Pam Bondi could sue Florida over AI laws

Is a states’ rights showdown coming?

Gov. Ron DeSantis’ desire for an Artificial Intelligence “Bill of Rights” to combat what he calls an “age of darkness and deceit” could lead to a confrontation with the White House if it’s deemed Florida goes too far.

U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi may end up suing the state she served in the same role if plans to regulate artificial intelligence move from concept to ratification, given the White House belief that there must be “a minimally burdensome national standard — not 50 discordant State ones” to “sustain and enhance the United States’ global AI dominance.”

President Donald Trump’s AI executive order issued Thursday compels Bondi to “establish an AI Litigation Task Force (Task Force) whose sole responsibility shall be to challenge State AI laws inconsistent with the policy set forth in section 2 of this order, including on grounds that such laws unconstitutionally regulate interstate commerce, are preempted by existing Federal regulations, or are otherwise unlawful in the Attorney General’s judgment.”

DeSantis has said he’s not worried about a presidential executive order, since he believes it “doesn’t/can’t preempt state legislative action.”

But Trump’s order calls his bluff as well as that of other Governors who might want to go their own way.

The Commerce Secretary would also have a role in enforcement by publishing an “evaluation of existing State AI laws that identifies onerous laws that conflict with the policy … as well as laws that should be referred to the Task Force established.”

“That evaluation of State AI laws shall, at a minimum, identify laws that require AI models to alter their truthful outputs, or that may compel AI developers or deployers to disclose or report information in a manner that would violate the First Amendment or any other provision of the Constitution,” the Trump continues.

Florida could also be deemed not “eligible for remaining funding under the Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) Program” if it joins the push to create “a fragmented State regulatory landscape for AI (that) threatens to undermine BEAD-funded deployments, the growth of AI applications reliant on high-speed networks, and BEAD’s mission of delivering universal, high-speed connectivity.”

Trump’s order also compels a legislative recommendation that would allow for some latitude, such as state regulation regarding “child safety protections” and “AI compute and data center infrastructure.”

So, Florida could regulate with those factors in mind.

DeSantis has decried overstretched stock market valuations for “Mag 7” companies Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Nvidia and Tesla, all of which are in the AI space. He has also suggested the Founding Fathers would hate the technology, and argued it will be used to perpetuate fraud.