Election-related AI bills test bipartisan support for regulation  

Two bills aimed at regulating how artificial intelligence (AI) is used in elections advanced out of a Senate panel Wednesday along party lines, posing a test for how lawmakers can come together across the aisle to pass regulations on the evolving technology.   Democrats on the Senate Rules Committee voted to advance two election-related AI bills opposed by most Republicans on the committee just hours after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) bipartisan AI working group released its long-awaited AI roadmap.   Wednesday’s debate around the election bills highlights how a partisan divide could hamper efforts to regulate AI despite bipartisan support for setting rules for the new techology and boosting funding for domestic innovation.   The committee voted on three bipartisan bills led by Committee Chair Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.): the Preparing Election Administrators for AI Act, the AI Transparency in Elections Act, and the Protect Elections from Deceptive AI Act. Only the first, which would require the Election Assistance Commission to issue guidelines to help election administrators address AI’s impact on elections, advanced with bipartisan support from the committee.   The other two — one that would ban the use of deceptive AI in political ads, and another thatwould require disclaimers on political ads with AI generated content — faced opposition from most Republicans on the committee despite having GOP co-sponsors.   Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), argued they could “tamper” with a “well-developed legal regime” to take down false adds and “create new definitions that could reach well beyond deepfakes.”…Election-related AI bills test bipartisan support for regulation