The House Oversight and Reform Committee on July 20 approved and sent to the full House for consideration several bills with Federal tech implications, including measures dealing with artificial intelligence oversight, and Federal hiring for several classes of technology positions.
New Fed Tech Positions
On the Federal hiring front, the committee voted to approve H.R. 3533, which would task the Office of Personnel Management to establish an “occupational series” for Federal jobs in software development, software engineering, data science, and data management. OPM would have nine months to complete the task.
AI Oversight
The committee also voted to approve the AI in Counterterrorism Oversight Enhancement Act, which would strengthen the ability of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board to provide oversight and guidance related to the use of AI tech for counterterrorism applications. The bill is sponsored by committee Chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., and Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee Chairman Jamie Raskin, D-Md.
Research Safeguard
Finally, the committee voted to approve the Federal Funded Research and Technology Development and Protection Act, which would require the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to take steps to “safeguard federally funded research and technology development.” The measure would direct OMB to “require that any agency that makes a Federal grant maintains compliance operations to guard against malign foreign talent recruitment programs,” and to come up with standardized disclosure and accountability measures to support those compliance operations.
