# 119-hr-10538: Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act of 2026

119-hr-10538, Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Casar, Greg [D-TX-35] (D-TX); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-16).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-10538
- As of: 2026-10-16
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-10538
- Congress: 119
- Title: Ban Artificial Superintelligence Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-09-24
- Sponsor: Rep. Casar, Greg [D-TX-35] (D-TX)
- Cosponsors: 12
- Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-10-16

## Summary

**A nationwide pause on advanced AI and a ban on artificial superintelligence (ASI).** The bill creates a Department of Artificial Intelligence to enforce that pause, set strict inspection and approval rules, and penalize violations. - Developers and companies: Must obtain Department charters, grant full access for inspections and audits, and risk charter revocation plus forfeiture of intellectual property and assets for violations. - Researchers and labs: Face a pause on advanced AI work until the Department is staffed and rules are issued. Systems showing dangerous precursor traits must be reported within 24 hours and rendered inoperative if not cleared within 30 days. - Workers and whistleblowers: Policymaking individuals and rogue actors can face criminal penalties up to 20 years in prison. Other workers who recklessly violate rules can be banned from the AI industry for 10 years, and whistleblowers get anti‑retaliation protections and a possible waiver of the ban. - Federal programs and international policy: Federal funds may not support banned activities but a narrow exception allows funding defensive cybersecurity research using certain risky AI. The Secretary must pursue international agreements and potential export controls.

## Cosponsors (12)

- Rep. Khanna, Ro [D-CA-17] (D-CA), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Mejia, Analilia [D-NJ-11] (D-NJ), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Ansari, Yassamin [D-AZ-3] (D-AZ), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Hoyle, Val T. [D-OR-4] (D-OR), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Lynch, Stephen F. [D-MA-8] (D-MA), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. García, Jesús G. "Chuy" [D-IL-4] (D-IL), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Deluzio, Christopher R. [D-PA-17] (D-PA), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Grijalva, Adelita S. [D-AZ-7] (D-AZ), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, Alexandria [D-NY-14] (D-NY), 2026-09-28T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Randall, Emily [D-WA-6] (D-WA), 2026-10-01T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Tonko, Paul [D-NY-20] (D-NY), 2026-10-13T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Velázquez, Nydia M. [D-NY-7] (D-NY), 2026-09-24T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- New Department to Regulate AI: benefit, high. If enacted, the bill would create an executive Department of Artificial Intelligence led by a President-appointed, Senate-confirmed Secretary. The Secretary would run the Department and enforce the law. The bill would set up an independent Artificial Intelligence Advisory Board to give scientific a…
- Penalties, job bans, and whistleblower protections: mixed, high. If enacted, people who recklessly violate key prohibitions could face fines and up to 20 years in prison. Non-policymaking individuals who recklessly break the rules could be barred from AI industry jobs for 10 years, though they may ask the Secretary to review the ban. Covered employees, contracto…
- Nationwide pause and AI charters: mixed, high. If enacted, the bill would define "advanced AI" as systems trained with at least 10^25 operations and require the Secretary to update that threshold each year. It would impose an immediate nationwide pause on training, modifying, or deploying advanced AI until the Department is staffed and rules ar…
- Federal funding limits and export rules: mixed, medium. If enacted, the bill would bar use of Federal funds for activities that violate the Act's prohibitions. One narrow exception would let the Department fund defensive cybersecurity research that uses AI capable of accessing secured infrastructure without authorization. The Secretary would also work w…

## Related bills

- 119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026
- 119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026
- 119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act
- 119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act
- 119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025
- 119-hr-2086: Rights for the TSA Workforce Act

## Sources
- [119-hr-10538 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/10538)

## Related
- [119-hr-9877: Health Equity and Accountability Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-9877)
- [119-hr-7853: PrEP Access and Coverage Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7853)
- [119-hr-51: Washington, D.C. Admission Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-51)
- [119-hr-7973: Momnibus Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7973)
- [119-hr-20: Richard L. Trumka Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-20)
- [119-hr-2086: Rights for the TSA Workforce Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2086)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-10538 (as of 2026-10-16).