HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) – Alabama lawmakers are introducing bills to regulate how artificial intelligence is used in the state.
These bills cover everything from requiring age verification for AI chatbots to using AI in healthcare decisions.
President Trump recently issued a decree which prevent states from enacting certain AI-related laws.
This order warns that states that pass strict AI laws will not receive additional federal funding for the Internet.
This order prevents states from passing strict AI laws to avoid confusing businesses.
Despite these federal constraints, Alabama lawmakers are working to craft bills that protect citizens while remaining compliant with the executive order’s requirements.
Alabama House Representative Parker Moore presented a Invoice this requires chatbots to verify users’ ages and appear as cartoons to minors.
“When you’re young, you have a very unimpressionable mind,” Moore said. “Seeing a realistic-looking human on the other end of a video screen, I think, plays into that spirit a little more than if it were a cartoon-like character.”
Regular reminders would also be issued, letting the child know they are talking to a robot.
Moore said people can develop an emotional connection with these lifelike chatbots.
“I think it’s very important to create these safety guardrails for our young people,” Moore said. “We are unfortunately starting to see some increase in suicides because of these relationships.”
The bill allows psychiatrists to use therapeutic chatbots to help adolescents and minors.
“I think there are tools that AI is really good at, but can be exploited,” Moore said. “I think it’s important to have emotional support through comforting messages and talking to someone, but you have to make sure those guardrails are in place. This sets that standard and that parameter for that.”
Bipartisan support for the bill reflects its broad appeal.
“I have bipartisan co-sponsors with me on the bill,” Moore said. “I don’t think protecting our children, especially those who are most vulnerable, is a partisan issue. I have worked with a bipartisan coalition throughout this process to get to where it is so far. I hope to continue to do so to get across the finish line.”
State Senator Arthur Orr presented a Invoice which requires health insurance companies to leave the final decision to a human health professional when coverage is denied.
Although insurers can use AI to filter claims, a doctor will need to approve any denials.
The bill also requires insurers to disclose when AI is used in decisions.
Orr said he believes people should make health care decisions, not AI.
“I think it would be better to have a human review that can see all the evidence and not suit the insured person who needs a procedure, and just put it into an algorithm or a computer program and give it the answer whether there will be coverage or not,” Orr said.
Parliamentary Bill 129 would require clear labeling of any content created or substantially modified by artificial intelligence, thereby helping citizens distinguish between human-created and AI-generated media.
Senate Bill 291 would make it illegal to create and distribute fake videos or AI-generated images that falsely depict someone saying or doing something they didn’t actually do.
This bill directly addresses the growing threat of deepfakes and identity fraud using AI.
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