{"id":2422,"date":"2025-06-10T07:00:16","date_gmt":"2025-06-10T14:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/california\/?post_type=press&#038;p=2422"},"modified":"2025-07-29T10:11:09","modified_gmt":"2025-07-29T17:11:09","slug":"congressman-obernoltes-constituents-speak-out-against-his-big-tech-giveaway","status":"publish","type":"press","link":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/california\/press\/congressman-obernoltes-constituents-speak-out-against-his-big-tech-giveaway\/","title":{"rendered":"Congressman Obernolte\u2019s Constituents Speak Out Against His Big Tech Giveaway"},"template":"","class_list":["post-2422","press","type-press","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":{"details":{"summary":"Common Cause members wrote to Representative Jay Obernolte to oppose his support for a provision of the recently passed Republican budget bill that would strip states of the power to pass state-level laws on artificial intelligence.","featured_image":"","press_type":false,"authors":"","related_issues":[102,430],"related_work":false,"location":3},"sidebar":{"helper_enable_sidebar":false,"helper_media_contact":{"heading":"Media Contact","manually_enter_person":false,"person":"","name":"","role":"","phone":"","email":""},"helper_links_downloads":{"heading":"Links & Downloads","links":null}},"page_layout":[{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_wysiwyg":{"content":"<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Members of California Common Cause and residents of California\u2019s 23rd Congressional District wrote to U.S. Representative Jay Obernolte to oppose his support for a provision of the recently passed Republican budget bill that would strip states, including California, of the power to pass state-level laws on artificial intelligence.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Obernolte has been a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2025\/06\/03\/ai-regulation-moratorium-state-lawmakers-letter\/#:~:text=Responding%20to%20the%20state%20lawmakers%E2%80%99%20letter%2C%20Obernolte%20told%20the%20Tech%20Brief%20via%20email%20that%20consistent%20national%20regulations%20are%20needed%20and%20the%20moratorium%20is%20intended%20only%20as%20a%20stopgap.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">leading supporter<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of this controversial provision buried in the House Republican budget bill that would impose a ten-year ban on state-level AI protections.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In messages to Obernolte\u2019s office, constituents warned that the bill would block California from responding to the real harms already posed by AI, including election disinformation, hiring discrimination, and denials of vital services like health care. They emphasized that, in absence of federal leadership, more than 20 states have passed bipartisan AI protections and cautioned that Congress should not override those efforts.\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cCongressman Obernolte is siding with <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/subscriber.politicopro.com\/article\/2025\/06\/nvidia-supports-10-year-pause-on-states-regulating-ai-00393062?site=pro&amp;prod=alert&amp;prodname=alertmail&amp;linktype=article&amp;source=email\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">the wishes of the tech industry<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> over the very people he represents,\u201d said <strong>Jonathan Mehta Stein, Board Chair of CITED, a project of California Common Cause<\/strong>. \u201cCalifornia must retain the right to protect its residents when Congress refuses to act. Voters in his district are making it clear \u2014 this overreach is unacceptable.\u201d<\/span>\r\n\r\n<strong><i>Read the full letter here:<\/i><\/strong>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As your constituent I\u2019m writing to urge you to oppose any proposal \u2014 including language in the House Republican budget bill \u2014 that would strip states like California of the power to pass our own protections against the harms of artificial intelligence.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A 10-year ban on state-level AI laws would be a dangerous giveaway to Big Tech and a serious threat to public trust, safety, and democracy. AI is already being used to spread election lies, discriminate in hiring, and deny people vital services like health care. States must retain the ability to act when Congress doesn\u2019t.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Over 20 states, including many with bipartisan support, have passed sensible protections against AI-driven deception and abuse. California should not be blocked from doing the same. Please reject this federal overreach and stand up for California\u2019s right to act in the face of real and growing AI threats.<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Signed,<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Victor B., Yermo<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Howard M., Apple Valley<\/span>\r\n\r\nS.R., Yucca Valley\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Brad F., Yucaipa<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jacqueline B., Rimrock<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Marsha S., Barstow<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Khrysso L., Morongo Valley<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Susan L., Joshua Tree<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Craig N., Yucca Valley<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Randall L., Hesperia<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Caryn M., Victorville<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Deidra A., San Bernardino<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Erika M., Yucaipa\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jerald B., Loma Linda<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Beverly T., Twentynine Palms<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Leanne A., Yucca Valley\u00a0<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Maria A., Victorville<\/span>\r\n\r\n<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">David D., Hesperia<\/span>"}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_add_component","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_add_component":null},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_work","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_work":{"heading":"Work","manually_curate":false,"work":null}}]},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.6 (Yoast SEO v27.1.1) - 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