I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6791 

To amend the Digital Equity Act of 2021 to facilitate artificial intelligence 

literacy opportunities, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 14, 2023 

Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER (for herself and Mr. BUCSHON) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 

A BILL 

To amend the Digital Equity Act of 2021 to facilitate artificial intelligence literacy opportunities, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Artificial Intelligence 

5 Literacy Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 

8 (1) Artificial intelligence (AI) is a trans9 formative technology that affects nearly every aspect 

10 of the United States economy. 


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1 (2) As AI becomes increasingly ubiquitous, AI 

2 literacy will become as important as digital literacy 

3 is today. 

4 (3) Technological leadership in AI is an eco5 nomic and national security imperative. Maintaining 

6 this leadership requires a sufficient workforce to re7 search and develop AI capabilities. Such a workforce 

8 must contain both technical talent, such as computer 

9 engineers and data scientists, and nontechnical tal10 ent, such as product managers and sales engineers, 

11 who understand AI. 

12 (4) Effective AI literacy initiatives encompass 

13 not only technical training but also include com14 prehensive education about the potential benefits 

15 and risks associated with AI technologies. 

16 (5) Informed developers and consumers of AI 

17 technologies can help mitigate potential risks and bi18 ases often found in systems that utilize AI. 

19 (6) Basic AI literacy is critical to ensuring that 

20 Americans have the tools and knowledge needed to 

21 navigate the economy and digital world. With AI 

22 being increasingly adopted by consumer-facing com23 panies and widely used tools on the internet, Ameri24 cans of all ages and occupations should have the 

25 skills and tools needed to understand AI and its limVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:57 Jan 03, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6791.IH H6791

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1 itations at a basic level as well as skills to identify 

2 when AI is being employed. 

3 (7) Successful AI literacy initiatives will pre4 pare Americans of all ages and technical back5 grounds to safely navigate AI tools and AI-enabled 

6 technologies. 

7 (8) Communities most often negatively im8 pacted by AI-enabled technologies often have the 

9 least access to AI education. 

10 (9) AI literacy initiatives must engage stake11 holders and communities in all stages, and specific 

12 outreach efforts should be made for communities 

13 disproportionately impacted by the digital divide, in14 cluding minority and rural communities. 

15 (10) According to a survey of adults commis16 sioned by Jobs for the Future, a non-profit organi17 zation with a focus on workforce development and 

18 education, 58 percent believe that learning opportu19 nities around AI should be offered to workers, 53 

20 percent believe that such opportunities should be 

21 available to learners, and 54 percent believe that 

22 they would feel more prepared for the future impact 

23 of AI if they were given learning tools for it. 

24 (11) As of 2018, the United States AI work25 force stood at about 14,000,000 workers, or about 


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1 9 percent of total employment. From 2019 to 2029, 

2 demand for AI occupations is projected to grow 

3 twice as fast as for all occupations in the United 

4 States. 

5 (12) In 2021, Black students made up only 7.5 

6 percent of AI-related bachelor’s degrees despite mak7 ing up 14 percent of the population. While women 

8 account for 60 percent of college graduates, they 

9 constitute only 40 percent of Science, Technology, 

10 Engineering, and Mathematics graduates and 25 

11 percent of graduates in AI fields. Efforts in AI lit12 eracy can help to bridge stark differences in attain13 ment across demographic groups. 

14 (13) The need for a strong workforce of AI 

15 workers, as well as an AI-literate population, re16 quires investment in AI literacy education. 

17 SEC. 3. DIGITAL LITERACY, ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE, 

18 AND COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAM. 

19 (a) DIGITAL LITERACY WITH RESPECT TO ARTIFI20 CIAL INTELLIGENCE.—Section 60302 of the Digital Eq21 uity Act of 2021 (47 U.S.C. 1721) is amended— 

22 (1) in paragraph (12) by inserting ‘‘, including 

23 the skills associated with artificial intelligence lit24 eracy’’ before the period; and 


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1 (2) by redesignating paragraphs (5) through 

2 (23), as amended by paragraph (1) of this sub3 section, as paragraphs (6) through (24), respec4 tively, and inserting after paragraph (4) the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘(5) ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE LITERACY.— 

7 The term ‘artificial intelligence literacy’ means the 

8 skills associated with the ability to comprehend the 

9 basic principles, concepts, and applications of artifi10 cial intelligence, as well as the implications, limita11 tions, and ethical considerations associated with the 

12 use of artificial intelligence.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sections 60304 

14 and 60305 of such Act (47 U.S.C. 1723, 1724) are 

15 amended by striking ‘‘60302(8)’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘60302(9)’’. 

