Finally, this week New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the RAISE Act. This further positions New York as the second state in the country to pass significant legislation aimed at making sure artificial intelligence is safe. This historic decision comes on the heels of California, where Governor Gavin Newsom signed a similar safety bill last month.
The RAISE Act, adopted by state legislators in June, requires any company working on AI technologies to file safety reports in intervals. If you do not comply with this requirement, you may be subject to heavy financial penalties. First violations can lead to penalties of $1 million, with $3 million for subsequent violations. This legislative action is a critical first step to setting comprehensive standards of AI safety and accountability.
In making the announcement, Governor Hochul addressed the importance of the RAISE Act. She hopes it will serve as a model to create a consistent regulatory environment across tech-heavy states. She stated,
“This law builds on California’s recently adopted framework, creating a unified benchmark among the country’s leading tech states as the federal government lags behind, failing to implement common-sense regulations that protect the public.” – Governor Kathy Hochul
The tech sector has aggressively stacked the lobbying deck to make this change from the original RAISE Act. In response, Governor Hochul proposed modifications to scale back certain provisions of the legislation, reflecting an ongoing dialogue between state leaders and tech companies.
This executive order instructed federal agencies to dispute state AI regulations, emphasizing the friction between federal and state oversight over this new technology.
Sarah Heck, Anthropic’s head of external affairs, also remarked on how important this legislation would be saying,
“The fact that two of the largest states in the country have now enacted AI transparency legislation signals the critical importance of safety and should inspire Congress to build on them.” – Sarah Heck
State Senator Andrew Gounardes, who was the RAISE Act’s first sponsor, and the local champion of the RAISE Act. He hopes it sets a foundation for strong AI safety legislation elsewhere. He remarked,
“Big Tech thought they could weasel their way into killing our bill. We shut them down and passed the strongest AI safety law in the country.” – State Senator Andrew Gounardes
The passage of the RAISE Act represents an important victory for the responsible regulation of AI technologies at the state level. As New York acts alongside California to make the safety of AI a priority, it creates a supportive model for effective future federal AI legislation.