A bill to change Colorado’s controversial artificial intelligence law was tabled Monday after tech industry, consumer advocates and lawmakers couldn’t reach consensus on the tweaks.
Colorado’s first-in-the nation law goes into effect Feb. 1.
Technology companies asked for the changes to the law, passed last year, citing the undue burdens they feel it puts on small businesses to disclose when AI systems are being used for consequential decisions, like employment, loans and housing. They called it a disclosure law, not a consumer-protection law.
After Gov. Jared Polis came out against the law last June and asked for revisions, Senate Bill 318 was introduced last week to try to address the complaints lodged by the tech community. That was to no avail, apparently.
Senate Bill 318 was rejected on a 5-2 vote Monday before the Senate Business, Labor and Technology Committee.
Senate Majority leader Robert Rodriguez, a Denver Democrat and the lead sponsor of both pieces of legislation, attempted to delay the AI law’s implementation for two months next year to provide more time for the changes to be worked out. But after hearing continued objections from the tech community, he asked that the bill be shelved during the committee hearing.
“I was disappointed we couldn’t get to a place that we could proceed with a bill that addressed a lot of concerns” of the business community, said Rodriguez “People are more distrusting of AI every year. And the crux of this bill was about showing trust and transparency. And an industry that’s never been regulated has fought this. … And while I’ve made a good faith effort for balance and for consumers and businesses, which is a hard line to draw, both sides were not happy with the bill.”
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Pushback from Gov. Polis led to the proposed changes to delay the law for one year and exempt businesses with fewer than 500 employees in the first 15 months. All companies using AI must abide by state anti-discrimination laws.
Read moreDuring the committee hearing, Brittany Morris Saunders, president of the Colorado Technology Association, pleaded for the effective date of the AI law to be pushed back. She’d served on an interim legislative task force to work with consumer advocates and lawmakers to find common ground. Little was found.
“We remain the only state in the country with this type of legislation, with this type of law. We have other states that have tried to follow suit and they have been postponed indefinitely or their governor has vetoed them. This is a big concern to us in Colorado’s competitiveness but even more so from a technical and implementation perspective,” she said. “We would ask that you please extend this out to the end of next year.”
The death of the bill appeared to catch the governor off guard.
“I don’t have an update on it yet,” he told The Colorado Sun after signing a pair of bills into law on Monday afternoon.
This is a developing story that will be updated.
Colorado Sun staff writer Jesse Paul contributed to this report.
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