Last night, during the Energy & Commerce Committee markup of the Republican tax plan, House Republicans voted to restrict state laws that crack down on surveillance pricing, automated insurance denials, automated management systems, and other uses of artificial intelligence that allow corporations to gouge consumers and exploit workers.
The provision benefits companies like RealPage, a software data company sued by the Justice Department for alleged collusion on prices in the rental housing market; platforms that use artificial intelligence to drive down wages and benefits for nurses; and retailers that use artificial intelligence and personalized data to set discriminatory prices. Groundwork Collaborative’s Executive Director Lindsay Owens reacted to the vote:
“Not only are House Republicans giving their billionaire donors and large corporations a massive tax handout, they are giving RealPage and bad actors like them a free pass to rip off working families. They are paving the way for more predatory landlords to jack up rent, more apps to drive down gig worker wages, and more retailers to hike prices on consumers. The GOP tax bill tells you everything you need to know about the Republican party’s priorities and how unserious they are about lowering costs for working families.”