Tech Oversight California today issued a statement on the bills it is prioritizing as California’s legislature moves into critical second house hearings: “California lawmakers are showing again this session that Sacramento is serious about reining in Big Tech on behalf of small businesses, working people, kids and families. A slate of important legislation just passed…
“We join advocates across California in celebrating the landmark Assembly passage of the COMPETE Act, a bill that would stop Big Tech from crushing competitors before they can get off the ground. The Big Tech lobby and its ally, the California Chamber of Commerce, have made killing this bill their top priority this session, but…
“While the Trump Administration continues to abandon its responsibility to hold corporate interests accountable with a pay-to-play approach to mergers and acquisitions, we’re glad to see California stepping into the antitrust enforcement void to protect consumers in the Golden State.”
A Meta- and Google-backed California Super PAC spent $2.4 million on state legislative races over just four days this month, in its bid to influence lawmakers away from tech accountability legislation that would protect children and teens and lower costs for families.
New state reports filed on Monday found Big Tech lobbying totaled $2.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2025, adding up to an eye-popping $12 million year-end total.
“OpenAI is trying to fool California voters by introducing a deceivingly-named ballot initiative and muddying the waters on AI chatbot safety. It’s a cynical political play that could only be cooked up by the same executives who cozy up with Trump and praise his AI policy.”
“Californians and their elected representatives must be hyper vigilant to these tactics and call out Big Tech’s no-holds-barred campaign to overrule the preferences of Californians, who say in poll after poll they want stronger A.I. guardrails and accountability for Big Tech.”
“Unfortunately, after a big-money lobbying campaign by Big Tech targeting AB 1064, we won’t be able to address the threat A.I. chatbots pose to kids and teens in California next year with the urgency the situation requires.”
“Californians will finally have an easy way to exercise their right to opt out of Big Tech companies sharing their information, stopping predatory data practices at the source.”