Lawmakers fear Ohio lacks legal recourse when AI chatbots suggest harmful behavior: Capitol Letter

Rotunda Rumblings 

Liable intelligence: Ohio lawmakers are proposing to hold AI chatbot companies liable if their technology encourages users to harm themselves or others. House Bill 524 would empower the state attorney general to investigate complaints and seek penalties of up to $50,000 per violation, with funds going to the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Anna Staver reports that sponsors say the measure is meant to ensure accountability as AI tools increasingly interact with vulnerable users.

Crypto Clarity: U.S. Rep. Max Miller is preparing to introduce comprehensive cryptocurrency legislation that he says will transform how digital assets are regulated and taxed in the United States, Sabrina Eaton writes. In a podcast interview that aired Monday, the Bay Village Republican said he’s planning to introduce a “crypto tax” bill with Nevada Democrat Steven Horsford. Miller and Horsford are both members of the tax writing House Ways and Means Committee. “It’s going to bring in revenue as a pay-for for the federal government, but it’s also going to be backed by the United States of America,” Miller told the podcaster, Breitbart Editor-in-Chief Alex Marlow.

Cheney tribute: Gov. Mike DeWine ordered flags on public building and grounds around Ohio to be flown at half-staff in memory of ex-Vice President Dick Cheney until the day of the Wyoming Republican’s funeral. As Jeremy Pelzer reports, Cheney died Monday at the age of 84 of complications from pneumonia and heart disease.

Dear reader: Twenty public library systems across Ohio are asking voters to approve funding measures in the first general election after Republican lawmakers decided to change how libraries were funded by the state earlier this year, Mary Frances McGowan reports. Gov. Mike DeWine signed the state budget into law earlier this year that removed the longstanding guarantee that gave libraries a percentage of the state’s General Revenue Fund, replacing it with discretionary line-item appropriations that could be more easily reduced in future budgets.

GOP kingmakers: In 2019, a small group of right-wing donors rented a resort outside the 100-person town of Rockbridge, Ohio, for a summit to secure the future of the MAGA movement, The Washington Post reports. They aimed to turn President Donald Trump’s movement into an enduring political coalition, with a pipeline of voters, donors and candidates that would cement a radical transformation of the GOP. An organization of businessmen and political donors that was spawned from that meeting called the Rockbridge Network helped fuel Trump’s reelection and propelled one of its own — Cincinnati’s JD Vance — into the vice presidency.

Job prob: Columbus City Council unanimously voted to rescind tax incentives to three companies that didn’t create jobs as promised. Advanced Turf Solutions, Inc. & ATS Columbus Investments II LLC; Hirschvogel Inc.; and RM Biltrite LLC & Watkins Road LLC and Qrri Inc. didn’t pay about $530,000 in taxes, the Dispatch’s Jordan Laird reports.

Getting burned? Bowling Green residents Leatra Harper and Steven Jansto are suing their city, claiming a fee for the rooftop solar panels on their house is an unlawful penalty. The city’s utilities company claims the fee, which is usually around $56 a month, is to ensure other customers don’t subsidize their solar usage, Canary Media’s Kathiann M. Kowalski reports.

Amped up: Akron-based EarthQuakes, which manufactures effects pedals for musicians, will be watching the U.S. Supreme Court, where the constitutionality of President Donald Trump’s tariffs will be argued Wednesday. The company uses over 900 components from 15 countries to make devices that alter guitar sounds. It’s paid over $40,000 in tariffs this year, and has seen revenues drop by 10%, The New York Times’ Anna Swanson and Tony Romm report.

Lobbying Lineup

Five organizations that are registered to lobby on state House Bill 144, which would expand the communication disability database to include any person with a disability and to expand access to that database through countywide 9-1-1 systems.

1. Ohio Fire Chiefs’ Association
2. Verizon Communications & Affiliates
3. Ohio Association of Chiefs of Police
4. The Ability Center
5. Ohio Telecom Association

On The Move

Amy Acton, a Democratic candidate for governor, has been endorsed by EMILY’s List, a national political action committee that promotes Democratic women for elective office.

Birthdays

Anna Bowersox, advancement officer, OhioGuidestone

State Sen. Jane Timken

Scott Whitlatch, Ohio House assistant sergeant-at-arms

Straight from the Source

“I first got to know him when we were members of Congress together and he was in the House Republican leadership. He was thoughtful, steady, and an advocate for his beloved Wyoming.”

Gov. Mike DeWine, in a statement, reflecting on the legacy of ex-Vice President Dick Cheney, who died on Nov. 3 at the ae of 84.

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