The Need for a Moratorium on State AI Laws
*This article was originally published by RealClearPolicy.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is the new industrial revolution, and it is here to stay. America, therefore, cannot be on the sidelines lest it surrender the well-being of its people for future generations.
The Trump administration has recognized that the emerging technological leap will “define the future,” thus removing “barriers” (i.e., deregulation) in order to “sustain and enhance America’s global AI dominance.”
However, not everyone is as enthusiastic about the latest Promethean tool. State legislatures across the nation have been overcompensating to counteract AI anxieties, introducing more than 1,000 AI-related bills within the early months of 2025. One such bill (S.B. 2) was proposed by James Maroney, a Democratic state senator in Connecticut. Though the bill is well-intentioned — trying to protect, promote, and empower the state’s people with the “skills they need to thrive” — it would have imposed burdensome regulations, stifling innovation and prosperity.
For instance, one section of the bill required the disclosure of proprietary algorithms, which poses a threat to exposing intellectual property; while compliance requirements would have disproportionately impacted startups and small businesses, and costs to the state’s budget would have been measured in millions.
Ultimately, the bill passed the Connecticut Senate, but died in the House.
Gov. Ned Lamont (D-Conn.), who has been a proponent of AI investments, expressed his skepticism toward the bill, saying, “I just worry about every state going out and doing their own thing, a patchwork quilt of regulations, Connecticut being probably stricter and broader than most, what that means in terms of AI development here.” In 2024, he made clear that he would have rightfully vetoed S.B. 2, and his signal on this helped keep a heavy-handed regulatory bill from passing this year too.
The ‘patchwork’ Gov. Lamont raises is also a concern of a growing coalition of national and state-based think tanks, led by Abundance Institute, who are calling on the U.S. Congress for a moratorium on state AI-specific laws to “prevent a costly, innovation-killing thicket” of new mandates. The coalition argues a moratorium would not “touch existing laws” AI already impacts, such as privacy, consumer protection, civil rights, copyright infringement, and even criminal statutes like revenge porn. Moreover, the think tanks suggest Congress should enact a moratorium via the Commerce Clause to avert a “50-state tangle of AI-specific rules from splintering the national market.”
Likewise, the House Energy and Commerce Committee and even policymakers who signed comprehensive AI laws like Colorado Gov. Jared Polis (D), support a moratorium.
Yet Connecticut’s federal and state leadership, like Gov. Lamont, are mixed on AI regulations. Since 2023, in a rare moment of bipartisanship, Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) has collaborated with Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) on building a framework for A.I. regulations, while he has urged for action to protect American democracy from adversaries. Meanwhile, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) has supported increasing funding for the National Institute of Standards and Technology to “modernize research facilities and promote responsible innovation in artificial intelligence.”
Others, like Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), have been more critical of deregulation. On June 16, the possible 2028 presidential candidate wrote that a “fraud is being perpetuated on the American people and our pliant, gullible political leaders,” adding, “If America does not protect its economy and culture from the potential ravages of advanced AI, our nation will rot from the inside out, giving China a free lane to pass us politically and economically.”
He further argued America stands to economically lose if it fails to regulate A.I. industries, and that China “could end up winning” the technological race. However, suggesting that the best path forward is to heap on more regulatory burdens for the nascent industry is counterproductive.
It’s fair to wrestle with the myriad ethical questions related to AI. Tools are only as efficient and good as the human mind utilizing them. This is a watershed moment, rivaling consequential leaps in history like the printing press, steam engine, airplanes, the Internet or atomic energy. No doubt, there are problematic, nefarious uses, and jobs could be lost or become extinct. Indeed, American cities and towns could be forever changed; some may suffer a similar fate as to when manufacturing industries fled elsewhere leaving an economic and socioeconomics void.
Even Pope Leo XIV — who has focused his pontificate on addressing the “significant challenge” of AI — cautioned political leaders to use it as a “tool for the good of human beings, not to diminish them, not to replace them.” In short, human dignity must remain paramount.
The Holy Father is correct: humanity cannot be superseded by a new ‘intelligence.’ But he also recognized that it “will certainly be of great help to society” — and there are numerous benefits. As Reuters noted, AI can enhance decision-making, efficiency in the workplace, protect people from financial fraud, improve education and healthcare diagnosis (like detecting cancers or other diseases), and so on. AI technology can even bolster America’s national security and humanitarian aid. For instance, researchers are using AI to prevent famines in less affluent counties, which could possibly save millions of lives for generations to come. Moreover, as other jobs recede, new ones are inevitably created.
But this is a race. And the United States is poised for a new American revolution, gifted with the intellectual and economic capacity to be the hub for innovation. Yet state legislatures charging into this new age with an avalanche of proposed regulations — compelled by the urge to ‘do something’ — may strangle the proverbial baby in the cradle. After all, overregulation and “government micromanagement” often hurts economic growth.
As a nation, we should proceed with caution and protect human dignity; but to promote the general welfare of our citizens, we must also provide a playing field that is not drowning in conflicting, contradictory, or confusing mandates, which will negatively impact interstate commerce and America’s standing in the global AI race.
The moratorium on new state laws must be adopted as the U.S. Congress creates a virtuous framework so that we can unleash human potential and improve the quality of life for every American family.