As the upcoming congressional recess approaches, some members of the US House of Representatives called for lawmakers to continue working in Washington to advance artificial intelligence safety regulations.
Representatives George Whitesides, Lori Trahan and Ted Lieu backed a letter drafted by California Democrat Sam Liccardo. The letter called for the House to return to work immediately and remain in session until bipartisan artificial intelligence safety regulations are advanced.
The lawmakers also cited warnings from some current and former Anthropic researchers that advanced artificial intelligence could pose an existential threat to humanity within the next 10 years.
Schedule and proposed legislation
The House is scheduled to convene on Monday, leave Washington a week later and begin its recess until November 9.
The call highlighted the bipartisan Artificial Intelligence Emergency Stop Act and the FRONTIER Act. The first bill would preserve people's authority to slow down or shut down artificial intelligence systems, while the FRONTIER Act seeks to establish a national regulatory framework.
House Speaker Mike Johnson plans to put a bill concerning data centers' energy costs to a vote next week. Johnson has not announced a plan for broader artificial intelligence regulations ahead of the midterm elections expected on November 3, when hundreds of seats in the House and Senate will be contested.