Senate Commerce Committee

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sen Ron Wyden (D-OR) introduced the Justice Against Weaponized Bureaucratic Overreach to Networked Expression Act Act, legislation to hold the government accountable for censorship and violations of the First Amendment. Jawboning occurs when the government pressures private companies to censor speech protected by the First Amendment. Americans face significant hurdles in proving these violations.

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sens Brian Schatz (D-HI), John Curtis (R-UT), and Adam Schiff (D-CA) introduced the CHATBOT Act, legislation that would put parents, not Big Tech, in charge of how children and teens interact with AI chatbots. The Children’s Health, Advancement, Trust, Boundaries, and Oversight in Technology Act, or CHATBOT Act, would require AI companies to establish “family accounts” for parents to manage access and usage of AI chatbots by their children. AI chatbots would limit manipulative design features; require parental consent for chatbot usage 

So that we may better understand the Federal Communications Commission’s actions regarding the Nexstar-Tegna transaction, please provide written responses to the following questions no later than April 13, 2026:

Within my lifetime, the Internet has impacted nearly every aspect of the world and our daily lives—especially how we communicate. It was only a short time ago that speech and newsworthiness was controlled by a handful of TV networks and newspaper publishers. And if you held a position they didn’t want to print or wasn’t consistent with their political views, it didn’t get said. The Internet changed that, allowing anyone to bypass these gatekeepers and shape public opinion with their own views.

Sen Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Committee, and Sen Jerry Moran (R-KS), a senior member of the Commerce Committee, introduced the bipartisan NSF AI Education Act of 2026 to expand scholarship and professional development opportunities to study artificial intelligence with support from the National Science Foundation. The NSF AI Education Act would authorize the agency to award undergraduate and graduate scholarships in AI, including scholarships focused on the use of AI in agriculture, education and advanced manufacturing.

Sens Maria Cantwell (D-WA), Todd Young (R-IN), John Hickenlooper (D-CO), and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN) reintroduced the bipartisan Future of AI Innovation Act, which lays the foundation to maintain U.S. leadership in the global race to develop artificial intelligence (AI) and other emerging technologies. The legislation promotes strong partnerships between government, business, civil society and academia to advance AI research.