House lawmakers lay groundwork to create robotics commission
The Department of Commerce would establish an independent, temporary commission focused on robotics and related applications under legislation introduced this week by a bipartisan trio of House lawmakers.
The National Commission on Robotics Act from Reps. Jay Obernolte, R-Calif., Jennifer McClellan, D-Va., and Bob Latta, R-Ohio, includes provisions directing cross-agency collaboration, such as requiring federal agencies to provide the group with necessary analysis and briefings. With the Commerce Department at the helm, the agency’s secretary is tasked with designating a liaison officer, allocating a federally funded research-and-development center and providing other support services.
The Commission on American Leadership in Robotics would be composed of 18 members appointed by lawmakers across the aisle. The group would work to provide the Trump administration and relevant federal agencies with methods to maintain a technological advantage in robotics, as well as means to foster greater investment and partnership with industry, among other recommendations.
The group’s goal is also to better inform future legislation around the technology.
“As robotics continue to reshape our economy, manufacturing base, and national security, it is essential that the United States remain the global leader in robotics innovation,” Obernolte said in a press release Tuesday. “This legislation brings together experts from industry, academia, and the public sector to help Congress develop smart, forward-looking policies that strengthen our workforce, secure our supply chains, and keep America competitive.”
The commission is not seen as a long-term solution but rather a kickstarter of research. Just 18 months after the group submits a final report of recommendations and findings, the commission will terminate, according to the bill text.
“Only by better understanding the economic impacts of robotics can we continue to work on the cutting edge of research that drastically improves and enriches people’s lives,” McClellan said in a statement.
Following the bill’s introduction, a group of industry executives and congressional leaders launched the Partnership for Robotics Competitiveness as a way to advance federal policy in robotics and physical AI. Obernolte and McClellan were in attendance, according to the Association for Uncrewed Vehicle Systems International.
“Dominance in this industry will determine who leads the next industrial revolution,” Michael Robbins, president and CEO of AUVSI, which is leading the initiative, said in a statement Wednesday.
As with any technology, there are opportunities and risks with robotics.
A bipartisan Senate duo introduced legislation aimed at the latter last November. The Humanoid Robots Oversight and Blocking of Obtainment Totalitarians Act would prevent federal agencies and their contractors from procuring robots developed by China, Russia, Iran and North Korea.
“Americans win when we lead in technology,” Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said in a press release following his introduction of the bill with co-sponsor Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del. “We’re keeping that lead by blocking countries like China from putting their robots in our workplaces and homes.”
Robotic systems have been a rare, but critical, part of complex initiatives at federal agencies for decades. NASA, for example, tapped robotics to assist in assembling the International Space Station in 1998, according to a Government Accountability Office report published last summer.
Potential use cases are growing more common as the technology matures and federal agencies earmark resources for related projects.
The Department of Homeland Security’s Coast Guard established a new Program Executive Office dedicated to robotics in August 2025. The technology also has a role in the Trump administration’s flagship technology initiative, the Genesis Mission. Nearly 15 robotics projects are supporting the efforts, according to the Energy Department.
