Illinois Governor Signs First-in-Nation AI Safety Audit Law

Governor JB Pritzker signed the Artificial Intelligence Safety Measures Act (Senate Bill 315) on July 6, 2026, in Chicago. The law makes Illinois the first state to mandate annual independent third-party audits for large frontier AI developers—defined as companies with over $500 million in annual revenue. These audits must be conducted by experts without financial conflicts of interest, and auditors are granted access to unredacted versions of AI models.

Regulated companies must publish frameworks to mitigate catastrophic risks, such as cyberattacks or the creation of biological and nuclear weapons. The law requires developers to report serious safety incidents to the state within 72 hours, or within 24 hours if there is an imminent threat of death or serious harm. The legislation also establishes whistleblower protections and confidential reporting channels for employees. Attorney General Kwame Raoul will enforce the law, with civil penalties ranging from $1 million for first violations to $3 million for subsequent ones.

JB Pritzker and state legislators positioned the law as a necessary response to federal inaction. While major developers OpenAI and Anthropic supported the measure as a way to establish a de facto national framework, trade associations including NetChoice and TechNet opposed the mandatory audit requirements. The law is modeled after similar regulations in California and New York; together, these three states represent approximately 40% of the U.S. AI market. Most sources state the law takes effect on January 1, 2027, though one report suggests January 1, 2028.