Tech bills of the week: Mandatory AI RMF usage; AI for energy generation and storage; and more

Modernizing energy grids with data

Legislation introduced by Rep. Jimmy Panetta, D-Calif., on May 7 is looking to update the Energy Act of 2020 by modifying and fortifying select energy storage programs and projects as the national demand for power increases amid growing reliance on artificial intelligence. 

The Better Energy Storage and Safety Act seeks to outfit the programs established in the Energy Act of 2020 with advanced data analytics, models and diagnostic tools to improve what the bill describes as the “safe installation and long-term operation of energy storage systems by abating expected failure modes” that could damage power storage systems.

In addition to outfitting energy storage systems with better data tools to assess their functionality, the bill aims to improve the diagnostic, AI, computing and digital twin capabilities included in energy storage systems. 

AI proliferation in export control workflows

Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, also introduced a bill on May 7 seeking to establish an Office of Export Controls and Border Security within the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation at the Department of State.

The measure, known as the Strategic Export Controls and Border Security Enhancement Act, would direct the new office to craft a strategy for incorporating AI technologies — along with other advanced analytics tools — to help enhance its workflows and activities. Two of the use cases named in the bill include risk identification for customs enforcement in recipient countries. 

Push for closed-loop geothermal energy

House lawmakers introduced companion legislation to an existing Senate bill that look to spur more research and development in new geothermal energy systems, with a focus on bringing scientific innovation to commercialization. 

Reps. Pat Harrigan, R-N.C., and Andrea Salinas, D-Ore., introduced the Next-Generation Geothermal Research and Development Act on May 13. The proposal seeks to move research and development efforts away from geothermal wells and towards closed-loop geothermal systems, the latter of which requires less subterranean water and maintenance.

“America has an enormous source of clean, reliable, baseload power sitting right beneath our feet, and we are barely scratching the surface of what it can do,” Harrigan said in a statement accompanying the bill’s release. “A supercritical geothermal well can produce more than seven times the energy of a conventional geothermal well, and next-generation geothermal has the potential to deliver 90 gigawatts of power to the United States alone.”

One provision in the bill adds the use of AI algorithms to support next-generation geothermal energy research, amending the bill to leverage ‘‘advanced tools, including machine learning algorithms, to assist’’ in geothermal energy innovation. 

The bill would amend the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. In April, Sens. Cortez Mastro, D-Nev., and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, introduced the companion legislation in the upper chamber. 

Mandatory AI Risk Management Framework usage

Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., introduced a bill on Thursday that would require government agencies to use the AI Risk Management Framework, a set of voluntary guidance published by the National Institute of Standards and Technology in 2023.

The bill specifies that only agencies adopting and leveraging AI technologies into federal workflows would be required to adhere to principles in the AI Risk Management Framework, per a summary of the legislation. Following its introduction, Lieu’s bill was referred to the House Science, Space and Technology Committee.

Key pillars of the RMF are finding ways to increase the trustworthiness and risk mitigation in developing and implementing AI tools into government networks. It underscores a pathway to effective AI risk prevention, which consists of: govern, map, measure and manage. 

Safeguarding connected vehicles

The Connected Vehicle Security Act of 2026, introduced on Monday by Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., aims to restrict the import, sale and resale of the software and hardware that powers smart cars and vehicles linked to foreign adversaries. 

The bill’s chief aim is securing connected vehicles, defined in the bill as incorporating “advanced information and communications technologies that collect, process, and transmit vast amounts of sensitive data, including geolocation, operational, and personal information, and are capable of being remotely accessed and controlled.” 

Software the bill identified as potentially compromising include any machine learning and other AI components that help enable driver decision-making or are used to control an automated driving system within the vehicle. Adversarial nations the bill targets include North Korea, China, Russia and Iran. 

While AI systems are highlighted in the bill, it also prohibits the import and sale of middleware, application and system software that directly support vehicle connectivity capabilities. 

The hardware prohibited in the bill includes chips, microcontrollers, microcomputers, cell modems, WiFi modules, Bluetooth modules, satellite communication systems and more. 

AI for women’s midlife health

Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., introduced legislation on Tuesday to improve menopausal and mid-life health care for women, featuring a provision leveraging AI for better diagnostics.

The Advancing Menopause Care and Mid-Life Women’s Health Act calls for a strengthened public health apparatus for women’s midlife care, including public outreach campaigns, research programs and treatment. 

It specifically calls for more government oversight efforts to gauge the safety and efficacy of AI-powered devices for new treatments and diagnostic tools designed for addressing midlife, perimenopause or menopausal symptoms.