-safety protections and restrict preemption of state AI laws.
7/28/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Anthropic and OpenAI differ on US AI regulation timing, with Anthropic backing California SB 53 and New York RAISE Act and OpenAI supporting federal preemption.
7/15/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Seven OpenAI employees and one former worker donated over $215,000 to Guardrails Alliance while OpenAI disputed ties to Greg Brockman-backed election spending ahead of 2026.
7/15/2026 • Corporate AI Governance • General
Anthropic increases state lobbying for stricter AI regulations, with Cesar Fernandez citing New York, Illinois, and Massachusetts bill language amid ongoing federal legislative gridlock.
7/15/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Dean Ball warned on The Cognitive Revolution podcast that US frontier AI model testing and access could become centralized in classified intelligence channels.
6/21/2026 • Model Oversight & Frontier Governance • General
White House officials met with kids safety groups and major AI companies in Washington, D.C., to negotiate a kids safety package that could drive AI state-law preemption, potentially including KOSA and age verification.
6/11/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Obernolte and Trahan introduced a 269-page federal AI regulatory draft on June 4 that includes advanced-AI oversight and a three-year moratorium on state rules.
6/6/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Lori Trahan and Jay Obernolte unveiled a bipartisan federal AI safety oversight draft in Massachusetts, while critics attacked a three-year state preemption provision.
6/5/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Reps. Lori Trahan and Jay Obernolte proposed an AI governance preemption framework on predeployment oversight, with ARI campaigning in Massachusetts against a three-year state legislative ban.
6/4/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
OpenAI proposes a U.S. federal frontier AI governance framework led by CAISI, aligned with state laws such as California SB 53, New York RAISE, and Illinois SB 315.
6/3/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
OpenAI announced funding for 14 projects across five jurisdictions to study economic and societal responses to advancing AI during a six-month program ending in 2027.
9/8/2026 • Corporate AI Governance • General
OpenAI announced in 2026 that 14 research institutions worldwide would receive grants and API credits for six-month projects on AI economic policy, safety, and governance.
8/17/2026 • Corporate AI Governance • General
Americans for Responsible Innovation is launching a 50-state AI policy advocacy operation in the United States as state legislatures consider new safeguards.
9/10/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General
Americans for Responsible Innovation announced in Washington, D.C., a nationwide state AI policy initiative as Congress considers preempting selected state safeguards.
9/10/2026 • Legislation & Regulatory Policy • General