BSA urged Congress to build on the recent White House Executive Order on artificial intelligence (AI), telling lawmakers that they have an important role in creating a United States policy on AI that increases trust in responsible AI and encourages its adoption.
“The United States needs a strong, clear, thoughtful approach to AI policy,” BSA Managing Director of Policy Kate Goodloe told members of the US House Oversight Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation. “Both Congress and the Administration have important roles in developing that policy.”
The hearing as convened just weeks after President Joseph Biden signed a comprehensive Executive Order covering a wide set of AI topics, including AI’s use and procurement by the federal government. The procurement aspects were a particular focus for lawmakers, as the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) sought public comments this week on draft guidance under the Executive Order.
Goodloe told lawmakers that the government should look to the National Institute of Science and Technology’s (NIST) AI Risk Management Framework (RMF) as a tool for federal agencies in managing their own use of AI.
“This creation of an AI Risk Management Framework is a significant achievement and it was done at the direction of Congress. The expertise that has gone into that framework can be leveraged across the government by agencies looking to implement AI risk management practices,” she said. “So, we recommend that the NIST Framework be the anchor of how agencies use and procure AI systems so that they manage risks in a coordinated way.”
Utilizing the NIST AI RMF can help address some of the challenges associated with the Executive Order, including the need to coordinate across federal agencies.
“I think the need to coordinate actions across agencies is one of the biggest challenges and opportunities with this Executive Order. We see a range of agencies tasked with conducting different reports, consultations and issuing rules,” said Goodloe. “And I think the need to coordinate those to ensure we have a harmonized policy across the agencies is imperative.”
BSA also emphasized the opportunities to align efforts across agencies and coordinate across government in its comments filed to the OMB earlier this week. BSA urged the government to take the necessary time to form thoughtful policy, and to consult with stakeholders outside of the government in doing so. This is particularly important for procurement rules, because OMB’s draft guidance is one of six concurrent regulatory updates that affect how the government procures technologies including AI.
BSA’s comments to OMB also emphasized the importance of risk management, a topic on which BSA has briefed congressional staff on multiple instances this year.
Making sure that procurement rules allow for the government to avail itself of private-sector technology solutions will also enable the digital transformation of government and deliver better services to the public, Goodloe told the members of Congress at the hearing.
“The government should be encouraging the US to buy commercially available products,” she said. “They’re easier to update and therefore less vulnerable to threats, and often less expensive than products that are made specifically for the government. So, we think both the Administration and the OMB guidance should encourage agencies to buy commercially-available products.”
Setting a national policy for AI in the United States would ultimately be a benefit to the US economy, said Goodloe.
“I want to also acknowledge that there are real risks with AI and a thoughtful United States policy on AI can help increase trust in the technology that is good for the economy broadly,” she said.