# Senators Propose AI Agent Liability Rules

Senators Josh Hawley and Chris Murphy announced the bipartisan AI Agent Accountability Act on October 1, 2026. The proposed legislation would impose civil and criminal liability on AI-agent developers and operators for specified hacking-related conduct and authorize federal and state attorneys general to seek injunctions. The bill is proposed, not enacted, and creates no procurement or funding opportunity; for agencies and contractors adopting agentic AI, it signals potential legal exposure that could affect system design, cybersecurity controls, and contract risk allocation if enacted.

- Contractors developing, operating, or integrating AI agents should evaluate how their current safeguards, testing, and oversight address the bill’s proposed liability for hacking-related conduct.
- Procurement teams may wish to assess whether AI-related solicitations and contracts clearly allocate responsibility for agent actions and related cybersecurity risks; the proposal does not itself establish a current compliance mandate.
- The White House Accord referenced in one signal is described as a voluntary developer commitment, separate from the proposed legislation.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Information Technology
**Topics:** Artificial Intelligence, Policy, Regulatory Compliance, Cybersecurity
**Published:** October 01, 2026

### Government Entities
- U.S. Senate
- U.S. Congress
- State attorneys general

### Key Quotes
> Our bipartisan bill forces the heads of big AI companies to develop responsibly or face prison time for the damage done by their products to everyone else.
> — Chris Murphy, U.S. Senator

> And if you make that product in a reckless kind of way, and … these AI agents cause significant harm and damage — they crash a hospital ER, they shut down a bank so that folks can't get their money — if that happens, then it's the people who made it who should be responsible.
> — Josh Hawley, U.S. Senator

### Sources
- [AI firms should be held liable for their models’ actions, lawmakers say - Nextgov/FCW](https://www.nextgov.com/artificial-intelligence/2026/10/ai-firms-should-be-held-liable-their-models-actions-lawmakers-say/416374) - Nextgov/FCW
- [Hawley Calls for New AI Regulations, Liability Rules – MeriTalk](https://www.meritalk.com/articles/hawley-calls-for-new-ai-regulations-liability-rules) - MeriTalk
- [Senators Hawley, Murphy Announce Bipartisan AI Agent Accountability Act - Josh Hawley](https://www.hawley.senate.gov/senators-hawley-murphy-announce-bipartisan-ai-agent-accountability-act/) - Hawley Senate