Governor Kathy Hochul signed New York’s Responsible AI Safety and Education (RAISE) Act on December 22, 2025. The law takes effect January 1, 2027.
The RAISE Act targets “large developers” — entities that have trained at least one frontier AI model and whose annual revenue exceeds $500 million. Covered developers must publish safety protocols, report incidents to the state within 72 hours, and submit to oversight by a new AI safety office established within the Department of Financial Services (DFS).
The DFS office is empowered to assess frontier developers and require disclosure of safety documentation. Civil penalties begin at $1 million per violation and rise to $3 million for repeat offences. Accredited universities conducting academic research are exempt.
The RAISE Act makes New York the second US state after California to legislate governance of frontier AI models. It does not address AI literacy education, workforce training, or civil servant obligations. Its scope is confined to the conduct of AI developers, not the people who use or are subject to AI systems.
Separately, Governor Hochul committed in New York’s FY2026 budget to ensure state workforce employees receive basic AI training on responsible use, complemented by a secure generative AI toolset.
Score note: dimension 10 updates to 1 (DFS AI safety office is a named government body with explicit AI governance mandate; advisory and oversight functions; enforcement powers against developers, not a full training regulator). The existing score was already 1 — no change. The DFS AI office is the most specific named authority New York has established. The FY2026 workforce training commitment is voluntary guidance, not a defined training standard — dimension 11 does not change from 0.