Washington, D.C. — Today, Congresswoman Deborah Ross (NC-02) led a group of women lawmakers in urging Speaker Mike Johnson and Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries to reject any effort to include a broad moratorium on state and local artificial intelligence (AI) regulation in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) or any other unrelated legislative vehicle. In a new letter, the Members warn that such a provision would undermine existing bipartisan protections for women and girls and prevent states from responding to rapidly evolving AI-enabled threats. 

 

In the letter, the lawmakers highlight the growing use of generative AI to stalk and track women, violate the privacy of domestic violence survivors, and create non-consensual pornographic “deepfakes,” nearly all of which target women and girls. They note that while Congress has not yet enacted sufficient federal protections, states and local governments across the country have acted on a bipartisan basis to fill the gap.

 

The lawmakers wrote, “Because Congress has failed to pass legislation to meet this challenge, state and local governments have taken action on a bipartisan basis to protect vulnerable populations… A federal moratorium would strip women and girls of existing protections and prevent states from enacting new safeguards.”

 

Today, 44 states have enacted deepfake related protections, with additional legislation pending nationwide. The letter warns that a federal freeze would erase important progress and endanger women and girls at a moment when AI tools are evolving at unprecedented speed.

In addition to Congresswoman Ross, the letter was signed by Representatives Alma Adams (NC-12), Julia Bownley (CA-26), Valerie Foushee (NC-04), Kim Schrier (WA-08), Kathy Castor (FL-14), Jan Schakowsky (IL-09), Melanie Stansbury (NM-01), and Jill Tokuda (HI-02).

 

The full text of the letter is available here.

 

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