Louisiana marked a broadband milestone this week, and it put a spotlight back on a trade-off that quietly shaped the state's approach to artificial intelligence. On Oct. 7, Gov. Jeff Landry joined the state broadband office, ConnectLA, and internet provider REV Fiber in Central to break ground on a federally funded fiber build in East Baton Rouge Parish. WAFB, "State races to get everyone connected to internet by 2028" (Oct. 7, 2026) A day later, state lawmakers told WAFB that the same pot of federal broadband money was the reason several Louisiana AI bills were shelved this year, and that it raises questions about the state's ability to regulate the technology on its own. WAFB, "State A.I. regulation bills stalled after Trump funding threat" (Oct. 8, 2026)
The broadband money
The project will bring internet access to 2,840 locations in East Baton Rouge Parish, including 472 in Central. Roughly 2,500 of those locations will be paid for with federal Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment (BEAD) funding, with the rest covered by REV. A REV representative said construction will begin in November and last seven to eight months. WAFB, "State races to get everyone connected to internet by 2028" (Oct. 7, 2026)
The build is one piece of a much larger program. Louisiana was the first state in the nation to receive federal approval of its final BEAD proposal, clearing the way to deploy $1.36 billion in federal broadband funding, the eighth-largest allocation in the nation, according to ConnectLA. WAFB, "State races to get everyone connected to internet by 2028" (Oct. 7, 2026) The East Baton Rouge locations count toward Louisiana's target of reaching 15,000 BEAD locations by the end of the first quarter of 2027. REV was awarded funding as part of the Louisiana Local Fiber Consortium, which also includes T-Mobile and Swyft Fiber and won roughly $378 million in BEAD funding overall. Light Reading, "The Buildout: REV Fiber begins Louisiana BEAD build" (Oct. 9, 2026) Landry said the state is working to connect every home and business by 2028. WAFB, "State races to get everyone connected to internet by 2028" (Oct. 7, 2026)
How a broadband threat stalled AI bills
The link between fiber and AI policy runs through Washington. President Donald Trump issued an executive order in December calling for a single national policy structure for AI, and said his administration would withhold federal broadband expansion money from states that pass and enforce AI laws conflicting with his priorities. Louisiana Illuminator, "Louisiana scraps some, but not all, AI proposals after Trump threats" (April 1, 2026) By April 1, at least a third of the nearly 20 AI bills Louisiana lawmakers had proposed had been scrapped, and six legislators from both parties confirmed they were shelving a total of seven AI bills. Louisiana Illuminator, "Louisiana scraps some, but not all, AI proposals after Trump threats" (April 1, 2026)
Rep. Vincent Cox, R-Gretna, said Landry's office asked him to shelve two AI bills. "As much as I like the bill, rural Louisiana needs that broadband money. I'm not going to jeopardize that," he said at the time. Louisiana Illuminator, "Louisiana scraps some, but not all, AI proposals after Trump threats" (April 1, 2026) It was unclear how much power the Trump administration actually had over the funding. The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026)
Peter Robins-Brown, a former lobbyist with the policy group Louisiana Progress who worked with Republicans and Democrats on AI bills this session and now works with labor unions for the AFL-CIO, described one casualty. "We had a bill around making sure you don't have a healthcare claim denied based purely on an AI recommendation that there had to be a human medical professional that reviewed the claim before it gets denied—that bill was already moving and gaining momentum and that threat came down and we had to park the bill," he told WAFB. WAFB, "State A.I. regulation bills stalled after Trump funding threat" (Oct. 8, 2026)
Other bills were narrowed rather than dropped. Rep. Mike Bayham's House Bill 639 would have banned the use of AI for robocalls, and the governor's office requested a change. "We'd like to have some compromise in it so it's not as far-reaching, and their suggested change was about using AI to impersonate a public figure," Bayham said. WAFB, "State A.I. regulation bills stalled after Trump funding threat" (Oct. 8, 2026)
Asked this week whether the president's threat affected his decisions on AI bills, Landry said: "No no no, not at all again. When the president speaks, you certainly want to take that under consideration. We made our case and put our best foot forward and are here today breaking ground." WAFB, "State A.I. regulation bills stalled after Trump funding threat" (Oct. 8, 2026)
