S 5664: FUTURE of Workers Act

S 5664 in plain English: The FUTURE of Workers Act would tax companies that use artificial intelligence and automation, then use those revenues to fund worker support programs including job training, income assistance, and relocation help for workers displaced by AI and automation. The bill authorizes $60,000,000,000 per fiscal year for these worker support programs and provides up to $10,000 in one-time relocation assistance to eligible displaced workers.

Stated purpose

The bill aims to retrain and support workers whose jobs are displaced by automation or artificial intelligence, and to require specific federal government actions when national unemployment rises above certain thresholds.

Key points

• Authorizes $60,000,000,000 per year to support workers displaced by AI and automation
• Provides displaced workers up to $10,000 in one-time relocation assistance, adjusted for inflation
• Imposes a tiered tax on companies' U.S. AI receipts: 4% on amounts over $50M, 6% over $500M, and 8% over $5,000,000,000
• Imposes a separate tiered tax on employers based on taxable income: 2% up to $100M, 4% up to $1,000,000,000, and 6% above $1,000,000,000
• Penalizes companies $10,000 per calendar quarter for certain qualifying violations

Arguments supporters make

• Workers hurt by automation deserve a dedicated safety net and retraining path, since they lost jobs through no fault of their own
• Requiring the government to take structured, escalating steps as unemployment rises ensures a faster and more coordinated response to economic crises
• Tracking at-risk occupations and offering retraining before displacement happens gives workers a better chance to transition before they are left behind

Arguments opponents make

• Employers and critics may argue that making workers eligible based on self-attestation of AI displacement is difficult to verify and could be abused
• Mandating that the Federal Reserve prioritize employment over price stability at high unemployment levels could conflict with its independence and its ability to fight inflation
• The triggers and required federal actions add bureaucratic layers that may slow response times or create duplication across agencies without guaranteeing effective job creation

Tradeoffs

Providing a dedicated retraining benefit and automatic government responses to unemployment offers workers more protection but imposes new requirements on agencies and potentially constrains policymakers' flexibility, including the Federal Reserve's ability to balance employment and inflation goals independently.

Current status in Congress: In committee.

NewsClear — neutral news & congressional tracking · Bill of the Week