Cantwell Scheduled to Meet With Cruz on AI, Privacy
Party leaders on the Senate Commerce Committee expect to meet next week to discuss AI and privacy issues, ranking member Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., told us Tuesday.
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Cantwell said she had tentatively planned to meet with Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, on Wednesday, but they pushed plans into next week.
Asked about Cruz’s claim that the AI enforcement moratorium is still alive (see 2507210042), she said, “We’re having lots of discussions.” Everything from AI and kids' privacy to comprehensive privacy is “on the table. How do we move forward?”
Cruz told us the committee hasn’t scheduled hearings or markups concerning items included in the AI legislative framework he released Sept. 10 (see 2509100068). “She and I get together regularly,” he said. “We’ve worked together closely for the past several years.”
Cantwell said it will be a “whole big discussion, from kids to AI.”
Meanwhile, Rep. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., told us privacy isn't a priority for House Commerce Committee Republicans. Castor is co-author of the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) with Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., and co-author of the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) with Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich. House Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., said in March to expect some movement on kids bills (see 2503260068).
Privacy “is not a GOP priority,” said Castor. Tech companies had a “front-row seat at the inauguration” and visited the White House last week, she added: “They are calling the shots.”
Currently, there are no hearings or markups scheduled on kids’ issues, Guthrie told us Tuesday: “We’re still working ... to see if we can come to a bipartisan position on kids’ safety. We’re working on it.”
Walberg told us the issue has been at a standstill since the summer, when he expressed optimism that COPPA 2.0 could move separately from KOSA (see 2506250045), which is considered the more controversial bill. “For some reason it slowed down” when the House took up reconciliation, he said. “I still feel optimistic about it.”
Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., author of COPPA 2.0 in the Senate, said he will continue to “keep the pressure up,” given ongoing claims against social media platforms and the impact on young users (see 2509090059). “The mountain [of evidence] is so high and the mountain is so wide,” he said.