National Drone and Advanced Air Mobility Research and Development Act, Title VI ("Department of Energy Activities")

• Authority: United States Congress
• Parent authority: Federal government
• Jurisdiction: United States
• Collections: U.S. federal laws
• Most recent activity: Defunct
• Most recent activity date: 2025-01-03

Risk subdomain coverage

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

• AI system security vulnerabilities

All other risk subdomains had no coverage in this document.

Risk Coverage Summary

This document has minimal risk domain coverage, primarily addressing AI system security vulnerabilities (2.2) through cybersecurity considerations for unmanned aircraft systems. The document focuses on research, development, and demonstration activities rather than risk mitigation or governance of AI harms. Most risk subdomains are not mentioned as the document is a research funding authorization rather than a risk management framework.

Sector coverage

Good coverage — Comprehensive governance measures or mitigations with clear procedures relating to the sector are explicitly described.

• Trade, Transportation & Utilities
• Scientific Research & Development Services
• Public Administration (excl. National Security)

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

• Agriculture, Mining, Construction & Manufacturing
• Real Estate, Rental & Leasing
• Educational Services
• National Security

All other sectors had no coverage in this document.

Sectors Summary

This document primarily governs AI use in Scientific Research and Development Services through DOE research programs, with significant coverage of Trade, Transportation and Utilities (energy infrastructure), and Public Administration (government research activities). Multiple other sectors receive minimal coverage through specific application examples.

Legislative Status

Hard Law

Legislative Status Summary

This is a binding federal statute enacted by the United States Congress with mandatory appropriations and specific obligations for the Department of Energy to carry out research programs.

Actors

Proposer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: United States Congress
• Summary: The document is a Congressional Act (Title VI of the National Drone and Advanced Air Mobility Research and Development Act), indicating it was proposed and enacted by the United States Congress as the legislative authority.

Target

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor, AI_Developer, AI_Infrastructure_Provider
• Entities: Department of Energy; Office of Science; Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy; Office of Nuclear Energy; Office of Fossil Energy; Office of Electricity; Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response; Advanced Research Projects Agency–Energy; Office of Environmental Management; Office of Environment, Health, Safety and Security; National Nuclear Security Administration; Artificial Intelligence Technology Office; UAS Research and Engineering Center; National Laboratories; institutions of higher education; nonprofit research organizations; private sector entities; State, local, territorial, or Tribal government research agencies
• Summary: The Act applies to the Department of Energy and its various offices, which must coordinate and carry out the program. It also targets eligible entities (universities, National Labs, private sector, nonprofits, government agencies) that can receive financial assistance for research activities.

Enforcer

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Secretary of Energy; Department of Energy; Office of Technology Transitions
• Summary: The Secretary of Energy is designated as the primary authority responsible for implementing and overseeing the program, with coordination responsibilities across DOE offices and with other federal agencies.

Monitor

• Entity Types: AI_Governance_Actor
• Entities: Secretary of Energy; Department of Energy; United States Congress (through appropriations oversight)
• Summary: The Secretary of Energy has monitoring responsibilities through program coordination and interagency coordination requirements. Congress maintains oversight through the authorization of appropriations process and can monitor implementation through budget reviews.

AI Lifecycle Stages

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

• Plan and Design
• Collect and Process Data
• Build and Use Model
• Verify and Validate
• Deploy
• Operate and Monitor

AI Lifecycle Summary

The document covers multiple AI lifecycle stages with primary focus on Build and Use Model (AI and machine learning development for UAS), Plan and Design (formulating research goals and strategies), and Deploy (technology transfer and facility implementation). It also addresses Operate and Monitor through data management strategies and real-time analysis capabilities.

Technical Scope

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

• AI Models
• AI Systems
• Open Weight / Open Source
• Task-specific AI

Technical Scope Summary

The document explicitly mentions AI systems and AI technologies, particularly artificial intelligence and machine learning for unmanned aircraft systems. It focuses on edge computing AI, autonomous operation, and algorithm development. No specific mentions of frontier AI, general purpose AI, foundation models, or compute thresholds are present.