New York Governor Kathy Hochul confirmed her administration is deploying artificial intelligence to scrutinise every single rule, regulation and policy within the state. During an interview with Bloomberg’s Odd Lots podcast, she explained that the technology helps identify outdated legislation that would have required five years to review manually at the staff level. The governor pointed to specific examples of antiquated laws, such as a twenty-five dollar fee for taking a dog hunting and a requirement for pregnant people to obtain a permit to work after midnight. While Hochul recently signed a moratorium on new AI data centers in the state, she maintains that using the tool for internal legal analysis is a distinct and necessary function.
This approach highlights a pragmatic split between restricting physical infrastructure and adopting digital tools for administrative efficiency. The strategy aims to reduce bureaucratic bloat by automating the discovery of obsolete statutes that no longer serve the public interest. It also signals a willingness to use the same technology that faces regulatory hurdles for other purposes. Hochul’s team is effectively using the system to clean up the legal code before considering broader implementation guidelines.
