The White House is pursuing a high‑stakes bargain with Congress that would pause most state-level artificial intelligence rules for three years in return for swift passage of federal online safety legislation.

Early push to preempt state AI laws

As states rapidly draft and pass their own AI rules, the administration has sought to consolidate power in Washington. A bipartisan House proposal from Reps. Jay Obernolte and Lori Trahan already envisioned three years of federal preemption, a new Center for AI Standards and Innovation, and risk assessments for certain AI developers before releasing models.¹ But that bill ran into resistance from advocates and state lawmakers who argued states should remain free to regulate.²

The last major attempt to curb state authority on AI and tech policy drew heavy pushback, leaving the Trump administration “inundated” by criticism from advocacy groups and state officials across the country.²

A new strategy: tie AI preemption to kids’ safety

In a relaunch of the effort this June, the White House began negotiating a new package that would again preempt some state AI laws, this time explicitly paired with legislation “aimed at protecting kids online and combating deepfakes.”² Senator Marsha Blackburn is now leading talks on the Hill, with her office saying she is “spearheading the negotiation with the White House to finalize legislative text of an AI preemption package” that includes the Senate version of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), the NO FAKES Act, and federal age‑verification rules.²

Axios and other outlets report the White House is negotiating to block state AI rules for three years “in exchange for passing the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), the NO FAKES Act, and a federal age verification mandate.”¹ A White House official said the administration “continues to proactively engage across government and industry.”²

Supporters and critics diverge

Blackburn’s office stresses the plan is not a “blanket pre-emption of all laws regulating AI or child safety,”² and supporters argue it would protect “kids, creators, and communities” while giving industry a single national framework.²

But civil-liberties and free‑speech groups warn the price is too high. The package “would block state AI regulation for three years” and represents the administration’s “latest attempt to strip states of the ability to regulate AI,” even after the Senate previously voted 99–1 to remove a similar preemption measure.¹ The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression cautions that, taken together, KOSA, NO FAKES and age verification “would fundamentally change the internet as we know it,” giving federal regulators leverage over lawful speech and making anonymous browsing far more difficult.¹

Whether Congress accepts the trade‑off will determine if AI policy is centralized in Washington or continues to evolve in a patchwork of state laws.