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Preventing Catastrophic AI Risk & Regulating Big Tech
What’s happening: The speed of AI development is moving faster than Congress, the federal government, or states can keep up with. Americans are understandably concerned about the effect this new technology will have on their lives, and on their kids’ lives. And even the companies that create these models are sounding the alarm. But today, there is no dedicated agency with the resources or expertise to deal with these new challenges.
What I believe: The challenge posed by new technologies and new industries is one we have faced before. In the past, we created new expert agencies to regulate new innovations like aviation, pharmaceuticals, and nuclear energy. But today, no such agency exists for AI or social media platforms, despite their potential to profoundly transform our economy and society. Oversight is fragmented between states and federal agencies, while Congress tries to address each new problem one bill at a time. We need a federal agency able to keep pace with innovation, act before serious harm occurs, and have the authority to hold companies accountable when they break the rules.
What I’m doing: On Wednesday, I announced a proposal with my colleague Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) that builds off of our landmark legislation to create a new independent federal agency to regulate AI models and social media. This bill would require pre-certification for frontier AI models, delay the public release of any AI model that could pose catastrophic risks without necessary safeguards, and issue formal rulemakings able to keep pace with the speed of innovation. It’s time for an independent agency with the authority to regulate Big Tech and AI and protect the American people.
2. Urging Trump to Rescind Unscientific Vaccine Orders
What’s happening: President Donald Trump and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. have spent months waging a campaign against vaccines and promoting skepticism. In August, Trump signed an executive order on childhood vaccines that overrides decades of settled scientific consensus. Our nation is living through the most severe measles outbreak in over 35 years. In Colorado, we have 25 confirmed cases this year, including seven hospitalizations. Of these cases, 22 people were unvaccinated. Additionally, Colorado currently has the sixth lowest measles vaccination rate in the nation for kindergarteners, and 57 out of Colorado's 64 counties now fail to meet the threshold for herd immunity.
What I believe: My message to Colorado parents is simple: vaccines are safe, they are effective, and they remain our strongest defense against diseases like measles. When we allow misinformation to drive down vaccination rates, we aren't just failing to meet an important public health indicator. We're failing moms and dads in Aurora, Pueblo, and Durango. We're failing pediatricians, who are fighting on the front lines of this disease, and we're failing vulnerable children across Colorado who have no choice in the matter. Parents, pediatricians, and families across Colorado should be able to expect more from their government. They deserve certainty. They deserve clear communication. And they deserve to know that their public health system is designed to keep them safe, rather than pursue another political agenda that has nothing to do with their education or their health.
What I’m doing: On Wednesday, I once again called out Trump’s campaign against vaccines and demanded that he rescind his executive order on childhood vaccines as well as fire Secretary Kennedy on the Senate floor. Until that happens, we're going to be stuck fighting battles against a disease that we functionally eliminated 30 years ago. Kids and families in Colorado and all across this country deserve so much better than this, and I will continue to condemn this unscientific and harmful rhetoric.
3. Meeting with Coloradans
Meeting with Coloradans in Grand Junction, Gunnison, and Lake City
What I did: Last weekend, I traveled to Grand Junction, Hotchkiss, the Blue Mesa Reservoir, and Lake City to see how Coloradans are working to improve their communities and learn what I can do to help.
Colorado River District River Fireside Chat: It was incredibly rewarding to join Congressman Jeff Hurd (R-Colo.) to celebrate our work to get $40 million in federal funding for the Shoshone Permanency Project. This project had immense local and statewide support and is proof that bringing people together around shared values, building community support, and combining limited resources is an effective model.
Colorado Mesa University Apprenticeship Program Visit: It was great to learn more about the Colorado Mesa University (CMU) apprenticeship program and how it’s preparing students with the skills they need to build careers and earn a living wage. CMU is proof that education built for today’s economy opens pathways to good-paying jobs across Colorado.
Hotchkiss Rural Economy Roundtable: I thoroughly enjoyed talking with Delta County leaders about rural prosperity. I’m glad to work with them to build a bright future for the Western Slope.
