EPIC Urges DC Council to Pass Algorithmic Discrimination Bill

September 23, 2022

Yesterday, EPIC urged the DC Council Committee on Government Operations and Facilities to pass the Stop Discrimination of Algorithms Act.

The bill prohibits algorithmic eligibility or information delivery determinations based on a protected class that segregate, discriminate against, or otherwise make important life opportunities unavailable to an individual or class of individuals. The bill would also allow both individuals harmed and the Attorney General to sue for violations of the act and requires the completion of governance tools like audits, impact assessments, and reports.

EPIC Counsel Ben Winters highlighted EPIC’s work and forthcoming report on the automated decision-making systems used throughout D.C. and explained that “The SDAA will mitigate discriminatory impacts of these systems by explicitly bringing civil rights protections into todays context.”

EPIC Counsel Sara Geoghegan highlighted EPIC’s past complaints to regulatory agencies about student proctoring firms, AirBnB, and HireVue, explaining how their practices would be better regulated under the bill.

EPIC’s AI and Human Rights project is aimed at securing commonsense regulation for protection against algorithmic harm and robust and enforceable governance for entities using algorithms to make decisions.

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