University of Kwazulu-Natal

Sen Cruz Introduces Ai Sandboxing Bill To Reduce Regulatory Burdens Cn

Bonisiwe Shabane
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sen cruz introduces ai sandboxing bill to reduce regulatory burdens cn

A new bill from Senate Commerce Chair Ted Cruz, R-Texas, would take a step toward regulating artificial intelligence when it comes to the ability for companies to develop new services. The proposal would require the federal government to create a contained and secure testing area for AI software, known as a regulatory sandbox. Companies would be able to apply to join through the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. Cruz's effort underscores a concern among many lawmakers that the U.S. will fall behind in AI, particularly to China, if regulations aren't loosened to allow for more and faster innovation. With the sandboxing proposal, companies could identify regulations that are obstructing their efforts, and ask for a waiver.

For example, a company developing cancer-screening software could show why it needs modifications to Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, regulations in order to test its product. The company could work with the government to determine if a waiver could be granted without violating standards such as patient privacy, safety and consumer protection. The government would be able to grant waivers for two-year periods for up to 10 years. After 12 years the program would sunset. Republican Senator Ted Cruz has introduced a bill that would create a federal “regulatory sandbox” for AI, giving companies the ability to apply for temporary exemptions from certain rules as they develop and test... “A regulatory sandbox — a policy mechanism recommended by the AI Action Plan — will give entrepreneurs room to breathe, build, and compete within a defined space bounded by guardrails for safety and accountability,”...

If passed, the bill would allow AI users or developers to identify regulations they view as burdensome and request a waiver or modification. The government could grant such exemptions for up to two years through a written agreement requiring participants to outline how they would mitigate health and consumer risks. The proposal comes after repeated calls from major AI firms, including OpenAI, Alphabet’s Google, and Meta, to reduce regulatory barriers that they argue slow down innovation. First legislative proposal, the SANDBOX Act, simplifies regulation for American AI developers while preserving accountability WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S.

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-Texas) released a legislative framework designed to promote American leadership in artificial intelligence. The framework outlines five pillars to guide Congressional efforts on AI policy and proposes a light-touch regulatory strategy to make safe AI deployment easier in the United States while protecting against emerging risks. As part of the pillar’s first step, “Unleash American Innovation and Long-Term Growth,” Sen. Cruz is introducing the Strengthening Artificial intelligence Normalization and Diffusion By Oversight and eXperimentation, or SANDBOX Act. The bill creates a regulatory “sandbox,” a policy endorsed by President Trump’s AI Action Plan, that gives AI developers space to test and launch new AI technologies without being held back by outdated or... This bill includes safeguards to mitigate against health, public safety, or fraud risks.

Under the bill, AI deployers and developers would apply to modify or waive regulations that could impede their work. The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) would coordinate across federal agencies to evaluate requests under their purview. Congress would collect regular reports on how often rules were waived or modified to better inform future policy decisions and the regulatory structure applicable to AI. The SANDBOX Act would encourage American ingenuity, improve transparency in lawmaking, and ultimately lead to safe, long-term AI usage domestically. Upon the introduction of his AI framework and the SANDBOX Act, Sen. Cruz said:

Reporting by Jody Godoy in New York; Editing by Franklin Paul, David Gregorio, Nia Williams and Nick Zieminski Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab Jody Godoy reports on tech policy and antitrust enforcement, including how regulators are responding to the rise of AI. Reach her at jody.godoy@thomsonreuters.com On September 10, Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee Chair Ted Cruz (R-TX) released what he called a “light-touch” regulatory framework for federal AI legislation, outlining five pillars for advancing American AI leadership. In parallel, Senator Cruz introduced the Strengthening AI Normalization and Diffusion by Oversight and eXperimentation (“SANDBOX”) Act (S.

2750), which would establish a federal AI regulatory sandbox program that would waive or modify federal agency regulations and guidance for AI developers and deployers. Collectively, the AI framework and the SANDBOX Act mark the first congressional effort to implement the recommendations of AI Action Plan the Trump Administration released on July 23. Senator Cruz’s AI framework, titled “A Legislative Framework for American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence,” calls for the United States to “embrace its history of entrepreneurial freedom and technological innovation” by adopting AI legislation that... Echoing President Trump’s January 23 Executive Order on “Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence” and recommendations in the AI Action Plan, the AI framework sets out five pillars as a “starting point... Consistent with recommendations in the AI Action Plan and AI Framework, the SANDBOX Act would direct the White House Office of Science & Technology Policy (“OSTP”) to establish and operate an “AI regulatory sandbox... According to Senator Cruz’s press release, the SANDBOX Act marks a “first step” in implementing the AI Action Plan, which called for “regulatory sandboxes or AI Centers of Excellence around the country where researchers,...

