Virginia and Washington race to protect kids from AI chatbots before federal preemption

Virginia and Washington state advanced companion AI chatbot safety bills in February 2026 as lawmakers rushed to enact child protections before potential federal preemption. Virginia's SB 796 cleared the Senate 39-1, applying to chatbot operators with 500,000 or more monthly active users. Washington's HB 2225 passed the House 69-28, with a Senate companion also advancing. A January 2026 Trump executive order established a DOJ AI Litigation Task Force to challenge state AI laws in federal court, threatening to strip BEAD broadband funding from states with laws deemed overly burdensome, though the order explicitly exempted child safety protections from preemption.