Opinion: Navigating AI, technology and Musk in politics
Several bills regulating technology are making their way through the Utah Legislature. They include criminalizing ill-intentioned uses of AI, requiring age verification by app stores and, in essence, retooling the internet by allowing users to migrate their entire online experience to another platform. What is promulgating these policies?
COWLEY: The app store bill may seem well-intentioned, aimed at protecting children, but the impacts on businesses, the costs of changing complex technologies and invasions of personal privacy are a high price to pay for this noble intent.
AI bills, crafted in coordination with Utah's AI Policy Lab, provide guardrails for companies lawfully using AI to improve customer experiences and streamline processes. Other bills target nefarious uses of this new technology for deceptive and unauthorized purposes. Similar bills are being introduced nationwide, known as the 'Elvis Act.' As an Elvis enthusiast myself, this may be the most important bill of the session. #ElvisLives!
The internet is the Wild West of the information age, unlimited in its power to change lives. It's an entire frontier where no query is unanswerable and no crossword puzzle unsolvable. Social media, in particular, has given home-based businesses global reach. Regulations, intended to give users more control, change the premise of internet platforms and could have unintended consequences.
PIGNANELLI: 'To err is human — and to blame it on a computer is even more so.' — Robert Orben
In my last year of law school, I penned an article in a legal journal explaining why the 1983 Utah Cable Television Programming Decency Act was unconstitutional. I certainly was not advocating for indecent entertainment, just that the statute was not properly crafted in protecting children and was vulnerable to legal challenges.
In an interesting twist, three years later, as a newly minted lawmaker I sponsored legislation to repeal that Act. This paper opined against my effort and the bill failed.
The U.S. Supreme Court eventually ruled the law unconstitutional and only then did I secure passage. (Of course, the issue was moot, but I wanted some sense of accomplishment.)
I raise this small point of personal history because the issue of how technology intersects with children has been a feature of politics for many generations (over a hundred years ago, it was pool halls allegedly corrupting youth).
The issues confronting local solons in 2025 mirror the perennial conflict between freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution and the concerns of undeveloped minds. Thus, what legislation is not eventually compromised at the State Capitol will likely be litigated in the courts. Perhaps there is another young, obnoxious law student who will be writing about some of these bills.
These bills are all likely to pass. What will be the impact on Utahns?
COWLEY: Implementation of some well-intentioned bills will be delayed while we wait for the inevitable lawsuits, costing taxpayers millions. Some legislators pass bills knowing this is the outcome, but are lawsuits the best approach, rather than relying on congressional action?
Many businesses will have to adjust practices to comply with new regulations. Those come with a price tag. Other Utah companies will benefit from the ability to implement AI technologies without fear of regulatory recourse.
All businesses crave predictability, which is difficult with ever-evolving technologies. Legislators can help by implementing a broad framework to protect consumers, then stepping back and letting companies innovate and the free market flourish.
PIGNANELLI: I am unsure how this legislation will have an impact upon me and others. My old brain lacks the ability to articulate with specificity the technical details. I barely know the difference between telegram and Instagram.
But I do understand this dynamic. Thirty years ago, several months were required to initiate a business. Twenty years ago, it was several weeks. Today, new enterprises are created in days, if not hours. The incredible potential technology offers should not be constrained in many circumstances. Guardrails are important, but traffic must still flow fast.
Elon Musk appeared onstage at CPAC wielding a chainsaw. Nearly 1,000 Utahns employed by the IRS lost their jobs because of DOGE cuts. How are President Donald Trump's policies being viewed by Utahns?
COWLEY: Radically cutting government waste is exactly what Republicans like me voted for. However, I wish Musk had a bit more tact. I suggest he enroll in a 'Utah Way' crash course to hone his civility, respect and compassion. Musk's lack of empathy is the greatest threat to the success of Trump's administration.
Reining in spending sounds great until it's your neighbor, cousin or best friend receiving a pink slip (or in this case, perhaps a pink tweet), and the pain of these cuts is more acute. Fulfilling fantasies of federal frugality requires some discomfort. Nothing worth doing is ever easy. Saving our country's financial solvency takes sacrifices and belt-tightening from everyone.
PIGNANELLI: Surveys indicate Trump's approval is above 50% and 70% of Americans state he is fulfilling his promises. However, the cuts so far are federal employees and targeted grants. When trimming affects private contractors, military bases, entitlement programs, etc., local frustration may increase.
Note: The authors' firm represents companies impacted by these policies.
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