On 3 April 2024, a joint statement on the Enforcement of Civil Rights, Fair Competition, Consumer Protection, and Equal Opportunity Laws in Automated Systems was announced by several US federal agencies. Signed by leaders from the EEOC, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Department of Justice, the Federal Trade Commission, the Department of Education, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the Department of Labor, the joint statement reiterates the intention of federal agencies to enforce legal protections that could be violated by the use of automated systems. Here, automated systems are defined as ‘software and algorithmic processes, including AI, that are used to automate workflows and help people complete tasks or make decisions.’ 

In the statement, the agencies express their commitment to monitoring the evolution of automated tools as well as simultaneously promoting responsible innovation. They also reinforce the applicability of existing laws to automated systems and their responsibility to ensuring that the development of such systems happens in accordance with these laws.