Original research · Law tracker · Last updated Sept 29, 2026
Laws and bill status checked through Sept 29, 2026, against official bill records and text.
The short answer: Four states have statewide laws that limit how private employers use AI or similar tools in hiring: Illinois, Colorado, Texas and Maryland. New York City has its own bias-audit rule. California’s civil rights rules already cover automated hiring tools, and its “No Robo Bosses” bill, SB 947, is waiting on the governor, who has until Sept 30.
This page is general information, not legal advice. Laws change and details matter, so check with a lawyer in your state before you make big decisions.
Key findings
- Illinois has the most rules. It has a 2020 law on AI video interviews and, since Jan 1, 2026, a ban on AI that discriminates in job decisions, plus a notice rule.
- Colorado’s rules start Jan 1, 2027. A 2026 rewrite replaced the state’s 2024 AI Act. Employers using tools that heavily shape job decisions will owe notice and explanations.
- Texas bans intentional AI discrimination. Its 2025 law took effect Jan 1, 2026. Only the Attorney General can enforce it.
- California is waiting on a decision. SB 947 would limit using AI to discipline or fire workers. The governor has until Sept 30, 2026.
- Lots of bills, few laws. We counted 48 state bills on AI at work in 2025 and 2026. Only two have become law, both in New York, and both cover government employers only.
AI hiring laws by state
Click a column to sort. Type a state to filter. The last column counts bills filed in 2025-26, not laws.
| State | Status | Law | What it requires | Who it covers | Starts | AI-at-work bills filed 2025-26 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Alaska | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Arizona | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Arkansas | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| California | Rules in effect; SB 947 pending | Civil Rights Council rules; SB 947 awaiting the governor | State anti-discrimination rules now spell out that using an automated decision system that discriminates is illegal, just like any other hiring practice. The rules also cover record keeping. SB 947 would add limits on using AI to discipline or fire workers (see below). | Employers with 5 or more workers (covered by California's Fair Employment and Housing Act) | Rules in effect Oct 1, 2025 | 6 |
| Colorado | Law | SB26-189 (replaces the 2024 Colorado AI Act, SB24-205) | If you use an automated tool that heavily shapes a big decision about a person, including a job decision, you must tell them first. If the result goes against them, you must explain it in plain language within 30 days and, where reasonable, let them fix wrong data and ask for a human review. Keep records for 3 years. | Businesses using these tools with Colorado residents. We found no small-business exemption in the text. | Jan 1, 2027 | 0 |
| Connecticut | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| Delaware | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| District of Columbia | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Florida | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Georgia | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Hawaii | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Idaho | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Illinois | Law | HB 3773 (Public Act 103-0804) HB 2557, AI Video Interview Act (Public Act 101-0260); HB 53 (Public Act 102-0047) |
Makes it a civil rights violation to use AI in a way that discriminates in hiring, firing, promotion, discipline or other job decisions, or to use zip codes as a stand-in for a protected group. Employers must tell workers when they use AI for these decisions.
If AI scores recorded video interviews, you must tell the applicant in writing, explain how it works and get their consent. Limits sharing the videos and requires deleting them on request. Employers that rely only on AI to pick who gets an in-person interview must report applicant demographics to the state. |
Employers covered by the Illinois Human Rights Act, which includes very small employers
Employers hiring for jobs based in Illinois that use AI to review video interviews |
Jan 1, 2026 Jan 1, 2020; update Jan 1, 2022 |
0 |
| Indiana | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Iowa | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| Kansas | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Kentucky | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Louisiana | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Maine | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Maryland | Law | HB 1202 (2020) | You can't use facial recognition during a job interview unless the applicant signs a consent waiver. | Employers interviewing applicants in Maryland | 2020 | 0 |
| Massachusetts | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Michigan | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| Minnesota | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 3 |
| Mississippi | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Missouri | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Montana | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Nebraska | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Nevada | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| New Hampshire | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| New Jersey | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 10 |
| New Mexico | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| New York | City law; state laws cover government only | NYC Local Law 144 (city law); state S 822 (2025) and S 8831 (2026) | In New York City, employers using an automated hiring or promotion tool must get a yearly bias audit, post the results and notify candidates. The two state laws only cover state and local government agencies. | Employers and staffing agencies hiring for jobs in New York City | NYC rule enforced since July 5, 2023 | 10 |
| North Carolina | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| North Dakota | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Ohio | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Oklahoma | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Oregon | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Pennsylvania | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Rhode Island | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| South Carolina | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| South Dakota | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Tennessee | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Texas | Law | HB 149, Texas Responsible AI Governance Act | You can't build or use AI with the intent to unlawfully discriminate against a protected group. A tool that has an unequal effect is not enough on its own to break this law. | Anyone doing business in Texas. Only the Attorney General can enforce it, and you get 60 days to fix a problem first. | Jan 1, 2026 | 2 |
| Utah | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Vermont | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| Virginia | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 2 |
| Washington | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| West Virginia | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Wisconsin | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
| Wyoming | No AI hiring law | – | – | – | – | 0 |
Download the laws: ai-hiring-laws-by-state-2026.csv
California: where SB 947 stands today
SB 947, the “No Robo Bosses Act of 2026,” passed the Legislature on Aug 31, 2026. It went to Governor Newsom on Sept 9. As of Sept 29, 2026, he had not signed or vetoed it. Under the state constitution, he has until Sept 30. If he does nothing, it becomes law without his signature.
