Colorado lawmakers are weighing a proposal to restrict the use of algorithms in setting prices and wages, as advocates warn the technology enables hidden discrimination while business groups argue the bill overreaches and interferes with legitimate data‑driven practices.

House Bill 1210 would prohibit using a “price or wage setting algorithm” to determine the amount charged to a consumer or the wage offered to a worker. The bill passed through the House last month on a vote of 39-24 vote, with all Republicans and two Democrats voting in opposition.

Supporters argue that corporations are using artificial intelligence to determine different prices and wages for Colorado consumers and workers for the same products and services.

Critics of the measure argue that companies are deploying artificial intelligence to better understand their customers, and that the proposal means the government is injecting itself into pricing and offerings.

Critics added that there is no evidence to support claims that data surveillance is being used against consumers.

“This bill establishes a concerning precedent,” Rebecca Hernandez of the Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce said during a House committee hearing. “It opens the door for government to limit how businesses compete on price and what types of offers they can make to their customers.”

Kouri Marshall of the Chamber of Progress also argued there is no actual evidence of data surveillance being used to harm consumers.

“No one has demonstrated that consumers are being systematically overcharged through personalized pricing,” he said.

Sen. Iman Jodeh, D-Aurora, who is sponsoring the legislation in the Senate alongside fellow Aurora Democrat Sen. Mike Weissman, said the bill not only protects workers and consumers, but also small businesses like her family’s.

“Our phones are becoming extensions of who we are,” she said. “Everything that we need, want, and know is in our pockets. They hold our most personal information — our searches, our messages, and our locations, and companies are collecting that data to use it to decide how much to charge each of us individually.”

Corporations shouldn’t be allowed to charge a mom more for diapers or medication because they know she needs them and will pay whatever they charge her, Jodeh said on Tuesday.

Likewise, Jodeh said rideshare companies shouldn’t be able to get away with paying one driver less than another for the same ride just because they know that one of their bank accounts is overdrawn.

The bill exempts normal price adjustments based on market fluctuations or loyalty programs, Jodeh said, but when individuals are charged or paid different amounts based on personal data, it’s predatory.

“There’s no transparency, no accountability, and no way for consumers to know what’s happening behind the curtain,” Jodeh said.

The Senate Business, Labor and Technology Committee will hear HB 1210 early this week.