The Trump administration is drafting an executive order that would direct the Justice Department to sue states that pass laws regulating artificial intelligence. This marks a significant escalation in federal efforts to assert control over AI regulation. The draft order comes after Republicans in Congress failed to pass a federal ban on state AI regulation.
The draft executive order directs numerous White House officials and federal agencies to preempt or challenge state AI regulations to “sustain and enhance America’s global AI dominance through a minimally burdensome, uniform national policy framework for AI”. The executive order directs the Attorney General to establish an "AI Litigation Task Force" with the sole responsibility of challenging state AI laws that, "in the Attorney General's judgment," unconstitutionally regulate interstate commerce, conflict with existing federal regulations, or otherwise violate federal law. The order directs the Commerce Secretary to withhold certain Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) funds from states with "onerous" AI laws. The Federal Communications Commission would adopt a federal reporting standard for AI models that preempts conflicting state laws, whilst the Federal Trade Commission would issue a policy statement explaining when state laws "requiring alterations to truthful AI outputs" are preempted.
If finalised, the executive order could reshape the balance of federal and state authority over AI regulation. However, the proposal could conflict with legal limits to presidential power.
Sources:
1. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/11/19/trump-order-ai-sue-states/
2. https://www.globalpolicywatch.com/2025/11/white-house-drafts-executive-order-to-preempt-state-ai-laws/
3. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/trump-seeks-halt-state-ai-170149024.html
