US state AI laws in 2026: Colorado, California, Texas, Illinois, New York and Utah

Last checked: October 30, 2026

The US has no single federal AI law. Companies that build or deploy AI in the US deal with a set of state laws, each with its own scope, dates and enforcement. This page gives the status of the state laws suppliers ask us about most, then the federal position and a short comparison with the EU AI Act. It is not legal advice.

Summary table

About the sources. The Colorado row was checked against the bill page on the Colorado General Assembly site. The California and Texas rows link to the official bill and regulator pages. The Illinois row links to a law-firm post on the withdrawn draft rules, and the New York row to a law-firm summary, not the statute. The federal section links to the DOJ memo. The Utah row comes from our dated research notes of October 30, 2026; its primary-source link is pending. Check the statute text before relying on any of them. Where the table says “see note below”, our notes do not record the enforcement detail and we do not state one.

Colorado: SB 26-189

Colorado repealed its earlier AI Act and replaced it with SB 26-189. The bill was signed on May 14, 2026 and takes effect on January 1, 2027. Its duties center on three things for people affected by AI-assisted decisions: notice, an explanation, and human review. It gives no private right to sue.

If your planning documents still show the old Colorado AI Act dates, replace them with the SB 26-189 date.

California: SB 53 and the CPPA ADMT rules

SB 53 has applied since January 1, 2026, with penalties of up to $1M per violation. Separately, the California Privacy Protection Agency’s rules on automated decisionmaking technology (ADMT) require compliance by January 1, 2027. They are two different instruments with different owners, so track them separately.

Texas: TRAIGA

The Texas Responsible AI Governance Act (HB 149) has applied since January 1, 2026. Only the Texas Attorney General can enforce it, and there is a 60-day cure period before enforcement. We do not state penalty amounts here.

Illinois: HB 3773

Illinois HB 3773 has applied since January 1, 2026. Draft implementing rules were withdrawn on June 2, 2026, so there are no final rules to point to yet. Check for any new draft before you plan around them.

New York: the RAISE Act as amended

The RAISE Act, as amended, applies from January 1, 2027. Per a law-firm summary from Cooley, the penalty figures are $1M and $3M. We have not yet confirmed those figures against the statute.

Utah: AI Policy Act

Utah’s AI Policy Act is set to sunset on July 1, 2027. If you rely on it, plan for it to lapse on that date unless extended.

Federal: EO 14365 and the DOJ task force

Executive Order 14365 led to a DOJ AI Litigation Task Force. The order does not preempt state AI laws. Until a court or Congress says otherwise, the state laws above apply on their own terms.

How this compares with the EU AI Act

The EU takes one regulation for the whole bloc. Under Regulation (EU) 2024/1689, the bans on prohibited practices and the AI literacy duty have applied since February 2, 2025, and fines reach up to EUR 35M or 7%. The Digital Omnibus, Regulation (EU) 2026/1744, entered into force on July 27, 2026 and moved the high-risk dates: Annex III systems from December 2, 2027 and Annex I products from August 2, 2028. See the EU AI Act explainer and the full EU AI Act timeline.

What to do with this

No state law above requires a particular framework. Many teams use the NIST AI RMF as a common base and map it to other obligations. Two crosswalks help: NIST AI RMF vs EU AI Act and NIST AI RMF vs ISO/IEC 42001. To see where your evidence stands, use the AI assurance readiness self-check.

Questions

Is the Colorado AI Act still in effect? No. It was repealed and replaced by SB 26-189, which takes effect on January 1, 2027.

Can individuals sue under Colorado SB 26-189? No. It gives no private right to sue.

Who enforces the Texas law? Only the Texas Attorney General, after a 60-day cure period.

Are the Illinois HB 3773 rules final? No. Draft rules were withdrawn on June 2, 2026.

Does the federal executive order override state AI laws? No. EO 14365 led to a DOJ AI Litigation Task Force but does not preempt state laws.