California governor newsom signed an executive order on september 18 directing experts to propose…
california governor newsom signed an executive order on september 18 directing experts to propose rules within two months that could require kill switches, independent monitors, and third party safety plans for frontier ai companies. the state that hosts the models is now drafting the off switch.
capability disclosures and regulation are arriving in the same news cycle.
Context
California Governor Newsom's press release of 18 September 2026 and the signed Executive Order N-9-26 direct the Government Operations Agency, with the Office of Emergency Services, to accelerate implementation timelines for SB 813 and AB 1405 and to convene national experts. The order text says they shall, no later than 16 November 2026, submit recommendations on the technical feasibility and potential efficacy of amendments to existing state laws, including at least a list of items. The press release names requiring an independent verification organization onsite in frontier labs, verification of safety frameworks and reports, advancing a kill switch for frontier models, and updating critical safety incident definitions to include loss-of-control incidents.
The order directs agencies to accelerate implementation and to deliver recommendations by 16 November 2026. It does not itself impose a kill switch, monitor or safety plan requirement on companies, though it does direct state agencies. The press release says proposals under consideration include requiring emergency shutoff. The note's propose rules is looser than recommendations on amendments. The state drafting the off switch is the author's opinion, since no rule is drafted yet.
Watch next
- The 16 November 2026 recommendations.
Sources
Provenance
The note above is reproduced unedited from the original post, first published on Threads on 19 September 2026 at 01:35 IST. Sources are the papers and datasets the note draws on.
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