Commerce Blocks GAO Audits of AI, Chip Export Policies, Leaving Reviews in Limbo for Months
Updated
Updated · POLITICO · Aug 10
Commerce Blocks GAO Audits of AI, Chip Export Policies, Leaving Reviews in Limbo for Months
1 articles · Updated · POLITICO · Aug 10
Summary
Several GAO reviews of Commerce’s AI and semiconductor export policies remain stalled after the department refused to provide information and challenged the watchdog’s authority to investigate requests from Democratic senators.
March correspondence shows the Bureau of Industry and Security stopped participating in a review sought by Chuck Schumer and Maggie Hassan, while Commerce also rejected Ron Wyden’s request as ranking Finance member as insufficient.
GAO says it has clear statutory authority and warned the impasse leaves auditors with little beyond public information, blocking scrutiny of export controls, licensing and whether advanced chips, cloud services and training data are protected abroad.
The standoff lands as concern over frontier AI and national security has intensified, including fears that rapidly advancing models and sensitive technologies could be misused or reach countries such as China.