Quick Hits
- The Trump administration released an AI policy framework, largely reiterating the administration’s previously stated policy goals to promote AI.
- In particular, the framework urges Congress to establish preemption of state and local regulations to promote innovation.
- The likelihood of these policy goals being fully implemented is uncertain at this time.
The “National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence” provides broad, overarching legislative recommendations for Congress for governing the development and deployment of AI technology. The framework is the latest effort by the Trump administration to set policy around AI and largely reiterates the administration’s stated policy goals as expressed through a series of executive orders (EOs) issued since the president took office in January 2025. However, it is unclear whether there is sufficient support in Congress for such a framework, and implementation appears unlikely at this time.
This framework further signals the current U.S. position in the global debate as to whether AI regulations prioritize encouraging innovation or protecting individual rights and freedoms. The EU AI Act, for example, focuses on the latter.
Proposed AI Framework
The new framework is organized around “Seven Pillars” that emphasize protecting children, communities, creators, and free speech; maintaining U.S. innovation; and promoting workforce development and AI-ready education. Of note for employers, the framework reiterates the administration’s push for federal preemption of state and local laws on AI and urges Congress to establish preemption, reflecting an acknowledgment that setting such policy may require congressional action.
Specifically, the framework urges Congress to “ensure that State laws do not govern areas better suited to the Federal Government or act contrary to the United States’ national strategy to achieve global AI dominance.” The framework indicates that states should not be permitted to regulate AI development, characterizing it as “an inherently interstate phenomenon with key foreign policy and national security implications.” Further, it asserts that states should not unduly burden the lawful use of AI or penalize AI developers for a third party’s unlawful conduct involving their models.
At the same time, the framework recommends against the formation of any new federal agency, calling on Congress to refrain from creating “any new federal rulemaking body to regulate AI.” Instead, the framework calls on Congress to “support development and deployment of sector-specific AI applications through existing regulatory bodies with subject matter expertise and through industry-led standards” and “provide AI resources to small businesses, such as grants, tax incentives, and technical assistance programs, to support wider deployment of AI tools across American industry.”
Key Takeaways
The White House’s new framework is the latest expression of the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to address AI. If implemented, the framework could have significant implications for employers navigating the current landscape of state and local AI regulations. Several states and municipalities—including California, Colorado, Illinois, Texas, and New York City—have already enacted laws or regulations that directly affect how employers use AI in hiring, promotion, and other employment decisions. At the same time, federal preemption of AI laws and regulations could raise questions about employers’ duties to protect against unlawful discrimination under long-standing state and federal antidiscrimination laws. For multinational employers, it could also create cross-border compliance tension, as many countries are restricting the use of AI in employment.
That said, it appears unlikely that Congress will act on this policy framework, at least in the short term. To date, the mandates in the Trump administration’s EOs have not been implemented, particularly with respect to identifying “onerous” state laws.
Ogletree Deakins’ Cybersecurity and Privacy Practice Group and Technology Practice Group will continue to monitor developments and will provide updates on the Cybersecurity and Privacy, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Compliance, Employment Law, Governmental Affairs, and Technology blogs as additional information becomes available.
This article and more information on how the Trump administration’s actions impact employers can be found on Ogletree Deakins’ Administration Resource Hub.
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