Congress · Tuesday, September 1, 2026
House members introduce Self-Improving AI Monitoring Act for NIST tracking
The File desk · Sep 1, 2026, 12:40 PM UTC
Status
Confirmed that the bill was introduced. No floor action is claimed.
On Aug. 31, 2026, Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-N.C.) said he joined Rep. George Whitesides (D-Calif.) in introducing the bipartisan Self-Improving AI Monitoring Act. Harrigan’s office said the bill directs NIST to monitor trends in advanced AI systems’ ability to conduct or assist AI research and development, and that voluntary NIST evaluation partnerships would include sharing metrics on AI used in internal R&D, including work without human review. The release says the legislation creates no new regulatory mandates and keeps NIST participation voluntary. Whitesides’ office posted a related introduction statement dated Aug. 29 describing the same bill’s CAISI monitoring and evaluation provisions.
Rep. Pat Harrigan’s office said on Aug. 31, 2026, that he joined Rep. George Whitesides in introducing the Self-Improving AI Monitoring Act. “Today, Congressman Pat Harrigan (NC-10) joined Congressman George Whitesides (D-CA-27) in introducing the bipartisan Self-Improving AI Monitoring Act,” the release said.
Harrigan’s office said the bill “directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to monitor trends in the ability of advanced AI systems to conduct or assist with AI research and development.” It said that when frontier AI companies voluntarily partner with NIST on model evaluations, those agreements would include sharing “relevant metrics and estimates about how much AI is being used in their internal research and development, including work conducted without human review.” The release said the legislation “creates no new regulatory mandates and keeps participation with NIST voluntary.”
Whitesides’ office posted an introduction statement at a URL dated Aug. 29. That statement said the bill would direct the Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI) to monitor capability trends in how AI systems autonomously research and develop subsequent AI models, and would give federal evaluators authority to request internal developer metrics on AI-driven development, including estimates and methodologies for work completed without human review.
No floor vote is claimed. Bill text and a committee referral were not fetched from congress.gov in this pass.
What is still unknown or disputed
- Bill text and committee referral were not fetched from congress.gov in this pass.
- No claim that the bill has passed either chamber.
Primary sources
Every claim in this story is drawn from the documents below. If a fetch failed, that is recorded on the card.
Source 1
Congressman Pat Harrigan Co-Leads Bipartisan Bill to Track Self-Improving AI
Office of Rep. Pat Harrigan · August 31, 2026
The Self-Improving AI Monitoring Act directs the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to monitor trends in the ability of advanced AI systems to conduct or assist with AI research and development. It also ensures that when frontier AI companies voluntarily partner with NIST on model evaluations, those agreements include sharing relevant metrics and estimates about how much AI is being used in their internal research and development, including work conducted without human review. The legislation creates no new regulatory mandates and keeps participation with NIST voluntary.
https://harrigan.house.gov/media/press-releases/congressman-pat-harrigan-co-leads-bipartisan-bill-track-self-improving-ai
Source 2
Rep. Whitesides Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Reduce the Risk of Superintelligent AI by Monitoring Self-Improving AI Systems
Office of Rep. George Whitesides · August 29, 2026
Track AI self-improvement by directing Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI) to monitor capability trends, specifically how AI systems autonomously research and develop subsequent AI models to drive scientific breakthroughs. Add transparency to government-industry testing agreements by giving federal evaluators the authority to request internal developer metrics on AI-driven development, including estimates and methodologies for work completed without human review.
https://whitesides.house.gov/2026/08/29/rep-whitesides-introduces-bipartisan-bill-to-reduce-the-risk-of-superintelligent-ai-by-monitoring-self-improving-ai-systems/