The Flock-Off Act prohibits federal agencies, state and local governments, and other recipients of federal funds from using federal money to purchase, operate, or maintain automated camera systems that capture biometric data or license plate information. The bill requires these entities to remove any existing covered camera systems within 180 days of enactment, with violations resulting in the withholding of further federal funding until reimbursed. Specific exceptions allow for the continued use of such systems within one mile of the U.S. borders for security purposes and on toll roads strictly for toll collection and enforcement.
The Foreign Propaganda Disclosure Act amends the Foreign Agents Registration Act to explicitly include social media influencers in its regulatory scope. The bill defines a social media influencer as any individual who maintains a monetized account on a social media platform, using an existing definition from the Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2022. By making this addition, the legislation requires these specific digital content creators to comply with the same registration and disclosure obligations currently applied to other foreign agents.
The AI Tax and Work Protection Act imposes a new excise tax on companies that develop or sell artificial intelligence foundation models, with rates that increase based on the national unemployment level. The revenue generated from this tax is placed into a dedicated trust fund to finance a new federal jobs program administered by a newly created Office of Job Creation within the Department of Labor. This program awards grants to state, local, and tribal governments to hire permanent, full-time workers for specific public service roles, such as in education, healthcare, infrastructure, and community safety. To ensure the jobs created do not replace existing workers, the bill includes strict nondisplacement rules and mandates that grant recipients provide employees with strong labor protections, including collective bargaining rights, competitive wages, and paid leave. Additionally, the legislation directs the Bureau of Labor Statistics to study the impact of AI on the workforce and establishes an advisory committee to guide the implementation of the job creation initiatives.
This bill, titled the Permanent CBDC Ban Act, aims to permanently prohibit the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency. It achieves this by amending the Federal Reserve Act to remove the specific legal authority that allows the Reserve to create such a digital currency. The legislation directly affects the Federal Reserve by stripping away its power to launch a digital version of the dollar. By deleting the relevant subsection of the law, the bill ensures that the Reserve cannot issue a CBDC in the future.
The ORTHO Act directs the Federal Trade Commission to create new rules requiring dentists to perform an in-person examination before providing most dental services or medical devices through teledentistry. This requirement includes exceptions for emergency care, approved public health programs, and specific orthodontic diagnoses that must still be confirmed by an in-person visit and review of X-rays before a patient begins using an appliance. Violations of these rules would be treated as unfair or deceptive practices, allowing both the FTC and state attorneys general to enforce the law through civil penalties and potential damages. The bill also clarifies that states retain the ability to adopt additional regulations that are consistent with these federal standards.
The Protection Against Mass Surveillance Act prohibits federal agencies from buying, using, or contracting for automated surveillance systems that rely on license plate recognition, facial recognition, biometric identification, or other technologies designed for mass tracking. It also prevents state, local, and tribal governments from using federal funds to acquire or operate these same surveillance tools. If federal agencies obtain data in violation of these rules, the law requires them to delete the information within 30 days and bars its use as evidence in any court or administrative proceeding.
The End EPA Abuse Act of 2026 amends the Clean Air Act to limit the Environmental Protection Agency's authority to create new regulations. Specifically, it prohibits the EPA Administrator from issuing rules that restrict the sale or use of internal combustion engine vehicles, force power plants to switch fuel sources, or reduce the reliability of the electric grid. The bill also bars the agency from mandating technologies that are commercially unavailable, too expensive without subsidies, or technically unfeasible due to geographic or infrastructure limitations. Additionally, the law prevents the EPA from expanding its regulatory power beyond what Congress originally intended. These changes directly affect the EPA's ability to enforce environmental standards and impact industries such as automotive manufacturing and energy production.
The CREATOR Act establishes a new federal intellectual property right that allows visual artists to control the commercial use of their distinctive visual style. This right applies specifically to works created using artificial intelligence that are intentionally designed to imitate an artist's style and marketed in a way that could mislead viewers about the work's origin. The law protects this right for the artist's lifetime and for up to 50 years after their death, while explicitly excluding general artistic influence, parody, and the mere capability of AI systems to produce similar outputs. Online platforms are granted safe harbors from liability if they remove flagged content promptly upon receiving valid notices, and the Act includes provisions to prevent abuse through penalties for false claims.
The NO FAKES Act of 2026 grants individuals and their heirs a new property right to control the creation and use of digital replicas of their voice or visual likeness, preventing unauthorized use in computer-generated media. This right lasts for the individual's lifetime plus 10 years after death, with potential extensions for continued commercial use, and applies to both living and deceased people. Online platforms and companies distributing such content must register with the Copyright Office, remove unauthorized replicas upon receiving valid notices, and face civil penalties of up to $750,000 per work if they fail to comply or knowingly distribute unauthorized replicas. The law also preempts most existing state laws protecting voice and likeness rights, though it preserves protections for sexually explicit content and election-related uses.
This bill establishes a new Office of Export Controls and Border Security within the U.S. Department of State to help partner countries prevent the spread of weapons of mass destruction. The Office will train foreign nations on how to better regulate the export of sensitive technologies and goods that could be misused for military purposes. It also requires the Secretary of State to create a coordinated strategy using advanced analytics to identify risks and strengthen global supply chain security. Additionally, the legislation mandates that different parts of the State Department work together to avoid duplicating efforts in border security assistance.
