At the end of August, the California legislature passed three bills that would regulate the use of AI in the employment context. These bills are now on Governor Newsom’s desk, and he has until September 30 to sign or veto. Below is a summary of the three bills.

SB 947 (The “No Robo Bosses Act”)…

Continue Reading California Legislature Advances AI Employment Bills

In recent months, children’s online safety and privacy have moved to the top of the EU’s digital agenda. The European Commission is expected to outline its proposal on minors’ access to social media this week, a potentially significant development that would build on the recommendations of the Commission’s Special Panel on child safety online and mounting pressure from Member States.

The EU is not moving in isolation. Similar debates on minors’ access to online platforms, age assurance, and safety-by-design obligations are emerging in other jurisdictions. These include Australia and the United Kingdom, as well as a rapidly developing patchwork of state-level age-verification, app-store, and device-based age-assurance requirements in the United States.

This post provides a horizon-scanning update on the principal regulatory developments at the EU level, selected national developments, and some relevant developments outside the EU.

Continue Reading Horizon Scan: Children’s Online Safety and Privacy (EU and Beyond)

On September 9, 2026, the FCC released a draft Report and Order (R&O) and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FNPRM) titled “Rules and Regulations Implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991.”  The draft has been circulated for consideration by the FCC at its September 30, 2026 open meeting.

The draft R&O and FNPRM address a range of consent revocation issues under the TCPA that have been pending before the agency since the last time the FCC promulgated rules in this area in 2024.  If adopted, the R&O will narrow the scope of consent revocations in the context of informational calls and texts.

Continue Reading FCC Releases Draft Rules and Proposals on TCPA Consent Revocation

Late this afternoon, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a stay of the Fourth Circuit’s decision setting aside the FCC Media Bureau’s guidance on entitlement to the lowest unit charge (“LUC”) for certain political ads placed on broadcast TV and radio.  See our prior post about this issue here.  Notably, the 60-day political window for the November midterms begins today, so broadcasters’ obligation to afford qualifying buys the LUC is now in effect.

As a result of today’s decision, the FCC Media Bureau’s guidance is back in effect.  That guidance found that two types of broadcast political ads were entitled to the LUC: ads paid for as “party coordinated expenditures” (meaning ads paid for by a party in coordination with a federal candidate), and ads placed by joint fundraising committees involving a federal candidate.

Continue Reading Supreme Court Action Revives FCC Media Bureau’s Political Ad Guidance

On August 25, 2026, a divided panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit set aside guidance by the FCC’s Media Bureau stating that two types of political advertising were entitled to the favorable “lowest unit charge” (“LUC”) rate: ads paid for as “party coordinated expenditures,” meaning ads paid for by a party in coordination with a federal candidate, and ads placed by joint fundraising committees involving a federal candidate. This question had become particularly salient after the Supreme Court’s decision in June that struck down limits on party coordinated expenditures, allowing unlimited party spending in coordination with candidates, as we explained here. The Fourth Circuit’s ruling was in response to a challenge to the Media Bureau’s Public Notice by four Democratic candidates for federal office. The ongoing litigation has a direct and immediate impact on broadcasters and political advertisers, but its broader significance may lie in what the Fourth Circuit said about judicial review of bureau-level FCC actions.

Continue Reading Fourth Circuit Sets Aside FCC Media Bureau Guidance on Lowest Unit Charge; FCC Asks the Supreme Court to Step In

Earlier this week, on August 25, 2026, the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) issued a Public Notice seeking public comment on how the agency might increase and improve spectrum access for commercial space launch and reentry activities.  The Public Notice follows through on a directive in the Trump Administration’s National Space Transportation Policy memorandum issued last week. Comments are due Monday, September 14, 2026 and reply comments are due Thursday, September 24, 2026.

Continue Reading FCC Seeks Public Comment on Improving Spectrum Access for Commercial Space Launch and Reentry Operations

Yesterday, following a second National Security Determination from the Department of War (“DoW”), the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) clarified the scope of its ban on foreign-produced “power inverters,” a category of devices added to the FCC’s “Covered List” in late July.  This new determination revises and narrows the definition of power inverters to more…

Continue Reading FCC Narrows Covered List Definition of “Power Inverters” and Clarifies Meaning of “Foreign-Produced”

Employers increasingly rely on automated tools to help make decisions concerning hiring, promotion, discipline, and termination. In response, state legislatures and agencies have begun to regulate uses of these technologies, often referred to as automated decision-making technology (“ADMT”). These laws generally require entities that deploy ADMT in the employment context to, among other requirements, notify…

Continue Reading ADMT Law Round-Up: What Employers Need to Know About Recent ADMT Laws

On August 14, 2026, the French Constitutional Council (the “Constitutional Council”) struck down Article 1 of France’s Act to protect minors from the risks posed by the use of social media (the “Act”), which would have barred minors under the age of fifteen from accessing online social media services. The Constitutional Council held that the prohibition infringed on the freedom of expression and communication in a manner that was not appropriate, necessary, or proportionate to the objective pursued and, separately, that the legislature failed to provide the legal safeguards required to protect the right to respect for private life in connection with the age verification process that the ban would, by necessity, have entailed.

We summarise key aspects of the decision below.

Continue Reading French Constitutional Council Strikes Down Under-15 Social Media Ban

On July 20, 2026, the French data protection authority (the Commission Nationale de l’Informatique et des Libertés, “CNIL”) published a joint exploratory note with the French AI and Digital Council (“CIANum”) on the data protection implications of agentic AI (the “Note”). The Note is exploratory rather than prescriptive: it does not purport to state definitive regulatory expectations, and it does not announce forthcoming guidance. However, it does provide helpful considerations for when the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) might come under strain in the course of processing personal data via autonomous systems, and identifies legal and technical measures that might help mitigate potential risks. The CNIL frames this exercise as connected to its engagement with several international counterparts, including through the G7 data protection authorities during the French G7 presidency.

The Note is the latest in a rapidly accumulating body of regulator commentary on agentic AI, including by the UK ICO, Spanish AEPD, and Singaporean IMDA. Below are some key takeaways.

Continue Reading French CNIL Publishes Note on Agentic AI and Data Protection