CATCHING UP WITH REPRESENTATIVE RUSS FULCHER

BOISE, ID (CBS2) — Representative Russ Fulcher, from Idaho's 1st Congressional District, began the interview declaring his top priority in Washington D.C. at the moment is the KEEP Act, or the "keep each and every penny act."

"The purpose is to eliminate income tax on overtime pay," Fulcher said. "Specifically federal income tax. We're dealing with inflation, gas prices are up, and we're trying to figure out ways to put more money in people's pockets."

Crucially, he said, the KEEP Act would not touch any deductions for social security or Medicare, but would strictly eliminate only federal income tax.

As a member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Fulcher also said he'd spent a good deal of time thinking about legislation around the burgeoning sector of technology that is artificial intelligence, and all the dangers that come with it.

"It's a real challenge to govern through some of these things, this is unchartered territory," Fulcher said, speaking to the lack of precedent for artificial intelligence's role in the 2024 election. "There are a couple of things we're talking about in this regard, first of all, the legal ability to make people liable."

Fulcher says that as it stands, protections that exist for journalists are abused by bad-faith actors to protect themselves from liability for harmful actions they take with AI.

"The other thing that is being discussed is electronic watermarks," Fulcher said. "That way we can identify what was created versus what is not, and mandate the use of that so there's at least an electronic digital trail.."

Comparing that watermark to meta-data in things like digital photos, which are commonplace, Fulcher said that lawmakers must look to enact protections, but do so in such a way that will not stifle business growth.

On the home front, Fulcher said he's seen good success in PILT (Payment in Lieu of Taxes) payments and the Good Neighbor Authority, which both work to address what Fulcher described as the disparity of accessible public land in Idaho.

"It allows us to potentially partner with the federal government at a state level so that we can access some of those federal lands to generate revenue for the state," Fulcher said.

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