Brett Guthrie, Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, stated that the Great American AI Act is unlikely to be reviewed before the midterm elections. The bill, which includes provisions for cybersecurity standards and catastrophic-risk disclosure, has not yet reached the markup stage as of September 2026.
Guthrie emphasized that maintaining US leadership in AI relative to China should take precedence over broad regulatory measures. He previously expressed concerns regarding the bill's timeline in late July 2026, citing potential innovation risks.
The committee is currently prioritizing legislation related to data center energy costs, chip competitiveness, open-source AI, and quantum computing. These initiatives aim to lower operational expenses and bolster the domestic supply chain for hardware.
In the absence of a federal framework, companies must navigate a fragmented landscape of state-level regulations. States such as California and Colorado have already introduced their own AI-related legislation, while Guthrie previously proposed a 10-year moratorium on such state rules.
