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Rep. Jayapal reintroduces AI Civil Rights Act in Congress
Jayapal, who has become a key Democratic voice on technology regulation, said the legislation responds to the rapid expansion of AI applications across daily life.
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Malvika Choudhary - Wed, 03, Dec 2025
- 14:05 EST
- 6
Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal / File Photo
Indian American congresswoman Pramila Jayapal on Dec. 2 renewed a push to set federal limits on how algorithms are used to make high-stakes decisions in the United States
She reintroduced the AI Civil Rights Act alongside Representatives Yvette Clarke, Summer Lee and Ayanna Pressley, and Senator Edward Markey, who is leading the bill in the Senate.
Also Read: Jayapal slams GOP for using immigrants as distraction
The proposal seeks to curb discriminatory AI systems and establish enforceable guardrails on algorithms used in decisions affecting civil rights, access to services and economic opportunities.
Under the legislation, companies would be required to test AI tools for bias before and after deployment, undergo independent audits, and increase transparency around automated systems used in hiring, housing, lending, healthcare, education and policing.
Jayapal, who has become a key democratic voice on technology regulation, said the legislation responds to the rapid expansion of AI applications across daily life. “This legislation comes at an inflection point for our country,” she said, noting concerns over an industry projected to reach $244 billion.
She warned that biased algorithms have already led to people being denied housing or jobs “based on race or gender” and argued the bill would prevent existing inequities from being reinforced by automated systems.
Markey said the United States must balance technological growth with “moral leadership,” while Clarke, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, described the measure as necessary to safeguard “the rights, dignity, and safety” of Americans. Lee and Pressley pointed to longstanding concerns that automated tools disproportionately harm Black, brown and other marginalized communities.
The bill’s return to Congress follows renewed scrutiny of AI-driven systems that now influence job screenings, credit decisions, rental approvals and criminal-justice outcomes.
Research has shown that many algorithms replicate historical racial and gender disparities because they rely on data shaped by decades of discrimination.
The AI Civil Rights Act seeks to address those shortcomings by establishing national standards for high-impact algorithms and giving individuals the right to human review of automated determinations. Policy analysts warn that, without a federal framework, states will continue to adopt inconsistent rules, leaving room for companies to avoid accountability by operating across jurisdictions.
The legislation has drawn support from civil-rights, labor and technology-policy groups, including the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, AFL-CIO, ACLU, National Urban League, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, Center for AI and Digital Policy, and Color of Change.
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