Senators push OMB to establish civil rights offices at every federal agency, implement bias safeguards, & protect marginalized communities
Washington (September 16, 2024) - Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), sent a letter to Shalanda Young, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, demanding that all federal agencies that use AI for consequential decisions establish or maintain a civil rights office to establish additional safeguards to prevent algorithmic discrimination.
Senator Markey and Leader Schumer wrote to Shalanda Young, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the office tasked with interagency coordination relating to AI and has previously issued AI guidance to federal agencies, calling on OMB to require all federal agencies that use AI for consequential decisions to establish a civil rights office and additional safeguards to prevent algorithmic discrimination. As artificial intelligence becomes a helpful and prevalent tool in our government, the Senators note that it is vital that the government protects already marginalized and vulnerable communities.
“Without new protections, today’s supercharged, AI-powered algorithms risk reinforcing and magnifying the discrimination that marginalized communities already experience due to poorly-trained and -tested algorithms,” wrote the Senators. “The stakes — and harms — are especially high where entities use algorithms to make ‘consequential decisions,’ such as an individual’s application for a job, their treatment at a hospital, their admission to an educational institution, or their qualification for a mortgage. Over the past decade, biased algorithms have increasingly been used to make or influence decisions, imposing real harm on Black, Brown, immigrant, and other marginalized communities.”
“OMB should also direct agencies that use, fund, and procure AI for consequential decisions to establish civil rights offices, if they do not already have one. These new offices — along with existing civil rights offices — should be staffed with technologists and experts in algorithmic discrimination whose job responsibilities include mitigating algorithmic bias and discrimination and facilitating proactive and ongoing outreach to civil rights stakeholders and affected populations,” the Senators continued.
They also wrote: “Building on OMB’s guidance that agencies should cease use of any AI that the agency cannot adequately mitigate unlawful discrimination, OMB should also work with agencies to set strict guidelines to prevent algorithmic discrimination within relevant agency jurisdiction.”
The full text of the letter can be seen HERE.
While artificial intelligence has already begun to revolutionize certain industries, the federal government must be committed to combating potential side effects of this emerging technology. Senator Markey has called on the federal government to hold Big Tech accountable, investigate AI, and stop algorithmic injustice. In December 2023, Senator Markey introduced the Eliminating Bias in Algorithmic Systems Act (BIAS) to ensure that every federal agency that uses, funds, or oversees artificial intelligence (AI) has an office of civil rights focused on combatting AI bias and discrimination. In October 2023, he and Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (WA-07) applauded the Biden administration for heeding their call to incorporate the White House Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights into its AI Executive Order. In July 2023, Senator Markey and Congresswoman Doris Matsui (CA-07) reintroduced their Algorithmic Justice and Online Platform Transparency Act to ban discriminatory algorithms and improve transparency on social media platforms.
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