The Year Ahead 2026
The Year Ahead 2026
There are many bills in the Massachusetts House and Senate that would impact regulations on artificial intelligence in the Commonwealth. These bills would, among other things, set boundaries on the creation of digital replicas, limit election misinformation, regulate the use of artificial intelligence by employers in the workplace, require disclosure and/or labeling of products using artificial intelligence, protect against algorithmic discrimination, regulate the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare, and expand child sexual abuse material coverage to include material generated using artificial intelligence.
Not all of the bills under consideration will necessarily pass. The previous year saw efforts to regulate artificial intelligence in other states, including neighboring Connecticut, fail or get watered down. It is up to concerned citizens to organize if we want to ensure that regulations make it through the legislature. By raising awareness and keeping pressure on lawmakers, we can ensure the passage of a robust set of laws that safeguard the rights, well-being and dignity of of Massachusetts residents.
H.4832, An Act Relative to the Contracting of Digital Replicas, would set regulations on contracts for the use of digital replicas. Any such contract would need to be specific in scope, not be for work that would be otherwise performed in person and the individual whose digital replica is being used would need to be represented by legal counsel or a labor representative.
H.76/S.2631, An Act to Protect Against Election Misinformation, prohibits a person or political committee from distributing materially deceptive election-related communications with the intent to mislead voters within 90 days of an election.
H.77/S.35 (FAIR Act), An Act Fostering Artificial Intelligence Responsibility, regulates the use of electronic monitoring tools in the workplace. Such monitoring would be restricted to specific business purposes and the bill would set limits on how that data could be used and shared. Additionally, this bill restricts agencies of the commonwealth from using automated decision systems where those uses are not explicitly authorized by law.
H.81, An Act Relative to Artificial Intelligence Disclosure, requires labeling of content generated using generative artificial intelligence.
H.83, An Act Establishing a Special Legislative Commission to Study Load Growth Due to AI and Data Centers, would create a special legislative commission to study electrical load growth due to data centers that support high performance computing and artificial intelligence.
H.90, An Act Regulating Provenance Regarding Artificial Intelligence, would set requirements for including provenance data with content generated using artificial intelligence.
H.94, An Act to Ensure Accountability and Transparency in Artificial Intelligence Systems, would require, with some exceptions, developers of artificial intelligence systems to identify and make available information on limitations and risks of said systems. Developers of high-risk systems, which are ones that materially influence consequential decisions, must have in place programs to mitigate risks of algorithmic discrimination. The bill would also set public disclosure requirements for corporations using artificial intelligence systems.
H.97, An Act Protecting Consumers in Interactions with Artificial Intelligence Systems, would set requirements for developers of high-risk artificial intelligence systems to take steps to protect consumers from algorithmic discrimination, including assessment, mitigation and disclosure.
S.2630, An Act Promoting Economic Development with Emerging Artificial Intelligence Models and Safety, would create an Artificial Intelligence Innovation Trust Fund which would be used to provide grants and other financial assistance. This bill would set reporting requirements for large developers of artificial intelligence models and penalties for not following those requirements. This bill would create a public cloud computing cluster known as MassCompute.
S.2632, An Act Relative to the Use of Artificial Intelligence and Other Software Tools in Healthcare Decision-Making, sets restrictions on the use of artificial intelligence in healthcare decision-making and requires that determinations of medical necessity be made by a licensed physician or a licensed health care professional.
S.2633, An Act Relative to AI-generated Child Sexual Abuse Material, expands existing child sexual abuse material laws to include material generated partially or entirely by artificial intelligence.