By Angie Lotfi | Director of Development
On July 4th, 2025, President Donald Trump signed into law the “One Big Beautiful Bill” (H.R.1) after the budget reconciliation package passed in Congress. Included in the bill was a controversial artificial intelligence (AI) moratorium, which would have banned states from enforcing existing legislation or passing new legislation governing AI for 10 years.
The Senate voted 99-1 to remove the clause, showing clear bipartisan alignment on the dangers of unregulated AI. This is a big win to protect the public, especially children and vulnerable groups, from the evolving threats of AI, putting consumer interest ahead of big tech.
As AI programs, products, and integrations increase, the harms produced by the new technology are skyrocketing. Digital sexual violence is the fastest increasing form of sexual violence, with AI contributing to these harms through chatbot companions and artificial non-consensual explicit materials (NCEMs), formerly known as deepfake pornography. Fifteen percent of students have been victimized by NCEMs or know someone who was. Seventy-two percent of teens have used a chatbot companion, and 33% of them report feeling uncomfortable with something the AI companion has said or done.
The removal of AI moratorium is a big win for the systemic prevention of sexual violence. This clause would have rendered existing state bills regarding AI unenforceable and would have prevented states from passing additional bills, stifling current and future federal policy on artificial NCEM. There are 44 states that have pending or enacted legislation in place to protect the public against digital sexual violence. The passing of the AI moratorium threatened to revoke these legal protections and halt further related legislation for the next decade.
“Digital sexual violence is skyrocketing, with AI-generated attacks generating a majority of that growth. This will only continue to increase as AI technology advances and becomes more accessible,” said Omny Miranda Martone, Founder & CEO of Sexual Violence Prevention Association (SVPA). “State laws are critical to combat digital sexual violence and prevent these harms in the future.”
The SVPA spoke with several congress members, including Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) and Maria Cantwell (D-WA), emphasizing how detrimental the AI moratorium would be and urging them to strike the provision from the budget bill. The SVPA also worked with a coalition of organizations, including Encode AI, RAINN, and the Young People’s Alliance, to send letters to Congress voicing opposition to the moratorium. The first letter, highlighting sexual violence, and the second letter, focused on child safety, urged Congress to remove the moratorium.
Across the country, our partners, survivors, advocates, and the general public contacted their elected officials, demanding their vote against this clause. Together we struck down the AI moratorium, making this a big win for us all.
With the sharp increase of AI companion chatbots and artificial NCEM, guardrails around AI are crucial. The removal of the AI moratorium is a major victory in the fight against digital sexual violence.
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