Uncharted Waters: AI Regulation By Margie Donlon and Luanne Peterpaul

Assemblywomen Luanne Peterpaul and Margie Donlon

The use of artificial intelligence in schools, business, health care and other areas has raised many questions and drawn both praise and criticism.

While we recognize that the benefits must be explored and developed, we also share the concerns some of our LD11 residents have voiced over what impact AI will have on our lives. That’s why we have sponsored several bills to create some regulations for how licensed professional and occupational boards will monitor the use of AI, how mental health professionals advertise their use of AI, and to protect people from having personal sexually explicit photos manipulated or published online without their consent.

We are in uncharted waters here, with a technology that some experts say is likely to have the greatest impact on our lives since the Industrial Revolution. We want to provide the tools necessary for companies and professionals to navigate these waters with transparency and without harm to the individuals they are trying to help.

Assemblywoman Peterpaul is a prime sponsor of legislation that directs professional and occupational boards to promulgate rules for the people they license for the use of “generative artificial intelligence.” Generative AI refers to a technology system that is trained on data and designed to simulate human communication through text, audio, or visual communication. It also generates nonscripted outputs with limited or no human oversight.

Assemblywoman Peterpaul’s bill would require the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs to adopt emergency rules and regulations establishing a model policy for the use of generative artificial intelligence. The bill calls for the DCA director to establish a model policy within six months of the bill’s enactment. Within nine months, each professional or occupational board would have to adopt the model policy with adaptations specific to that profession or occupation. The Assembly Regulated Professions Committee passed the bill last week.

We are both sponsors, along with our LD11 partner, Vin Gopal in the Senate, of legislation to prohibit advertising an artificial intelligence system as a licensed mental health professional. This bill prohibits a person who develops or deploys an artificial intelligence system in the State from advertising or representing to the public that the system is, or is able to act as, a licensed mental health professional.

The bill makes it an unlawful practice under the Consumer Fraud Act, and carries a fine of up to $10,000 for a first offense and up to $20,000 for subsequent offenses. Additionally, as a violation of the Consumer Fraud Act, it can result in cease and desist orders issued by the Attorney General, the assessment of punitive damages, and the awarding of treble damages and costs to the injured.

We also sponsored legislation to create a separate crime for posting items depicting sexual exploitation or abuse of children that are computer generated or manipulated explicit images.

Under the bill, the state law concerning child sexual abuse and exploitation material will be separated from its current placement within the statute concerning child endangerment to create a separate and distinct crime. The Assembly passed this bill unanimously and it has been referred to the Senate, where it awaits a hearing in the Senate Judiciary Committee. Our legislation is intended to provide clarity in law enforcement, court documents, and the analysis and tracking of crime statistics on child sexual abuse and exploitation material, rather than the broader crime of child endangerment.

 As a society, we have a long way to go to understand the full impact – the good and bad – artificial intelligence will have on our lives. As we navigate these uncharted waters, we want to ensure that businesses, educators, healthcare and other professionals, and residents have the guardrails to get there safely.