By early 2026, forty-five U.S. states were collectively weighing 1,561 AI-related bills. Every legislature moving at its own pace, pulling in its own direction. That fragmentation gave Washington its opening.
On June 4, Rep. Jay Obernolte, a California Republican, and Rep. Lori Trahan, a Massachusetts Democrat, released the Great American AI Act — a 269-page draft representing Congress's most detailed attempt yet to build a single national framework for governing artificial intelligence. Co-sponsors include Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, one of Silicon Valley's sharpest congressional critics, alongside members from both parties.
The bill's primary targets are the largest AI developers: companies clearing more than $500 million in annual revenue. Right now that means OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, and Elon Musk's xAI. All four would face mandatory semi-annual audits covering cybersecurity posture, biosecurity risks, and loss-of-control scenarios. Critical safety incidents must be reported within 15 days; if death is an imminent risk, that window drops to 24 hours. Non-compliance carries fines of up to $1 million per day.
The most contested provision is the three-year freeze. States would be blocked from passing new laws governing how AI models are developed. California takes the hardest hit, losing AB 2013, which requires training-data transparency, and portions of SB 942, which mandates watermarking of AI-generated content. The AFL-CIO, representing 15 million workers, called it a flat "hard no" — a giveaway that strips protections against algorithmic wage manipulation and automated firing decisions. Consumer groups warn it would eliminate state-level safeguards against discrimination in hiring and lending driven by AI systems.
The path forward is rough. The House Commission on AI formally declared it does not support the draft in its current form. The Senate is the bigger wall — it voted 99-1 against similar federal-preemption language previously. For now, this remains a discussion draft seeking stakeholder feedback before formal introduction. The pressure is real, though: every month without a federal standard means more state laws that will eventually conflict with each other, and with whatever finally comes out of Congress.
