New York City mayor Bill de Blasio has signed into law the first-ever US bill examining algorithmic bias. The bill allows for a task force to be appointed looking into how the city's justice system uses algorithms. The legislation was sparked by a 2016 investigation by ProPublica revealing systemic digital bias among judicial risk assessment programmes, favouring the release of white inmates over black counterparts. In an interview with BuzzFeed News, De Blasio, who is running for re-election, said he would sign the bill.
New York City mayor Bill de Blasio has signed into law the first-ever US bill examining algorithmic bias. The bill allows for a task force to be appointed looking into how the city's justice system uses algorithms. The legislation was sparked by a 2016 investigation by ProPublica revealing systemic digital bias among judicial risk assessment programmes, favouring the release of white inmates over black counterparts. Bernard Harcourt, a law professor at Columbia University said the bill was a "critical first step" toward transparency and greater fairness within the criminal justice system, but more needs to be done.