FPF Statement on Vice President Harris’ announcement on the OMB Policy to Advance Governance, Innovation, and Risk Management in Federal Agencies’ Use of Artificial Intelligence 

Following the groundbreaking White House Executive Order on AI last fall, which outlined ambitious goals to promote the safe, secure, and trustworthy use and development of AI systems, Vice President Harris has today announced the publication by the Office of Management and Budget of a binding memorandum on “Advancing Governance, Innovation, and Risk Management for Agency Use of Artificial Intelligence,” which indicates the diligent efforts of agencies toward achieving this objective. This commitment is further highlighted by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) publication earlier this week of the “Artificial Intelligence Accountability Policy Report,” which details mechanisms to support the creation and adoption of trustworthy AI. 

Although the OMB memorandum primarily focuses on the government’s use of AI, its influence on the private sector will be significant. This is due to not only the requirements for U.S. government vendors and procurement, but also how this framework will create broadly applicable norms and standards for conducting impact assessments, mitigating bias, providing rights to individuals affected by AI systems that impact their rights and safety, and assessing data quality and data privacy in these systems. 

“This is a pivotal moment for the development of AI standards when the public sector has a crucial role to play in setting norms for the assessment and procurement of AI systems. We are particularly enthused by the renewed commitment to bring clarity to the development of AI in the public sector and its national utilization. At FPF, we eagerly anticipate contributing to this crucial work through our evidence-based research on Artificial Intelligence.”

– Anne J. Flanagan, FPF Vice President for Artificial Intelligence