Anniversary of AI Executive Order Renews Call for Action

Center for Civil Rights and Technology Resources 10.30.24

By Koustubh “K.J.” Bagchi

On October 30, 2023, President Biden signed the sweeping White House Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Use of Artificial Intelligence. This first-of-its kind administrative action was a step towards ensuring everyone can reap the benefits of AI, but we can’t allow it to be the end of the story. It’s good to see agencies working to address the challenges of AI, including what they must do to identify and mitigate bias and discrimination. According to the White House, federal agencies have already taken more than 100 actions to implement the executive order. As these plans and processes continue to unfold, we will scrutinize those efforts and work to ensure that they are sufficiently robust. Beyond that, there’s a lesson in this AI executive order that we can use as the fight for AI safeguards and equity continues. 

This anniversary is a renewed call for action for civil rights and tech equity. 

The policy dialogue around AI primarily focuses on “innovation.” Unfortunately, the definition of innovation is too often limited to growing corporate profits at the expense of our rights. As experience shows us, there’s an instinct to allow the industry to “move fast and break things” without care for who or what it breaks. Innovation isn’t genuine unless it includes all of us, not just the wealthy and privileged few. We must not heed the calls of those who claim safeguards stymie innovation and economic growth. It’s a false choice that only ends up furthering racial, economic, gender, and other harmful divides. Technical and other societal advances have only succeeded where those advances can be trusted.

For context, it’s important that we not forget what led to this executive order (EO) and what has followed since it was issued last October. In 2014, we first issued our Civil Rights Principles for the Era of Big Data (updated in 2020), which established principles for government and industry to ensure “[technological progress] … promote[s] equity and justice as it enhances safety, economic opportunity and convenience for everyone.” We saw these principles reflected in the subsequent White House Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights in 2022 and the aforementioned executive order on AI (we also wrote to the White House with our priorities in advance of its release). Stemming from the executive order came the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) implementation guidance (we also submitted comments to OMB ahead of this guidance) and their procurement guidelines. Agencies are in the process of implementing the EO based on the OMB guidance to ensure that when federal agencies use AI, they do so in a way that prevents and redresses bias and harm. 

Our goal is never to issue principles for principles’ sake. We establish principles that spur action and shape behavior. Principles develop into policy and policy into practice — all with the goal to ensure everyone’s civil rights are protected and promoted.

While immensely helpful — especially in establishing the United States as a global leader for AI safeguards — the AI EO is limited in scope and reach. Since it stems from the White House and not Congress, this policy only covers federal agencies and their procurement of AI technologies. It does not extend to the private sector or even state and local governments. The hope is that if the federal government, the largest buyer of technologies in the United States, requires rights-protecting specifications in the AI they acquire, industry will adjust their products for every consumer to simplify production. But we can’t count on that happening in every case and with every company creating or using AI technologies. 

It’s been a year since the AI EO. Congress has fallen behind. While congressional task forces have been established and roadmaps issued, Congress has failed to pass meaningful AI safeguards. That’s not for a lack of impressive policy proposals or effort on behalf of a few congressional champions: 

With conversations in Congress around an end of year AI legislative package, it would be a missed opportunity to leave rights-protecting safeguards on the cutting room floor. No matter what happens, the civil rights community will continue working to preserve our rights, protect our communities, and ensure that new technologies benefit all of us.

Learn more about the work of The Leadership Conference’s Center for Civil Rights and Technology here.

Koustubh “K.J.” Bagchi is the vice president of the Center for Civil Rights and Technology.