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NIST’s AI standards eyed as inspiration for federal regulation

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westvirginiawatch.com – Paige Gross – 2025-06-30 05:00:00


With no federal AI regulations yet, many companies turn to the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s (NIST) voluntary AI Risk Management Framework as a key guideline. Developed collaboratively and released in 2023—with a generative AI-specific update in 2024—the framework offers flexible, comprehensive recommendations for managing AI risks. It promotes transparency, fairness, and trust throughout AI’s lifecycle without imposing strict rules. Legislators and experts praise NIST for providing a common, nonpartisan language in the rapidly evolving AI landscape. While not a regulation, NIST’s framework often influences policy and industry practices, serving as a crucial foundation amid ongoing calls for stronger AI laws.

by Paige Gross, West Virginia Watch
June 30, 2025

Amid discussions by Congress of what federal regulations for artificial intelligence could look like, experts and legislators have begun pointing to existing guidelines created by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) over the last two years, as a model.

“I think when it comes to AI and protecting data, coming from the lens of a startup, from a young company, we’ve looked at the new standards that [NIST] have around AI, and they’re actually pretty good,” Bhavin Shah, founder and CEO of AI company Moveworks, testified at a June 5 House Oversight Committee hearing.

“They do provide for a lot of recommendations that we actually follow,” he added.

Shah was referencing NIST’s AI Risk Management Framework, a set of voluntary guidelines released in 2023, and developed by a collaboration between private and public sector experts.

The framework aims to provide systems that developers and deployers of AI can follow to increase the safety of their AI models and trustworthiness with their users. The framework was designed to be flexible and general enough in its outline that companies or organizations of different sizes can implement their suggestions.

In 2024, NIST released a similar framework specific to generative AI — newer AI models that are capable of generating new text, images and other content.

Why is NIST’s AI framework influential?

Because there currently are no federal regulations for AI, companies often look to NIST’s framework to find common language or standards, said Atlanta-based Patrice Williams-Lindo, a management consultant and CEO of career consulting company Career Nomad.

“It’s where technical rigor meets trust,” Williams-Lindo said. “It’s not regulatory, but it creates that common language. So if you think about the times when maybe Congress doesn’t move fast enough, NIST can help industry self-govern responsibly and ethically.”

NIST’s AI framework assesses the full life cycle of an AI product from conception to monitoring after it has been released, using a “map, manage and measure” strategy, said Boston-based Anthony Habayeb, cofounder and CEO of AI governance platform Monitaur. Users following the framework would map out and identify risks in the AI model, measure the AI performance and risk levels, then manage those identified risks and respond to them.

“What NIST then does is give you some tactical guidance on how you can build towards transparency, how you could build towards better fairness without explicitly defining the details of how to do it,” Habayeb said.

NIST’s research and findings often lay the groundwork for national laws and policies. Following the 9/11 attacks, for example, NIST was one of the agencies to investigate the technical reasons behind the building collapses, and subsequent reports changed aspects of the White House’s public safety communications standards, building codes and DNA processing.

In the early 2010s, as software and cloud services became more prevalent, NIST served as a technical advisor in developing the FedRAMP program, which is how government agencies procure software today. In 2014, NIST released its cybersecurity framework, a collection of information from hundreds of workshops and participants, which has been widely implemented by private companies, Shah said in his June 5 testimony.

“NIST is often the soft law before the hard law hits,” Williams-Lindo said.

In early June, NIST became a part of the U.S. Department of Commerce. It’s a move that Ylli Bajraktari, president and CEO of tech-focused think tank Special Competitive Studies Project, said during the June 5 hearing could be beneficial for helping companies develop their best AI policies. Whether or not Congress adopts a federal AI policy, Bajraktari said, NIST’s AI framework is a good influence on the private and public sector.

“I think NIST is well positioned for this,” he testified.

Could NIST standards become law?

Legislators from both sides of the aisle and expert witnesses of varying backgrounds praised NIST’s clear, nonpartisan AI framework at a handful of congressional hearings that have happened since Republicans proposed a 10-year moratorium on state-level AI laws in the “Big Beautiful Bill” working its way through Congress.

“Congress likes NIST because NIST doesn’t issue regulations,” said Boise, Idaho-based Thomas Leithauser, a legal analyst at software and information services company Wolters Kluwer. “NIST offers recommendations and guidance.”

Though many tech companies follow the guidelines outlined in the AI framework, it’s entirely voluntary. They are standards, not regulations, Habayeb said.

But some legislators arguing for AI regulations at the national level and in their states say that a framework like NIST’s isn’t enough. Many AI laws are shaped as consumer protection laws, including recently passed state laws that address discrimination caused by AI used for facial recognitionbanking, hiring and healthcare.

True regulations are needed to keep people safe from potential harms caused by AI algorithms, said Rep. Kathy Castor, a Democrat from Florida, in a May 21 hearing of the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade.

