Lawmakers zero in on AI, insulin prices, pandemic prep in D.C. coverage dialogue

WASHINGTON — Almost a dozen members of Congress on Wednesday outlined their work on coverage throughout an annual legislative session centered on fostering bipartisanship.

As a part of the thirty fourth legislative seminar by the regulation agency BakerHostetler, lawmakers in separate discussions touched on subjects through which bipartisanship may very well be key equivalent to synthetic intelligence, agriculture and pandemic preparation.

Among the many lawmakers from each events from throughout the U.S.:

U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, a Georgia Democrat, talked about his work as a senior pastor on the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church and the way his religion helps him construct a bridge to work with Republican senators on points on which they agree.

As a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Warnock mentioned he’s labored with quite a few Republicans to handle farming points equivalent to inexpensive housing, pesticides and sustainable practices. He mentioned that very same method is what helped get him reelected and win two runoffs within the Georgia Senate race.

“I attempt to meet individuals and voters the place they’re,” he mentioned.

Warnock mentioned he’s at present working with Republican Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana on a invoice that might cap insulin costs at $35 for individuals with non-public insurance coverage and people who should not insured.

He mentioned about 11% of Georgia’s inhabitants has diabetes, and about 15% of Louisiana’s inhabitants additionally has the persistent sickness.

“I’m hopeful that we’re going to get this executed,” Warnock mentioned of the invoice with Kennedy.

U.S. Rep. French Hill, an Arkansas Republican, mentioned that Democrats and Republicans want to higher perceive digital forex equivalent to blockchain and cryptocurrency.

“We’re behind the curve on this in america, to have a regulatory framework that embraces firms who wish to do a distributed ledger or blockchain-based enterprise technique,” Hill mentioned.

He additionally talked about the way forward for synthetic intelligence and the way Congress ought to method it. He mentioned one of many largest moral questions round AI must be, “what’s the code of use of AI,” and the way to verify the know-how is just not utilized in a malevolent means.

U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, Republican of Alabama, spoke about her expertise as a freshman in Congress and the way her earlier work because the chief of employees for former Alabama Republican Sen. Richard Shelby has formed her method to Congress.

She mentioned her largest takeaway from working for Shelby was that “relationships matter.”

“I feel now we have misplaced that this present day, now we have changed into one thing the place you can not, you’re not allowed to respect somebody that you just don’t agree with,” she mentioned. “And I inform individuals on a regular basis, in case you ever assume you’re going to agree with somebody 100% of the time, you clearly (have) by no means been married.”

Britt mentioned she is taking a look at insurance policies on social media security relating to teenagers and younger kids.

“If you happen to take a look at the numbers from 2011 to 2019, the speed of melancholy in our highschool and youngsters, and it’s no coincidence that that coincides straight and clearly with the rising use of social media for that age group,” she mentioned.

U.S. Sen. Invoice Cassidy, Republican of Louisiana, mentioned the U.S. goes to want to “have creativeness” relating to making ready for the subsequent pandemic. He mentioned the federal authorities ought to fortify its provide chain administration and strategic nationwide stockpile of protecting private gear, ventilators and masks.

“The best way that the federal authorities managed the nationwide stockpile was abysmal,” Cassidy mentioned. “We have to have a form of trendy administration.”

He added that the coronavirus pandemic confirmed the world what a possible bioweapon occasion may appear like sooner or later.

“If our potential enemies of the long run didn’t do (the coronavirus) on objective, they actually know learn how to do it subsequent time,” he mentioned.

U.S. Sen. Todd Younger, Republican of Indiana, centered on tax incentives for analysis and growth firms and the way Congress ought to deal with AI.

“100 {dollars} of analysis and growth in a U.S.-based enterprise, you’ll be able to deduct $10 out of your taxes,” Younger mentioned. “To make that very same funding in a China-based enterprise, you can deduct $200 out of your taxes, 20 occasions extra beneficiant.”

Younger mentioned he wish to see some adjustments within the tax code to present these firms incentives to arrange their companies within the U.S.

He mentioned that senators ought to proceed to be taught extra about AI and the way the know-how is used within the non-public sector.

“I feel most likely one of the simplest ways to counter a few of the threats that we’ll expertise from A.I. is to make use of synthetic intelligence,” Younger mentioned. “It’s to make use of this device of leverage of human intelligence to determine the anomalies relating to cybersecurity, to develop sensible applied sciences in order that we will be extra productive, in order that we are able to struggle wars extra successfully. All of that’s going to require the usage of synthetic intelligence.”