Category: Legislation

Federal As we get closer to the Presidential Election, it’s important to stay aware of the promises and track records of the candidates. Meanwhile, a current Supreme Court case, Oklahoma v. Department of Health and Human Services, could dramatically affect Federal regulations on Medicare and Medicaid. Illinois A couple of bills to watch: SB3703 –…

Federal The House Appropriations Committee has approved a proposed 15% cut to the only federal library funding agency. This budget will be presented to the full House before the end of the year, so now is the time to urge representatives to take a strong stance against it. Tell Congress to stop the cuts to…

Federal In response to a lack of Federal legislation on Artificial Intelligence, senators introduced a bipartisan bill on June 11, 2024, the Promoting Responsible Evaluation and Procurement to Advance Readiness for Enterprise-wide Deployment for Artificial Intelligence Act (“PREPARED for AI Act”). Among other things, PREPARED for AI would provide a risk mitigation framework that would…

Federal The President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR, the U.S. government’s global HIV response) was recently re-authorized for the 4th time, extending its funding until March 25, 2025. This comes after opposition (for a plan that historically has had strong bipartisan support) raised concerns that PEPFAR was promoting abortion rights. Eventually the plan was…

Federal Artificial Intelligence Although Artificial Intelligence has received Federal scrutiny, states are pulling ahead in the effort to legislate the use/misuse of AI. Data Privacy and Cybersecurity Law Firm, Husch Blackwell, has assembled and summarized most of the proposed bills. For more insights into the need for federal input, read their February analysis: https://www.huschblackwell.com/newsandinsights/will-federal-initiatives-stave-off-disparate-state-level-regulation-of-artificial-intelligence Reproductive…

State The Illinois Library Association is currently monitoring several bills moving through the state legislature. Visit https://www.ila.org/advocacy/illinois-legislative-issues/legislative-issues/bill-monitoring to see the full list. There are also some general medical legislative items that we may see at the reference desk:

Illinois It’s January which means we have several new laws that just went into effect in Illinois. Here are a few links that summarize what we need to know: Changes To Illinois Laws As Of Jan. 1 (Block Club Chicago): here New Illinois laws 2024: Full list of laws in effect on Jan. 1 (ABC…

Federal In October, the White House published the “Blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights: Making Automated Systems Work for the American People”. This is NOT a legal document, but is a strong indicator of which elements of artificial intelligence will be prioritized for policy making. On November 28, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health…

Federal News On October 30, 2023, President Biden issued an Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence, in an effort to govern the creation and use of AI. Read the White House issued fact-sheet for a plain speech overview of the Executive Order and its desired impacts. Interested…

Federal News Several pending Supreme Court cases could negatively impact healthcare and scientific progress. In particular, they could restrict access to abortions, limit funds for preventative care, and hinder the ability to update policies according to new research. https://www.politico.com/news/2023/10/05/supreme-court-cases-health-care-00119996 Illinois NewsAs part of the new ‘Ban Books Bans” law (Public Act 103-0100) certain procedural or…