The Trump administration on Friday released a legislative framework for a single national policy on artificial intelligence (AI), calling on Congress to adopt a light-touch legislative approach to AI.
The framework aims to create uniform safety and security guardrails around the technology while preempting states from enacting their own AI rules.
It addresses six objectives, including protecting children and empowering parents, safeguarding and strengthening American communities, respecting intellectual property rights and supporting creators, preventing censorship and protecting free speech, enabling innovation and ensuring American AI dominance, and educating Americans and developing an AI-ready workforce.
“The federal government is uniquely positioned to set a consistent national policy that enables us to win the AI race and deliver its benefits to the American people, while effectively addressing the policy challenges that accompany this transformative technology,” the White House said in a statement accompanying the framework.
“The administration looks forward to working with Congress in the coming months to turn this framework into legislation that the president can sign,” it added.
Push for a national standard
A central component of the framework is the call for a unified federal approach to AI governance.
The Trump administration has long been calling for preemption over state AI laws. In December, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to undermine state laws on AI, calling instead for a single framework to regulate the AI industry.
“Congress should preempt state AI laws that impose undue burdens to ensure a minimally burdensome national standard consistent with these recommendations, not fifty discordant ones,” the White House framework says.
The framework does outline some exceptions where the federal government’s laws wouldn’t preempt state laws, such as those that protect children or consumers.
Key policy priorities
Aside from the preemption of state AI laws, the framework also highlights several priority areas for congressional action, including child safety, infrastructure, workforce development, and intellectual property.
The administration places particular emphasis on protecting children and families from harms associated with AI technologies, as well as addressing risks tied to fraud, impersonation scams, and other malicious uses of AI systems. The framework calls on Congress to consider safeguards that strengthen protections while allowing continued deployment of the technology.
At the same time, the document underscores the importance of preserving free expression in AI systems, as policymakers weigh issues related to content moderation, bias, and the role of AI in shaping information environments.
Infrastructure is another key focus, with the framework pointing to growing energy and computing demands needed to support advanced AI systems.
The framework calls on Congress to “ensure that residential ratepayers do not experience increased electricity costs as a result of new AI data center construction and operation.” This is in alignment with the president’s newly announced Ratepayer Protection Pledge.
The framework also highlights the need for workforce development, emphasizing education and skills training as AI technologies continue to evolve.
Notably, the framework comes the same week as the Senate’s draft proposal for national AI, led by Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn. That 300-page measure looks to preempt state laws by focusing on regulations that protect the “4 Cs” – children, creators, conservatives, and communities.