Week of May 8, 2023
The 149th Run for the Roses is in the books with another exciting come-from-behind winner, so you can put away your absurd hats and outrageous blazers because Congress is back in town for the start of the summer legislative grind.
The political headlines this week will remain focused on the debt ceiling as congressional leaders head to the White House on Tuesday to kick off negotiations with President Biden. House Republicans are still riding high from the passage of their own debt and spending cut package, while their Democratic counterparts continue to push for a “clean” debt ceiling hike. Not to be overshadowed is the House Republican immigration package scheduled for a floor vote this week.
Now, to the “grind” part of the legislative calendar, which will not grab any headlines but is nonetheless an essential part of the process. The House Appropriations Committee, and the House Armed Services Committee, are set to begin subcommittee mark-ups of their annual legislative products. This is the start of what will likely be a more than two month legislative process that the committees hope will result in their bills being passed out of the House later this summer.
The focus on AI continues to ramp up with executive action from the White House and multiple hearings on the horizon, including a planned field hearing in the Bay Area by the House Oversight and Accountability Committee.
What We’re Watching:
Senate Focuses on Children’s Online Protections: The Senate Judiciary Committee put the pedal to the metal on children’s online protection issues last week, passing the EARN It Act out of committee by voice vote. Chair Durbin’s (D-IL) STOP CSAM Act, as well as several other child protection bills, are expected to be voted on this week as Members continue to grapple over certain Section 230 content moderation carve outs included in the legislation. It is unclear how far the EARN IT Act will advance--Ranking Member Lindsey Graham (R-SC) provided a grim outlook on the prospects of the legislation moving past the committee, and suggested legislation to repeal Section 230 in the next two years if these bills do not “change the behavior” of social media companies.
White House Takes a Lead on AI Policy: As Congress grapples with how to proceed on regulations to reign in the AI boom, the Biden Administration made clear they were going to drive the AI policy debate. The White House announced three new initiatives aimed at addressing risks presented by AI technology. The announcement includes new funding for an AI-devoted research center at the National Science Foundation, commitment from leading AI companies for public evaluations, and pending guidance to be issued this summer for AI development and deployment in federal agencies. Senior White House Officials, including VP Harris, met with several heads of American AI companies to discuss potential risks and processes for moving forward with guidance. Coupled with the congressional attention on AI, these actions signal a full speed ahead approach to reigning in the rapidly developing industry.
Digital Assets Subcommittees Meet for Joint Hearing: The current regulatory landscape for digital assets remains an open playing field, as Congress continues to weigh which agency should have regulatory authority. This week, we will see the two digital assets subcommittees from the House Financial Services and House Agriculture Committees team up for a joint hearing to examine the regulatory gaps in current crypto and digital assets markets. It remains to be seen what consensus, if any, the subcommittees will reach to craft bipartisan legislation. Not to mention rumblings of competing legislation in the Senate that could impact Chairman McHenry’s (R-NC) legislative crypto plans.
What’s Happening This Week:
Tech Hearings
Joint House Agriculture and Financial Services Subcommittee hearing on digital assets - Wednesday, May 10 at 9:30 AM ET
House Small Business hearing on SBA Changes to lending program - Wednesday, May 10 at 10:00 AM ET
House Science hearing on NIST FY 24 Budget overview - Wednesday, May 10 at 10:00 AM ET
House Rules Committee hearing on China’s coercive economic tactics - Wednesday, May 10 at 2:00 PM ET
House Oversight hearing on legacy IT - Wednesday, May 10 at 2:00 PM ET
House Administration Committee hearing on protecting political speech - Thursday, May 11 at 9:30 AM ET
House Armed Service Cyber subcommittee NDAA markup - Thursday, May 11 at 9:00 AM ET
Senate Judiciary markup on STOP CSAM Act and other children’s protection bills- Thursday, May 11 at 10:00 AM ET
Senate Commerce subcommittee hearing on the Universal Service Fund - Thursday, May 11 at 10:00 AM ET
House Foreign Affairs subcommittee hearing on BIS overview - Thursday, May 11 at 11:00 AM ET
Tech Events
The Government Executive Media Group - "Balancing Zero Trust and Data Analytics Modernization" - Monday, May 8 at 2:00 PM ET
Nextgov - "Artificial Intelligence and Automation" - Tuesday, May 9 at 8:00 AM ET
USPTO - AI Inventorship Series Listening Session on the West Coast - Monday, May 8 at 1:00 PM ET
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce - 13th annual China Business Conference - May 8-10
The Center for Strategic and International Studies - "Disinformation and Deepfakes: Countering Gender-Based Online Harassment" - Tuesday, May 9 at 11:00 AM ET
Washington Post Live - "The promise, risks and future of AI - Path Forward Series" - Tuesday, May 9 at 4:00 PM ET
FiscalNote - "AI (Artificial Intelligence) and Government: Policy Insights and Best Practices to Stay Ahead" - Thursday, May 11 at 10:00 AM ET
What’s Interesting This Week:
The Birth of Wireless…. On May 10, 1894, “Wireless” was born when Guglielmo Marconi sent a radio wave three-quarters of a mile. Three years later the Marconi Company will successfully communicate “ship to shore” over a distance of twelve miles. Marconi’s work led to the commercialization and proliferation of most of the radio technologies we know today.
