Chester County lawmaker’s AI bill: Audits and disclosures

A Pennsylvania AI safety proposal sponsored by Chester County state Rep. Melissa Shusterman would require developer disclosures, risk reports and independent audits. The House Communications and Technology Committee discussed it alongside HB 2829 at an October 19 public hearing.

Shusterman, a Democrat representing the 157th District in part of Chester County, is the prime sponsor of House Bill 2800. State Rep. Manuel Guzman is the prime sponsor of House Bill 2829.

The official status pages for HB 2800 and HB 2829, checked October 22, still list committee referral as their latest action and display no votes. The hearing listing does not establish passage. Both remain proposals.

The disclosure dates differ

HB 2800, printer’s number 3904, page 7, names January 1, 2027, for large frontier developers to have filed a registration, disclosure statement and required fee before developing, deploying or operating a covered model in Pennsylvania.

HB 2829, printer’s number 4002, page 6, uses January 1, 2028, for its disclosure and fee requirement.

These are dates printed in proposed legislation, not current filing deadlines. HB 2800’s final page also ties most of the act’s effective date to a year after publication of a notice concerning temporary regulations. HB 2829’s final page instead specifies January 1, 2028.

Read the model definitions carefully

The training figures are not written alike. HB 2800’s definition on page 6 prints a threshold greater than 1,026 integer or floating point operations. HB 2829’s page 5 prints greater than 10^26 operations, meaning 10 raised to the 26th power.

The records reviewed do not explain whether the HB 2800 figure was intended or will be changed. Treating those two printed figures as identical would obscure a difference in the documents.

Both texts define a large frontier developer using annual gross revenue above $500 million, including affiliates, in the preceding calendar year. That revenue test is one part of the definitions, rather than a complete explanation of which activities would be covered.

Audits and a proposed limit on local rules

Both proposals call for annual independent audits for large frontier developers beginning January 1, 2028, or 90 days after first qualifying, whichever is later. See HB 2800, pages 12 and 13, and HB 2829, page 11.

For Chester County municipalities, another provision appears in HB 2829, section 1107, page 24. It would reserve regulation of frontier models to the state and prohibit political subdivisions from imposing requirements specifically regulating those models. That is proposed language, not a restriction established by this bill today.

Readers following the debate can compare the printer’s number on a later version with 3904 and 4002 and check the bill histories for action beyond referral. Our Kennett Township Front Desk guide examines a separate local AI communications plan, including its staff handoffs and implementation limits. More reporting is available in our Chester County coverage.

Photo: Illustrative server photograph by Brett Sayles on Pexels, used under the Pexels License. The equipment is not identified as a Chester County facility, a frontier AI training system or a developer covered by either proposal.