Blue Mesa Dam Visit: It was devastating to see firsthand the impact of this year’s historic drought and record-low snowpack on Blue Mesa Reservoir’s water levels. I was glad to hear from Western Slope water leaders about how they are working together to respond and how I can support them moving forward.
Lake San Cristobal Site Visit: Lake San Cristobal is the namesake and crown jewel of Lake City, a community that has shown great resiliency in the face of the destructive Elk Fire. I enjoyed speaking with local leaders and federal partners about how we can work together to protect this vital natural resource and the watershed that downstream communities depend on.
Uncorked Wine and Music Festival: It was an honor to attend the 25th annual Uncorked Wine and Music Festival in downtown Lake City and see the community bounce back from the Elk Fire. I welcome everyone to visit Lake City and experience this beautiful town for themselves, any time of year.
4. Combating the National Eviction Crisis
What’s happening: Our country's eviction crisis is driven in part by a national housing shortage that is particularly acute for low-income renters. In 2024, the Congressional Research Service calculated that 49.4 percent of renter households spent more than 30 percent of household income on housing costs and 26.2 percent spent more than half. Denver recorded 15,953 eviction filings in 2025, just seven fewer than the city’s record set in 2024 and 72 percent above pre-pandemic levels. The Colorado Judicial Branch also reported 41,482 sheriff-involved evictions in county courts in fiscal year 2024.
What I believe: Today, an illness, a car accident, or a family emergency can lead to a family being evicted from their home and falling into a cycle of poverty. Eviction can upend a family’s finances, work, education, and stability, with consequences that reverberate across our communities. As a former school superintendent, I saw kids unable to stay awake in class because they didn’t have a stable place to sleep the night before. I’ve heard from many Coloradans about how one unexpected setback led to their lives falling apart. We need to prevent eviction and limit the harm when it is unavoidable.
What I’m doing: On Thursday, Senator Todd Young (R-Ind.) and I reintroduced the updated Eviction Crisis Act of 2026. This legislation would address our urgent national eviction crisis, creating an emergency rental assistance program to reduce preventable evictions and making it easier for American families to stay securely housed. We have to face this crisis head on and do what we can to protect Colorado families from losing their homes when hardship strikes.
5. IN THE NEWS THIS WEEK
- This week, Senator Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and I led Senators Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Chris Coons (D-Del.), and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) to reintroduce the Segal AmeriCorps Education Award Tax Relief Act. In Colorado and across the country, AmeriCorps volunteers contribute to our communities and help improve the lives of our kids and neighbors through countless hours of service. 2024 alone saw 6,600 AmeriCorps members serving at over 700 local sites across the state. Congress should recognize their commitment and help them further their education without this unnecessary burden. I’m grateful to work with my colleagues to ensure the education assistance they earn is not unfairly taxed.
- Last week, I joined U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.) and 43 Senate colleagues, including Colorado Senator John Hickenlooper, to demand a full accounting of the costs of President Trump’s reckless war of choice with Iran. We are now more than six months into a conflict President Trump initially said would last six weeks. Nineteen American servicemembers have been killed and more than 820 wounded. Over 50,000 troops are currently deployed to the Middle East, with many of their deployments repeatedly extended. We have heard directly from military families worried about their loved ones serving in the conflict, urging us to end this war and bring them home. American taxpayers have already paid an extra $100 billion out of their pockets for higher gas and diesel prices alone and at least another $60 billion in higher costs for things like groceries, mortgages, and plane tickets as a result of the war. Americans deserve to know the true cost of this war, especially as the Pentagon requests even more funding to continue it. That is why I also voted for yet another War Powers Resolution this week to force the end of incoherent war.
- This month, I joined U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-Wash.) and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) to introduce the End Trump’s Tariff Tax Act, which would revoke President Trump’s newest global tariffs and 50 percent tariffs on Canada, and curtail Trump’s ability to continue waging his unilateral trade war. Coloradans are tired of paying for President Trump’s tariff war. Yet as the President’s tariffs continue to drive up prices the Trump administration has doubled down on making everyday goods more expensive while insisting that the economy has never been better – all while targeting crucial allies like Canada. Democrats refuse to play along with this alternate reality, which is why I joined my Senate colleagues to introduce legislation that blocks Trump’s tariffs and refunds money back to Coloradans.
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