New House commission to scrutinize AI's impact on the economy

"The House Democratic Commission on AI and the Innovation Economy - which will convene throughout 2026 - includes Reps. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., Josh Gottheimer, D-N.J., and Valerie Foushee, D-N.C., as co-chairs. Reps. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., and Frank Pallone, D-N.J., will serve as ex officio co-chairs, due to their positions as ranking members of the Science, Space and Technology Committee and the Energy and Commerce Committee, respectively."

""The brilliance and ingenuity of the innovation community has positioned America to lead the world in artificial intelligence and pioneer potentially life-changing breakthroughs in medicine and other fields of human endeavor that will benefit humanity," Jeffries said. "At the same time, Congress must consider what policies are needed to prevent bad actors from exploiting this transformative technology and inflicting harm upon the American people.""

"The commission will handle policy areas that aren't priorities for Republicans, including crafting and establishing guardrails for AI systems and deploying trustworthy AI. Lofgren called Republicans "largely MIA" on AI policies in this Congress. Some Republican lawmakers have spearheaded efforts to institute a moratorium on state-level AI regulation, which failed to get the votes needed for inclusion in recent legislation. The White House has since telegraphed a desire to take up the issue via executive"

House Democrats formed the House Democratic Commission on AI and the Innovation Economy to study AI's effects on the innovation economy and will convene throughout 2026. Reps. Ted Lieu, Josh Gottheimer and Valerie Foushee will co-chair, with Reps. Zoe Lofgren and Frank Pallone as ex officio co-chairs because of their ranking committee roles. Democrats who served on the Bipartisan AI Task Force will hold key roles and broader Democratic participation is encouraged. The commission will pursue policies to spur domestic innovation while crafting guardrails and deploying trustworthy AI to prevent exploitation and harm. Some Republicans favored a moratorium on state AI regulation; that proposal failed and the White House signaled interest in executive action.

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