Gardner’s artificial intelligence bill advances in Senate committee
A bill that U.S. Sen. Cory Gardner has co-sponsored to develop and guide the use of artificial intelligence in the federal government passed out of committee on Wednesday.
“Our bill will bring agencies, industry, and others to the table to discuss government adoption of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies,” Gardner said in a statement.
The AI in Government Act defines artificial intelligence as any type of computer programming that would enable the computer to carry out tasks of the sort that “would require intelligence if performed by a human.”
The bill would create an AI Center of Excellence within the General Services Administration, which would coordinate AI use in the public interest and house the government’s technical expertise. The center’s responsibility would also include analyzing the ethical and civil liberties implications of artificial intelligence, helping state and local governments as needed.
Government agencies will need to identify how to implement AI in their own work, and there will be either a new job classification or an update of existing job classifications within the federal government to reflect occupations that work with artificial intelligence.
A corresponding bill in the U.S. House of Representatives is awaiting a hearing in the Oversight and Government Reform Committee.