“What the heck is Congress doing?” Castor said about Republican efforts to block state-level regulation. “What are you doing to take the cops off the beat while states have acted to protect us?”

NIST’s AI framework garners bipartisan support, but could it be turned into a federal law? Yes and no, said Williams-Lindo.

It’s a strong starting point, and already a guidepost for many tech companies, she said. But it does not serve as a regulatory board, which may be needed to keep the quickly growing field of AI in check against the harms it could cause.

“NIST is operational, so we still will need a real plan that measures … algorithmic harm, or ensures that historically excluded communities aren’t collateral damage,” she said. “That’s usually where there’s a gap right in that federal leadership.”

Yet some industry players say companies don’t need the hard threat of regulation to follow NIST standards. Aside from safety concerns, builders of AI should see the competitive edge in following safety guidelines, Habayeb said.

“If you skip a step of certain testing or data validation, you’re going to have a less than ideal system,” Habayeb said. “And you should care about that for business purposes, not even regulation.”

West Virginia Watch is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. West Virginia Watch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Leann Ray for questions: info@westvirginiawatch.com.

The post NIST’s AI standards eyed as inspiration for federal regulation appeared first on westvirginiawatch.com



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This article presents a largely neutral and balanced view on AI regulation, focusing on the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) framework as a widely respected, nonpartisan standard. It highlights bipartisan support for NIST’s voluntary guidelines and includes perspectives from both industry leaders and legislators across the political spectrum. While it notes Democratic Representative Kathy Castor’s call for stronger federal regulations and Republican efforts to limit state laws, the overall tone remains factual and descriptive, emphasizing the framework’s role as a foundation rather than advocating a specific ideological stance or partisan viewpoint.

News from the South - West Virginia News Feed

Jay's Evening Weather for 07/04/25

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www.youtube.com – WOAY TV – 2025-07-04 18:07:19

SUMMARY: Jay’s Evening Weather for 07/04/25 forecasts lots of sunshine and very high UV levels (UV index 10) this weekend, urging use of sunscreen, hats, and shade to avoid sunburn. Temperatures are warm statewide, ranging from upper 70s at night to highs near 90°F in places like Huntington. Humidity is currently moderate but will rise Sunday, increasing heat-related illness risks—know heat exhaustion and heat stroke signs. A tropical system may develop off the North Carolina coast, possibly named Shantel, but rain chances remain low until a front arrives Monday, bringing increased showers and thunderstorms through the week.

It has been another very nice day around the region. Tomorrow will be nice again, but warmer. FOR ALL THE LATEST, BE SURE …

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County Commissioner dies

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www.youtube.com – WSAZ NewsChannel 3 – 2025-07-04 16:34:55

SUMMARY: Cathy Coleman, a County Commissioner in Greenup County, Kentucky, died following a car accident on May 1st. Her granddaughter shared that Cathy was taking her dog to get ice cream when the crash occurred. The Scioto County Commissioners’ Facebook page announced her passing and stated that funeral arrangements will be shared once available. The announcement also noted that it has been a perfect day weather-wise, reflecting on the timing of the news. Coleman’s death has affected the local community, and more details about her funeral will be provided by the commissioners’ office soon.

County Commissioner dies.

For more Local News from WSAZ: https://www.wsaz.com/
For more YouTube Content: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCrcuU0JXXy8oIBqEB13mrwA

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Taking a look at the Declaration of Independence on July 4

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westvirginiawatch.com – West Virginia Watch Staff – 2025-07-04 05:00:00


The United States Declaration of Independence, adopted on July 4, 1776, announced the Thirteen Colonies’ separation from British rule, declaring them free and independent states. It asserts that all men are created equal with unalienable rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Governments derive power from the consent of the governed and must be altered or abolished if destructive. The document lists grievances against King George III, including unjust laws, taxation without consent, and military oppression. It concludes by pledging the colonies’ commitment to independence, with mutual support of their lives, fortunes, and honor.

by West Virginia Watch Staff, West Virginia Watch
July 4, 2025

We’re running the text of the Declaration of Independence in full today on America’s 249th birthday.

In Congress, July 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America, When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

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West Virginia Watch is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. West Virginia Watch maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Leann Ray for questions: info@westvirginiawatch.com.

The post Taking a look at the Declaration of Independence on July 4 appeared first on westvirginiawatch.com



Note: The following A.I. based commentary is not part of the original article, reproduced above, but is offered in the hopes that it will promote greater media literacy and critical thinking, by making any potential bias more visible to the reader –Staff Editor.

Political Bias Rating: Centrist

This content consists of the full text of the United States Declaration of Independence, a foundational and historically significant document. It presents the original grievances and rationales for the colonies’ separation from British rule without commentary or modern political framing. The Declaration is often seen as a unifying symbol of American values such as liberty and government by consent, and is typically used in contexts that aim to transcend contemporary partisan divides. Thus, the content reflects a neutral, centrist presentation rather than any specific political bias.

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