If it becomes law, here is what it would do, starting July 1, 2027:
- Employers could not rely only on an automated decision system to discipline or fire a worker.
- If an employer mainly relied on one, a person would have to review and back up the result.
- Workers would get a written notice after the tool was used on them, and could ask for a description of the data used.
- Employers could not use these tools to break other laws, guess at a worker’s protected traits, or punish workers for using their rights.
- The Labor Commissioner and public prosecutors would enforce it, with a $500 fine per violation. It would apply to employers of every size, according to the employment law firm CDF.
Newsom vetoed a broader bill, SB 7, in October 2025. Two other bills also await his decision: SB 951, which would add AI and automation details to mass-layoff (Cal/WARN) notices, and AB 2656, which covers public employees. Separately, California’s Civil Rights Council rules on automated decision systems in hiring took effect Oct 1, 2025.
Where lawmakers are filing bills
What this means for your business
Most small businesses don’t use AI to decide who gets hired. But a lot of hiring software now ranks resumes or scores interviews for you. If you use one, here is a simple checklist.
- Know what your tools do. Ask your job board or applicant software whether it ranks, filters or scores candidates. Write down the answer.
- Tell applicants. A sentence in your job post or application is enough to start. It is required in Illinois and New York City, and will be in Colorado from 2027.
- Get consent for video interviews scored by AI in Illinois, and for facial recognition in Maryland.
- Keep a person in charge. Have someone look at the people a tool screens out. Anti-discrimination laws still apply when software makes the call.
- Don’t use AI alone to discipline or fire. If SB 947 becomes law, that will be the rule in California from July 2027. It is good practice everywhere.
For the bigger picture on AI and work, see AI-proof jobs by state and small-business AI use by industry. If you run a chat bot for customers, read AI chatbot laws by state. Fake job interviews using deepfake video are a growing scam. See deepfake laws by state.
For every kind of state AI law in one place, see our companion page, AI laws by state.
Cite or share this data
You’re welcome to use the table and chart. Please credit and link to this page.
Source: StartBusinessByState.com review of state AI hiring laws and bills, Sept 29, 2026. https://startbusinessbystate.com/ai-hiring-laws-by-state/
Methods and sources
- Laws. We read the official record and text for each law in the table. We kept laws that limit how employers use AI or automated tools in hiring and other job decisions. Laws that only cover government employers (New York S 822 and S 8831) are noted but not counted as private-employer laws.
- Bill counts. From LegiScan data for 2025 and 2026, we pulled state bills whose title or summary is about employers using AI, automated decision tools, electronic monitoring or AI video interviews. We removed bills that were only studies, school or permitting bills, placeholder “technical change” bills, and bills mainly about other topics. This is a keyword count, so it may miss some bills or include a few loose fits.
- What we dropped. A first keyword pass had tagged some enacted bills as “AI in hiring” that aren’t. We dropped Texas HB 3512 (AI training for government workers), Maryland SB 720 (schools), Kentucky SB 4 (state agency AI and election deepfakes), New York budget bills, Illinois SB 3020 (a domestic violence law) and non-binding resolutions in Delaware and New Jersey.
- California status. Checked on California Legislative Information on the morning of Sept 29, 2026 (ET). We will update this page once the governor acts.
- Sources. LegiScan; California Legislative Information, SB 947; Sen. McNerney’s office on SB 947; CDF Labor Law on SB 947; Colorado SB26-189 session law; Colorado Attorney General AI page; NYC automated employment decision tools; California Civil Rights Council. Accessed Sept 29, 2026.
FAQ
Is it legal to use AI to screen job applicants?
Yes, in every state. But the usual anti-discrimination laws still apply to whatever tool you use. A few places add rules on top: notice and anti-bias rules in Illinois, video interview consent in Illinois, facial recognition consent in Maryland, bias audits in New York City, and notice and explanation duties in Colorado starting Jan 1, 2027.
Did California pass the No Robo Bosses Act?
The Legislature passed SB 947 on Aug 31, 2026, and sent it to Governor Newsom on Sept 9. As of Sept 29, 2026, he had not signed or vetoed it. His deadline is Sept 30. If he takes no action, it becomes law without his signature. If it becomes law, it starts July 1, 2027. He vetoed a similar bill, SB 7, in 2025.
What would SB 947 require?
It is about discipline and firing, not hiring in general. Employers could not rely only on an automated system to discipline or fire someone. If they mainly relied on one, a person would have to check the result. Workers would get a written notice afterward and could ask what data was used. Fines would be $500 per violation.
Does Colorado's AI law apply to small businesses?
We found no small-business exemption in SB26-189, the 2026 law that replaced Colorado’s 2024 AI Act. It starts Jan 1, 2027. If you use an automated tool that heavily shapes a hiring or other job decision about a Colorado resident, you will need to give notice before using it and explain bad outcomes afterward.
Do I need to tell applicants I use AI?
In Illinois, yes, for AI used in job decisions, and you need written consent before AI reviews video interviews. In New York City, employers using automated hiring tools must notify candidates. In Colorado, notice is required from 2027. Elsewhere it is not required by a state AI law, but it is a good habit.
How many states are working on AI hiring bills?
We counted 48 bills in 16 states filed in 2025 and 2026 on employers using AI to hire, manage, watch or fire workers. New Jersey and New York had the most, with 10 each. Only two have become law so far, both in New York, and both cover government employers only. Two California bills are waiting on the governor.