Two Policy Proposals For AI

In researching yesterday’s post about AI becoming a political issue, I came across two policy documents that lay out two different paths forward.

One is from President Trump’s administration, outlining the government actions he wants to support AI. The other is from Florida governor Ron DeSantis, outlining the government actions he wants to limit AI.

First is Winning the Race: America’s AI Action Plan. The following is the Table of Contents, giving the topics covered. For details about what the provision entails, go to the site and click on each topic:

Pillar I: Accelerate AI Innovation

Remove Red Tape and Onerous Regulation
Ensure that Frontier AI Protects Free Speech and American Values
Encourage Open-Source and Open-Weight AI
Enable AI Adoption
Empower American Workers in the Age of AI
Support Next-Generation Manufacturing
Invest in AI-Enabled Science
Build World-Class Scientific Datasets
Advance the Science of AI
Invest in AI Interpretability, Control, and Robustness Breakthroughs
Build an AI Evaluations Ecosystem
Accelerate AI Adoption in Government
Drive Adoption of AI within the Department of Defense
Protect Commercial and Government AI Innovations
Combat Synthetic Media in the Legal System

Pillar II: Build American AI Infrastructure

Create Streamlined Permitting for Data Centers, Semiconductor Manufacturing Facilities, and Energy Infrastructure while Guaranteeing Security
Develop a Grid to Match the Pace of AI Innovation
Restore American Semiconductor Manufacturing
Build High-Security Data Centers for Military and Intelligence Community Usage
Train a Skilled Workforce for AI Infrastructure
Bolster Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity
Promote Secure-By-Design AI Technologies and Applications
Promote Mature Federal Capacity for AI Incident Response

Pillar III: Lead in International AI Diplomacy and Security

Export American AI to Allies and Partners
Counter Chinese Influence in International Governance Bodies
Strengthen AI Compute Export Control Enforcement
Plug Loopholes in Existing Semiconductor Manufacturing Export Controls
Align Protection Measures Globally
Ensure that the U.S. Government is at the Forefront of Evaluating National Security Risks in Frontier Models
Invest in Biosecurity

Here are the items in the Citizen Bill of Rights for Artificial Intelligence. These are not worked out in detail here, but they have been written into legislation, Florida Senate Bill 482, which is currently before the Florida state legislature and which offers specifics. From Gov. DeSantis’ office:

The Artificial Intelligence proposal will establish an AI Bill of Rights to provide consumers with protections.

- Reenact protections Florida has already passed against “deep fakes” and explicit material, including those depicting minors.
- Prohibit any state or local government agency from utilizing DeepSeek or any other Chinese-created AI tools to protect American data.
- Prohibit AI from using an individual’s Name, Image, Likeness (NIL) without their consent – tie it to harm or sale of a product (political ads, schemes to defraud already in law).
- Require a notice to consumers when interacting with AI (Company chatbots).
- Prohibit entities from providing “licensed” therapy or mental health counseling through artificial intelligence. This can be expanded to include use of AI to imitate a licensed professional.
- Provide parental controls for minors which will allow parents to access the conversation their child has with a large language model, set parameters for when the child can access the platform, and notify parents if their child exhibits concerning behavior.
- Ensure data inputted to AI is secure and private.
- Prohibit companies from selling or sharing personal identifying information with third parties (deidentified) and mirror data privacy protections in current law.
- Limit insurance companies from using AI for insurance claims. Require that AI cannot be used as the sole determination in adjusting or denying a claim. Insurers that use AI for claims must detail the use and allow the Office of Insurance Regulation to inspect the AI model to ensure it does not violate unfair insurance trade practices.

The Data Centers proposal will protect Consumers from footing the bill for AI Data Centers. The proposal will:

- Protect Ratepayers—Prohibit utilities from charging Florida residents more to support hyperscale data center development, including electric, gas, and water utilities.
- Protect Taxpayers—No taxpayer subsidies for Big Tech.
- Protect Local Control—Allows local government to prohibit data center construction/development.
- Protect Florida’s Water Resources—Ensure that water resources are not utilized to the detriment of the public.
- Protect Natural Florida— Prevent the construction, siting, or operation of a data center by foreign principals or on land classified as agricultural and/or lands under a greenbelt exemption, and require setbacks and vegetative buffers. Requires FDOT to complete noise abatement reviews to protect natural Florida from noise pollution.

It strikes me that the Florida plan does not ban AI, just imposes some needed safeguards and regulations. The second section about “hyperscale” data center and energy development would hit the industry harder. The Florida approach leaves it to the private sector to develop AI, while President Trump wants the government to play a role.

Which approach would you support?

Some would say that the Florida “Bill of Rights” does not go far enough. What additional measures would you like to see?

Illustration: AI Data Center via Hanwha Data Centers, CC by-NC 4.0