District of Columbia

Summary

The District of Columbia has no enacted AI-behavior-specific statute governing private entities as of mid-2026. The only enacted AI-specific measure is Mayor's Order 2024-028 (February 8, 2024), which binds DC government agencies: it establishes six AI values, requires agencies to document public benefit, safety, equity, transparency, and human accountability before deploying any AI tool, and requires disclosure to residents when they are interacting with an AI chatbot rather than a person. On the legislative side, three successive versions of the Stop Discrimination by Algorithms Act — introduced in 2021 (B24-0558), 2023 (B25-0114), and targeted for the ongoing 26th Council — have each failed to advance past committee, making DC a notable example of a jurisdiction where ambitious algorithmic-accountability legislation has been repeatedly proposed but not enacted. Private-sector conduct remains governed by general law: the DC Consumer Protection Procedures Act (D.C. Code § 28-3901 et seq.) prohibits deceptive and unfair trade practices and has been applied by courts to automated screening tools, and the DC Human Rights Act (D.C. Code § 2-1401 et seq.) prohibits discrimination on protected bases, which can reach algorithmic systems that produce discriminatory outcomes. The 2026 Surveillance Pricing Prohibition Amendment Act (B26-0667) is pending in committee and would add algorithmic surveillance-based price discrimination to the Consumer Protection Procedures Act's list of unfair practices.