What did pass
Louisiana did not pass zero AI rules. Measures that became law toughened criminal penalties around some AI-generated pornography, regulated AI in political advertisements and required healthcare workers to disclose when they record patient visits for AI transcription. Act 806 requires political ads to disclose AI used to imitate a candidate in some cases, and Act 211 made it a crime to use a child's image to train AI to generate pornography. The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026) Bills that died included proposals requiring human review of AI-driven health insurance claim denials and of employer decisions to hire, fire and promote. The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026)
That split tracks the White House's own line. The administration's March AI policy agenda says Congress should block state AI laws that "impose undue burdens," but it endorses regulations that protect children and suggests there is room for laws that protect consumers, prevent fraud and govern the placement of AI infrastructure. Shreveport-Bossier Advocate, "Louisiana waits to see how Trump, Congress will regulate AI as political pressure mounts" (Aug. 14, 2026)
The 2027 question
The shelved bills may return. In May, Senate President Cameron Henry, R-Metairie, said he told the White House that Louisiana would hold many AI bills this year but move forward if Congress does not create national rules by the next regular session. "We're going to hold those for a year, and then next year at this time, if they haven't taken any action, then we'll pass the bills that we would have liked to have passed this year," Henry said. The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026) Cox has vowed to bring back House Bill 157, which targets commercial use of AI-generated likenesses and voices, and Sen. Jay Luneau, D-Alexandria, has promised to refile his health insurance bill, Senate Bill 246. The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026)
The governor's office has signaled it is not eager to break with Washington. "We agree with the Trump Administration that these decisions are best regulated at the federal level," Landry spokesperson Kate Kelly said this summer. The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026) As of August, Congress and the president had taken a mostly hands-off approach, even as public concern about AI was rising and midterm elections approached. Shreveport-Bossier Advocate, "Louisiana waits to see how Trump, Congress will regulate AI as political pressure mounts" (Aug. 14, 2026)
Why it matters
Louisiana is trying to be two things at once: a magnet for AI investment and a state that answers voters' worries about the technology. This week showed the price of the second goal. The fiber now going into the ground in East Baton Rouge Parish is funded by the federal broadband program whose money lawmakers say they were unwilling to risk. WAFB, "State races to get everyone connected to internet by 2028" (Oct. 7, 2026) WAFB, "State A.I. regulation bills stalled after Trump funding threat" (Oct. 8, 2026)
The rules at stake are not abstract. They would decide whether a person reviews an AI-driven insurance denial, whether a person reviews AI-driven decisions to hire, fire and promote workers, and whether musicians control AI copies of their voices. The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026) Data centers themselves are a political issue too: a Gallup poll found that 70% of Americans oppose building them in their own communities. Shreveport-Bossier Advocate, "Louisiana waits to see how Trump, Congress will regulate AI as political pressure mounts" (Aug. 14, 2026) Unless Congress acts first, the 2027 regular session is likely to test whether Louisiana keeps waiting on Washington or writes more of its own AI rules.
Evidence Used
- WAFB, "State A.I. regulation bills stalled after Trump funding threat" (Oct. 8, 2026)
- WAFB, "State races to get everyone connected to internet by 2028" (Oct. 7, 2026)
- Light Reading, "The Buildout: REV Fiber begins Louisiana BEAD build" (Oct. 9, 2026)
- Louisiana Illuminator, "Louisiana scraps some, but not all, AI proposals after Trump threats" (April 1, 2026)
- The Times-Picayune | The Advocate, "Louisiana bills to regulate AI did not pass this year. Will they come back?" (July 16, 2026)
- Shreveport-Bossier Advocate, "Louisiana waits to see how Trump, Congress will regulate AI as political pressure mounts" (Aug. 14, 2026)