Senate strips 10-year state AI ban 99-1 after Cruz provision survives House but fails Byrd Rule

The House version of the "One Big Beautiful Bill" includes a provision backed by Sen. Ted Cruz imposing a 10-year moratorium on states enforcing any AI regulation stricter than federal standards. Cruz frames it as preventing a patchwork of state laws from hampering US AI competitiveness. Civil rights groups warn the provision would eliminate state consumer and discrimination protections for a decade. On July 1, 2025, the Senate votes 99-1 to strip the AI preemption provision from the bill after Senate parliamentarians rule it violates the Byrd Rule — a procedural requirement that reconciliation provisions directly affect federal revenue or spending. The 99-1 vote signals broad bipartisan rejection of bundling sweeping AI preemption into budget legislation, though Cruz signals he will pursue the ban through standalone legislation.