Trump's campaign to preempt state AI regulation faces resistance from states and Congress alike
In short: The Trump administration is waging a multi-front campaign to prevent states from regulating AI, using a DOJ litigation task force, Commerce Department evaluations of “burdensome” state laws, and a legislative framework urging Congress to preempt state-level regulation with a “minimally burdensome national standard.” But states have accelerated in the opposite direction – 1,208 AI bills introduced in 2025, 145 enacted – and Congress has rejected preemption twice, including a 99-1 Senate vote to strip an AI moratorium from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
