Vermont, Illinois, California Push Diverse AI Bills on Safety and Ethics

The latest wave of state AI legislation shows a patchwork of targeted bills addressing safety, ethics, and consumer protection. Vermont led with a therapy bot ban (H 816), while Illinois sent five bills to Governor Pritzker, including the Artificial Intelligence Safety Measures Act (SB 315) and prohibitions on AI in teacher evaluations (SB 2909) and health care approvals (SB 3114). California's 30 remaining AI bills crossed over to second-chamber committees, covering social media platform liability for child injuries (AB 2) and other measures, with a July 2 adjournment deadline. Colorado's Governor Polis signed four of five AI bills into law, covering chatbot safety (HB 1263), AI in health care approvals (HB 1139), therapy chatbot bans (HB 1195), and revisions to the state's 2024 AI Act (SB 189).

New York and Rhode Island also saw movement: New York approved a ban on AI chatbot toys (S 9408A) and advanced a high-risk audit bill (S 1169), while Rhode Island set hearings for therapy chatbot and health care AI transparency bills. Arizona lawmakers are still deliberating three AI-related bills, including one on synthetic image disclosure (HB 2133) and another on provenance data for generative AI (SB 1786). These state-level actions signal a rapid shift from broad AI governance to specific use-case regulations, with implications for tech companies, healthcare providers, and educational institutions. Professionals should monitor these bills as they set precedents for AI accountability and deployment standards.