Idaho Enacts Law Requiring Transparency in Pre-Trial Risk Assessments

Idaho became the first state to pass a law specifically promoting transparency, accountability, and explainability in pre-trial risk assessment tools. Pre-trial risk assessments are algorithms that help inform sentencing and bail decisions for defendants. The law prevents a trade secrecy or IP defense, requires public availability of “all documents, data, records, and information used by the builder to build or validate the pretrial risk assessment tool,” and empowers defendants to review all calculations and data that went into their risk score. The law became effective on July 1, 2019. EPIC has consistently advocated for Algorithmic Transparency and urges jurisdictions to use the Universal Guidelines for Artificial Intelligence as a guideline for AI policy.