The bill
AI–WISE Act
HR. 5784, 119th Congress — read as touching AI & Cloud Infrastructure.
Sponsored by
Rep. Scholten, Hillary J. [D-MI-3]
ID: S001221
Follow the money
The bill
HR. 5784, 119th Congress — read as touching AI & Cloud Infrastructure.
The sponsor
Every bill has someone who introduced it. That name is where the paper trail starts.
The money
30 itemised contributions to this sponsor, pulled from FEC filings.
Track this bill's progress through the legislative process
Latest Action
Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
January 25, 2026
📍 Current Status
Next: Both chambers must agree on the same version of the bill.
1. Introduction: A member of Congress introduces a bill in either the House or Senate.
2. Committee Review: The bill is sent to relevant committees for study, hearings, and revisions.
3. Floor Action: If approved by committee, the bill goes to the full chamber for debate and voting.
4. Other Chamber: If passed, the bill moves to the other chamber (House or Senate) for the same process.
5. Conference: If both chambers pass different versions, a conference committee reconciles the differences.
6. Presidential Action: The President can sign the bill into law, veto it, or take no action.
7. Became Law: If signed (or if Congress overrides a veto), the bill becomes law!
Another "groundbreaking" bill from the esteemed members of Congress, who have clearly spent countless hours studying the intricacies of artificial intelligence and small business concerns. *eyeroll*
**Main Purpose & Objectives:** The AI-WISE Act (because who doesn't love a good acronym?) aims to educate small businesses on the wonders of artificial intelligence tools. Because, apparently, these poor souls are too clueless to figure it out themselves. The bill's primary objective is to create educational resources and modules that will help small business concerns "critically evaluate" AI tools. I'm sure this will be a huge success, given the track record of government-created educational materials.
**Key Provisions & Changes to Existing Law:** The bill amends the Small Business Act by adding a new section (49) that requires the Administrator to establish and maintain these educational resources and modules. It also creates an Advisory Working Group, because what's a government program without a committee? This group will consist of "experts" in AI, outreach, and education, who will provide guidance on the development of these materials.
**Affected Parties & Stakeholders:** Small business concerns (i.e., those with fewer than 500 employees) are the primary beneficiaries of this bill. However, I'm sure the real winners will be the lobbying groups and PACs that have been pushing for more "education" and "awareness" about AI in small businesses. *cough* Tech industry donors *cough*
**Potential Impact & Implications:** This bill is a perfect example of Congress's favorite game: "Let's Create a New Bureaucracy!" The AI-WISE Act will likely lead to more government spending on "education" and "outreach," which will ultimately benefit the consultants, contractors, and lobbying groups that will be hired to create these materials. Meanwhile, small businesses will continue to struggle with the complexities of AI, and the bill's provisions will do little to address the real issues they face.
**Diagnosis:** The patient (Congress) is suffering from a severe case of "Tech-Envy," where they try to appear relevant by creating bills that sound innovative but ultimately accomplish nothing. The symptoms include:
* A $500K infection from tech industry PACs, which has led to the creation of this bill. * A severe lack of understanding about AI and its applications in small businesses. * A strong desire to create new bureaucracies and committees, despite their proven ineffectiveness.
**Treatment:** A healthy dose of skepticism and a strong antibiotic regimen to combat the influence of special interest groups. Unfortunately, this patient is unlikely to recover from its chronic case of "Congress-itis."
Rep. Scholten, Hillary J. [D-MI-3]
Congress 119 • 2024 Election Cycle
No PAC contributions found
No committee contributions found
This bill has 6 cosponsors. Below are their top campaign contributors.
ID: D000634
Top Contributors
10
ID: G000583
Top Contributors
10
ID: F000466
Top Contributors
10
ID: C001123
Top Contributors
10
ID: G000604
Top Contributors
10
ID: A000380
Top Contributors
10
Hub layout: Politicians in center, donors arranged by type in rings around them.
Showing 92 nodes and 45 connections (82 secondary connections hidden)
Total contributions: $232,077
Showing top 25 donors by contribution amount
Which industries are materially affected by specific provisions in this bill. 3 helped.
Section 2(a)(1) establishes educational resources and modules on AI tools for small businesses, which benefits AI and cloud infrastructure providers by increasing awareness and adoption of their tools among small businesses.
Section 2(a)(1) and (b)(9) include information on how AI can improve operations, productivity, or customer service, which could benefit big tech platforms that offer AI tools to small businesses.
Section 2(a)(1) and (b)(9) cover AI tools that can improve operations and customer service, which could benefit e-commerce platforms that provide AI-driven services to small businesses.
For each industry this bill affects, here's what the sponsor (Rep. Scholten, Hillary J. [D-MI-3])received from donors associated with that industry during the 2022–present cycles. Donations are not proof of intent — they are a record of who funds the people writing the law.