17 (c) ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE LITERACY IN THE

18 DIGITAL EQUITY COMPETITIVE GRANT PROGRAM.—Sec19 tion 60305(d)(2)(A) of such Act (47 U.S.C. 

20 1724(d)(2)(A)) is amended by redesignating clause (vi) as 

21 clause (x) and inserting after clause (v) the following: 

22 ‘‘(vi) In the case of a grant made to 

23 increase artificial intelligence literacy in 

24 public elementary and secondary schools— 


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1 ‘‘(I) to provide teachers training 

2 and certification to support artificial 

3 intelligence literacy efforts in schools; 

4 ‘‘(II) to facilitate the attendance 

5 of teachers at professional develop6 ment courses, workshops, and con7 ferences related to artificial intel8 ligence education, including profes9 sional development related to artificial 

10 intelligence course design and fee11 based professional development; 

12 ‘‘(III) with respect to schools 

13 without resources for computer 

14 science education, to use best prac15 tices to develop and design computer 

16 science course materials needed for 

17 artificial intelligence education; 

18 ‘‘(IV) to support partnerships 

19 with the private sector to facilitate ar20 tificial intelligence education; 

21 ‘‘(V) to equip schools with labs to 

22 provide students hands-on artificial 

23 intelligence learning experiences; or 

24 ‘‘(VI) to develop virtual learning 

25 platforms that facilitate remote and 


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1 individualized artificial intelligence 

2 education opportunities. 

3 ‘‘(vii) In the case of a grant made to 

4 increase artificial intelligence literacy in 

5 community colleges— 

6 ‘‘(I) to develop and implement an 

7 interdisciplinary literacy program with 

8 respect to artificial intelligence for 

9 non-traditional learners, including 

10 through partnerships with non-profit 

11 educational organizations; 

12 ‘‘(II) to develop labs to provide 

13 students hands-on artificial intel14 ligence learning experiences; or 

15 ‘‘(III) to develop virtual learning 

16 platforms that facilitate remote and 

17 individualized artificial intelligence 

18 education opportunities. 

19 ‘‘(viii) In the case of a grant made to 

20 increase artificial intelligence literacy in in21 stitutions of higher education— 

22 ‘‘(I) to develop labs to provide 

23 students hands-on artificial intel24 ligence learning experiences; 


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1 ‘‘(II) to develop virtual learning 

2 platforms that facilitate remote and 

3 individualized artificial intelligence 

4 education opportunities; or 

5 ‘‘(III) to develop programming 

6 and pedagogical tools with respect to 

7 artificial intelligence education and in8 struction for the benefit of elementary 

9 school and secondary school teachers 

10 and community educators. 

11 ‘‘(ix) In the case of a grant made to 

12 a community anchor institution, other than 

13 a school, community college, or institution 

14 of higher education, to increase artificial 

15 intelligence literacy in covered popu16 lations— 

17 ‘‘(I) to provide training and cer18 tification with respect to artificial in19 telligence education and instruction to 

20 employees of the community anchor 

21 institution; or 

22 ‘‘(II) to develop and implement 

23 artificial intelligence learning experi24 ences and educational programming to 


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1 the community served by the commu2 nity anchor institution.’’. 

3 (d) REPORT TO CONGRESS.—Section 60305 of such 

4 Act (47 U.S.C. 1724) is amended by adding at the end 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(l) ANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS.—For each year 

7 of the 4-year period described in subsection (d)(2)(D), the 

8 Assistant Secretary shall submit to the appropriate com9 mittees of Congress a written report— 

10 ‘‘(1) summarizing and analyzing the reports 

11 submitted to the Assistant Secretary pursuant to 

12 subsection (h) for that year; and 

13 ‘‘(2) identifying any specific use described by a 

14 report submitted pursuant to subsection (h) that the 

15 Assistant Secretary recommends for expansion or 

16 modification to benefit greater populations.’’. 

Æ 


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