Biden And Harris Take Bold Action To Protect American Privacy And Rights From AI

Vice President Kamala Harris announced action by the Biden administration to protect the privacy and civil rights of the American people from government use of AI.

According to a White House Fact Sheet:

Today, Vice President Kamala Harris announced that the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is issuing OMB’s first government-wide policy to mitigate risks of artificial intelligence (AI) and harness its benefits – delivering on a core component of the President Biden’s landmark AI Executive Order. The Order directed sweeping action to strengthen AI safety and security, protect Americans’ privacy, advance equity and civil rights, stand up for consumers and workers, promote innovation and competition, advance American leadership around the world, and more. Federal agencies have reported that they have completed all of the 150-day actions tasked by the E.O, building on their previous success of completing all 90-day actions.

This multi-faceted direction to Federal departments and agencies builds upon the Biden-Harris Administration’s record of ensuring that America leads the way in responsible AI innovation. In recent weeks, OMB announced that the President’s Budget invests in agencies’ ability to responsibly develop, test, procure, and integrate transformative AI applications across the Federal Government.

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By December 1, 2024, Federal agencies will be required to implement concrete safeguards when using AI in a way that could impact Americans’ rights or safety. These safeguards include a range of mandatory actions to reliably assess, test, and monitor AI’s impacts on the public, mitigate the risks of algorithmic discrimination, and provide the public with transparency into how the government uses AI. These safeguards apply to a wide range of AI applications from health and education to employment and housing.

Vice President Kamala Harris Announces Protections On Government Use Of AI

Vice President Harris explained to PoliticusUSA during a call with reporters how the Biden administration is prioritizing privacy when the government uses AI.

Harris said:

We are announcing new standards to protect rights and safety when government agencies use AI tools, we will now require them to verify that those tools do not endanger the rights and safety of the American people.

I’ll give you an example. If the Veterans Administration wants to use AI in VA hospitals to help doctors diagnose patients, they would first have to demonstrate that AI does not produce racially biased diagnoses. So that I offer as an example. The second requirement binding requirement relates to transparency. The American people have a right to know that when and how their government is using AI, that it is being used in a responsible way. And we want to do it in a way that hold leaders accountable for the responsible use of AI. Transparency, often and we believe should facilitate accountability.

And so today, President Biden and I are requiring that every year, US government agencies publish online, a list of their AI systems and assessment of the risks those systems might pose and how those risks are being managed. Third, and finally, a requirement that relates to internal oversight. We have directed all federal agencies to designate a chief AI officer with the experience expertise and authority to oversee all I’m going to emphasize that all AI technologies used by that agency, and this is to make sure that AI is used responsibly, understanding that we must have senior leaders across our government, who are specifically tasked with overseeing AI adoption and use.

As Trump and the Republicans take away freedom and rights, Biden and the Democrats are using the power of the government to protect rights.

Remember the Patriot Act, and the violations  of Americans privacy and rights that were ushered into existence after 9/11? In contrast, the Biden-Harris administration is using the power of the government to protect rights.

The Biden administration has revealed itself to be very forward looking in terms of policy, and their commitment to protecting rights and liberties has American better positioned in a quickly changing modern world.