Mexican Senate Review Bill to Regulate Neurorights, Neurotech

The Mexican Senate is evaluating a bill presented by Senator Alejandra Lagunes that seeks to regulate neurorights and neurotechnologies. The proposal includes the creation of a Neuroethics and Neuro-right Commission and establishes principles to protect mental privacy and guarantee informed consent.?

Lagunes’ bill addresses these concerns by proposing a series of principles to regulate the use of neurotechnologies. These principles include equitable access, autonomy, confidentiality, governance, non-discrimination, and protection of personal identity. Additionally, the importance of voluntary and informed consent for the use of neurotechnologies and the management of neural data is emphasized.

The proposal contains 92 articles and amends or adds 35 existing laws, including the General Health Law, the General Education Law, and the Firearms Law, among others .

The initiative foresees the creation of a Neuroethics and Neurolaw Commission, which will collaborate with the Federal Commission for the Protection of Health Risks (COFEPRIS). This commission will be responsible for establishing certification criteria for the acquisition and use of neurotechnologies. COFEPRIS, in turn, will be the authority in charge of supervising and controlling these technologies in the medical field, ensuring compliance with the established regulations.

The bill also introduces specific measures to guarantee cybersecurity related to neurotechnologies, including the implementation of audits for commercial devices and the creation of a registry of professionals in the field.?

Regarding the new prohibitions and sanctions imposed in this proposal, the law prohibits the use of neurotechnologies for coercive purposes, such as neuroweapons and mass surveillance. It also prohibits their use to obtain confessions or statements in criminal proceedings.

Additionally, new crimes related to mental manipulation, probing of neuronal and mental activity, and memory implantation are established, with penalties ranging from three to 12 years in prison. Violations of the provisions of this law will be considered serious administrative offenses.

With the presentation of this initiative, Mexico positions itself at the forefront in the regulation of neuro-rights at a global level. As reported by DPL News, in Latin America, only Chile has addressed the regulation of neurorights at the legislative level, becoming the first country to incorporate these rights into its Constitution in 2021. Other countries, such as Spain and France, have also established similar protections in their legislation.

The initiative is part of the work of the National Artificial Intelligence Alliance (ANIA) and was built from a constitutional reform presented in September 2023 to empower Congress to legislate on cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and neurorights.