William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Division A, Title XV, Section 6505 ("GAO studies on trafficking")

• Authority: United States Congress
• Parent authority: Federal government
• Jurisdiction: United States
• Collections: NDAA provisions;U.S. federal laws
• Most recent activity: Enacted
• Most recent activity date: 2021-01-01

Risk subdomain coverage

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the risk subdomain are described.

• Cyberattacks, weapon development or use
• Fraud, scams, and targeted manipulation
• AI possessing dangerous capabilities

All other risk subdomains had no coverage in this document.

Risk Coverage Summary

The document has minimal coverage of AI risk domains, with limited focus on malicious actors (4.2, 4.3) and emerging technology capabilities (7.2). Coverage is concentrated on the study of AI's role in facilitating criminal activities rather than comprehensive AI risk governance.

Sector coverage

Minimal coverage — Brief mention but no specific mitigations, recommendations or governance measures relating to the sector are described.

• Public Administration (excl. National Security)
• National Security

All other sectors had no coverage in this document.

Sectors Summary

This document does not govern AI use in specific economic sectors. Rather, it mandates a study examining how emerging technologies including AI are used across multiple sectors to facilitate trafficking and money laundering. The study will examine financial institutions, technology companies, and various professional services, but the document itself does not impose governance requirements on these sectors.

Legislative Status

Hard Law

Legislative Status Summary

This is a binding legislative provision enacted by the United States Congress as part of the National Defense Authorization Act, mandating the Comptroller General to conduct specific studies with defined timelines and reporting requirements.

Actors

Proposer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: United States Congress
• Summary: The document is a section of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, enacted by the United States Congress, which has the constitutional authority to propose and enact federal legislation.

Target

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Comptroller General of the United States; Government Accountability Office (GAO)
• Summary: The legislation directly targets the Comptroller General of the United States (head of the GAO) with mandatory obligations to conduct studies and submit reports to Congress.

Enforcer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives; United States Congress
• Summary: Congressional committees have oversight authority to enforce compliance with the study mandate through their constitutional powers, including budget control and oversight hearings. The reports are required to be submitted to specific congressional committees.

Monitor

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; Committee on Financial Services of the House of Representatives
• Summary: The designated congressional committees will monitor implementation through receipt and review of the mandated reports, which must summarize study results and provide recommendations for legislative or regulatory action.

AI Lifecycle Stages

Lifecycle stages covered by the documents, as defined in the OECD Framework for the Classification of AI Systems

No lifecycle stages identified.

AI Lifecycle Summary

The document does not govern specific AI lifecycle stages but rather mandates a study examining how AI and other emerging technologies are used in criminal activities. It focuses on understanding AI's role in facilitating trafficking and money laundering rather than regulating AI development or deployment processes.

Technical Scope

Terms relating to technical scope that are mentioned or implicitly referenced in the document

No technical scope terms identified.

Technical Scope Summary

The document mentions artificial intelligence as one of several emerging technologies to be studied in the context of facilitating money laundering and trafficking. It does not define AI models, systems, or specific AI categories, but rather treats AI as a general technology category alongside digital identity technologies, distributed ledger technologies, and virtual assets.