Senate Democrats to Prioritize AI Regulation in 2025 Session

By Michelle Rappaport

December 23 @ 10:30 am

Connecticut Senate Democrats announced plans Friday to introduce a priority bill to create artificial intelligence regulations focusing transparency, accountability, and the criminalization of non-consensual intimate images.

Sen. James Maroney, a Milford Democrat who co-chairs the legislature’s General Law Committee, detailed the proposal in a press release with Senate President Pro Tempore Martin Looney and Senate Majority Leader Bob Duff. The Senate leaders promised to prioritize passage of the regulations during the legislative session that begins Jan. 8.

“It is without a question we need to be next in passing legislation that will work to fight digital discrimination,” Maroney said. “As AI continues to evolve, it’s crucial that we implement thoughtful regulations to ensure its development aligns with ethical standards, safeguards privacy, and minimizes potential harm.”

The proposal will build upon legislation passed in 2023 that encompassed transparency and accountability surrounding AI so people know when they are interacting with AI.

In addition, companies that deploy AI to make decisions impacting consumer’s access to credit, housing, insurance, education, employment, health care, or a governmental service will be subject to reporting and oversight by the attorney general under the bill. These companies will need to show proper safety parameters are being made to protect consumers from the potential hazards of AI.
In the absence of regulation, technology could outpace the state’s ability to manage risks and create unintended consequences, Looney said.

“Connecticut needs to require guidelines to ensure decisions are made fairly, accurately, and transparently,” Looney said.

The legislation will be designed to put safety brakes in areas where AI is being used to make important decisions about people’s lives, like housing, lending, employment, and government services.

This proposal will also work to prohibit the use of AI to make deepfake pornographic images of people, including the use of AI to create so-called “revenge porn.” However, an image does not need to be pornographic to be considered a deepfake. Any time someone uses the technology to impose a one person’s face onto another person’s body or use that face to assign spoken words to someone who did not say those words, it is considered a deepfake.

Earlier this month, Looney, Duff and Maroney published a multi-state authored op-ed highlighting the importance of adopting artificial intelligence regulations. The article emphasized the growing need for comprehensive legislation to address the ethical, social, and economic challenges posed by AI.

On Friday, Duff stressed the need to act quickly on the issue.

“Without regulation, AI poses risks such as bias, privacy violations, and unforeseen societal impacts,” Duff said. “We must be proactive so AI does not negatively impact us before it is too late.”