Colorado AI Act repealed and replaced by SB 26-189 — first-of-its-kind state AI law pivots to a disclosure-and-rights framework, January 2027 effective date
Governor Jared Polis signed SB 26-189 on May 14 repealing the original Colorado AI Act and replacing it with an automated-decision-making-technology framework focused on disclosure, consumer notice, and rights-based remedies. The replacement takes effect January 1, 2027 — and the EU AI Act's August 2, 2026 transparency deadline keeps running unchanged.
The substantive shift is the regime model. Colorado was the first US state to attempt EU-style risk-management regulation of AI; the replacement abandons that direction and joins California in anchoring a US-state model focused on disclosure to consumers and rights-based remedies rather than substantive risk classification. The April federal magistrate stay of enforcement signaled the original regime wasn't going to survive Trump-administration scrutiny; SB 26-189 sets a workable framework that won't immediately collide with the EO's deregulation posture.
The cross-jurisdictional gap is the read. For companies operating in both regimes, the bifurcation is now structural: US state laws (Colorado, California, Texas) emphasize disclosure and notice; the EU AI Act remains substantive risk-management with mandatory high-risk classification and capability thresholds. The EU's May 7 political agreement pushed high-risk obligations to 2027 but did not reduce what they require. Trump's June 2 EO reinforces the US disclosure-only direction; the EU is on a different trajectory.
Carpe Datum Law — Colorado's AI Reset: Two Weeks, a White House Callout, and a Pivot Away from the EU Model → · Alston & Bird — Compliance Deadline for Colorado AI Act Delayed Until June 30, 2026 → · Hunton — Colorado AI Act Amended and Effective Date Delayed →