Program Applications.The AI regulatory sandbox program would allow U.S. companies and individuals, or the OSTP Director, to apply for a “waiver or modification” of one or more federal agency regulations in order to “test, experiment, or temporarily provide” AI products, AI services, or... Applications must include various categories of information, including: Agency Reviews and Approvals. The bill would require OSTP to submit applications to federal agencies with jurisdiction over the AI product, service, or development method within 14 days. In reviewing AI sandbox program applications, federal agencies would be required to solicit input from the private sector and technical experts on whether the applicant’s plan would benefit consumers, businesses, the economic, or AI...

Agencies would be required to approve or deny applications within 90 days, with a record documenting reasonably foreseeable risks, the mitigations and consumer protections that justify agency approval, or the reasons for agency denial. Denied applicants would be authorized to appeal to OSTP for reconsideration. Approved waivers or modifications would be granted for a term of two years, with up to four additional two-year terms if requested by the applicant and approved by OSTP. On September 10, 2025, Senate Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz (R-TX) formally introduced his long-awaited SANDBOX Act (S. 2750) as the first step in a broader legislative framework to promote American leadership in AI. The Act aims to create a regulatory “sandbox” to give AI developers space to test and launch new AI technologies “without being held back by outdated or inflexible federal rules.” Under the bill, AI...

The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) would coordinate across federal agencies to evaluate requests under their purview. Congress would collect regular reports on how often rules were waived or modified to better inform future policy decisions and the regulatory structure applicable to AI. The bill text is available here; a one-pager is available here; and a backgrounder on the proposed AI framework is available here. Rep. Jay Obernolte (R-CA) indicated he is working on a House companion to the bill. Coinciding with Chair Cruz’s framework release was a Senate Commerce Subcommittee hearing to examine President Trump’s AI Action Plan and explore legislative actions to foster AI innovation.

The hearing featured testimony from OSTP Director Michael Kratsios. Click here to read the full summary of the hearing. Giving you full access to the latest in AI across regulatory developments, legal & policy issues and industry news. Subscribe to Akin Intelligence, our monthly newsletter recapping the latest in AI and its impact on various sectors. Get the latest updates delivered to your inbox every day, and stay up-to-date for free 🧠📈 Get the latest updates delivered to your inbox every day, and stay up-to-date for free 🧠📈

Ted Cruz AI bill could let firms bribe Trump to avoid safety laws, critics warn Critics are slamming Sen. Ted Cruz's (R-Texas) new AI policy framework, which they claim would give the White House unprecedented authority to allow Big Tech companies to make "sweetheart" deals with the Trump administration to void laws designed... Under the framework, Cruz calls for a "light-touch" regulatory approach to "advance American leadership" in AI and ensure that "American values" are at the heart of the world's leading technology -- not Chinese values. Unsurprisingly, the framework requires blocking "burdensome" state AI regulations, as well as foreign ones. Cruz unsuccessfully helped push for a similar decadelong moratorium on state AI laws as part of Republicans' "big beautiful" budget bill.

And more recently, he lost a bid to punish states for regulating AI, ultimately voting against his own measure in the face of overwhelming bipartisan opposition. As the first step toward limiting AI regulations to prioritize innovation, Cruz announced the SANDBOX Act -- which is shorthand for "Strengthening Artificial intelligence Normalization and Diffusion By Oversight and eXperimentation." If passed, the... As part of the application, companies would be asked to detail known risks or harms and any steps that could be taken to mitigate harms, as well as outline benefits that could outweigh harms. Each agency in charge of enforcing each law would then weigh potential harms, with enforcement to be modified based on how much of the application each agency approves. However, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) would have the power to overrule decisions from independent agencies dedicated to consumer protection, alarming critics who fear AI companies could bribe officials... Ultimately, federal agencies and the OSTP could grant two-year moratoriums on enforcement of AI laws to enable AI experiments on the public, which can be renewed up to four times for a maximum of...

The bill also prompts Congress to make permanent any "successful" moratoriums found to benefit the US, Cruz's one-pager said. After its passage, Cruz expects to introduce more laws to support his framework, likely paving the way for similar future moratoriums to be granted to block state laws. AI Regulation Moratorium Idea Isn't Dead as Ted Cruz Pushes Sandbox Act Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, introduced today the first bill of several yet to come that he says will provide a “light-touch” regulatory approach to safe AI development and deployment by reducing the regulatory burden placed... The senator’s Strengthening Artificial intelligence Normalization and Diffusion By Oversight and eXperimentation, or SANDBOX Act, is the first of a series of bills that he plans to introduce as part of his five-pillar AI...

“How policymakers approach the issue of regulating artificial intelligence is one of the most important questions of our time,” said Sen. Cruz in prepared remarks during the hearing. “Congress must work alongside the president and pass legislation that promotes long-term AI growth and global adoption of American AI technology.” The legislative framework’s five areas include unleashing American innovation and long-term growth; protecting free speech in the age of AI; preventing AI regulatory patchworks across states; stopping the use of AI for nefarious acts... As part of that framework, Sen. Cruz’s SANDBOX Act seeks to require the federal government to establish a contained and secure testing area for AI software that “will give entrepreneurs room to breathe, build, and compete within a defined space...

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