Bipartisan Group of House Members Touts Support of Data Privacy Groups for New Bill
On June 13 in the U.S. House of Representatives, the House Committee on Energy & Commerce published a press release to its website that shared the responses of a number of consumer data privacy groups to the Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee’s consideration of a bill to create sweeping new consumer data privacy protections, protections that would extend across healthcare and numerous other areas of activity.
Monday’s press release included a wide range of comments from stakeholder groups, among them, the Center for Democracy & Technology CDT), Fair Play for Kids, Free Press, Common Sense Media, and the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. The organizations have also been releasing their own statements, beginning on June 3.
The press release followed the introduction of the legislation itself earlier this month. On June 3, a press release from the House Energy & Commerce Committee announced that “U.S. Representatives Frank Pallone, Jr., D-N.J. and Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., Chairman and Ranking Member of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce, and U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, R-Miss., Ranking Member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, today released a discussion draft of a comprehensive national data privacy and data security framework. The draft legislation is the first comprehensive privacy proposal to gain bipartisan, bicameral support.”
“This bipartisan and bicameral effort to produce a comprehensive data privacy framework has been years in the making, and the release of this discussion draft represents a critical milestone,” Pallone, Rodgers, and Wicker said, in a statement contained in the press release. “In the coming weeks, we will be working with our colleagues on both sides of the aisle to build support and finalize this standard to give Americans more control over their personal data. We welcome and encourage all of our colleagues to join us in this effort to enable meaningful privacy protections for Americans and provide businesses with operational certainty. This landmark agreement represents the sum of years of good faith efforts by us, other Members, and numerous stakeholders as we work together to provide American consumers with comprehensive data privacy protections.”
“This bill strikes a meaningful balance on issues that are critical to moving comprehensive data privacy legislation through Congress, including the development of a uniform, national data privacy framework, the creation of a robust set of consumers’ data privacy rights, and appropriate enforcement mechanisms. We believe strongly that this standard represents the best opportunity to pass a federal data privacy law in decades, and we look forward to continuing to work together to get this bill finalized and signed into law soon,” Pallone, Rodgers, and Wicker concluded.
The press release went on to state that “The three committee leaders also thank House E&C Consumer Protection and Commerce Subcommittee Chair Jan Schakowsky, D-IL, and Ranking Member Gus Bilirakis, R-FL, and numerous members of the Senate Commerce Committee for their input and leadership on this discussion draft.”
The press release referenced the key provisions of the bill. The American Data Privacy and Protection Act would:
> Establish a strong national framework to protect consumer data privacy and security;
> Grant broad protections for Americans against the discriminatory use of their data;
> Require covered entities to minimize on the front end, individuals’ data they need to collect, process, and transfer so that the use of consumer data is limited to what is reasonably necessary, proportionate, and limited for specific products and services;
> Require covered entities to comply with loyalty duties with respect to specific practices while ensuring consumers don’t have to pay for privacy;
> Require covered entities to allow consumers to turn off targeted advertisements;
> Provide enhanced data protections for children and minors, including what they might agree to with or without parental approval;
> Establish regulatory parity across the internet ecosystem; and
> Promote innovation and preserve the opportunity for start-ups and small businesses to grow and compete.
Upon the introduction of the bill on June 3, the Washington, D.C.-based Center for Democracy & Technology (CDT) released the following statement, attributed to CDT CEO and president Alexandra Reeve Givens: “This draft shows that there is a bipartisan path forward on long-overdue legislation to protect consumers’ privacy. Americans want and desperately need legislation to protect their personal data and promote trust in the online world. While it’s not perfect, the draft is a hopeful first step. We urge Congress to move forward with the legislative process and pass legislation by the end of this year.” Further, CDT noted that “CDT has long advocated for a strong federal privacy law that protects users’ digital rights. We recognize that there will be negotiations that require difficult trade-offs, but now is the time for that work to happen. We look forward to working with Congress and partners committed to protecting Americans from the misuse of their personal data.” Further, CDT has said that “The draft bill includes important protections such as a requirement for companies to minimize the data they collect, limitations on uses of that data, and individuals’ rights to access, correct, delete, and port their data. The bill also requires large companies to assess the harms their use of algorithms might cause people and to take steps to mitigate those harms. Importantly, it includes civil rights language to protect against discriminatory or biased use of data. CDT is continuing to review these and other provisions, in anticipation of future discussions.”
Also on June 3, the Washington, D.C.-based Fairplay posted to its website the following statement, attributed to Josh Golin, the organization’s CEO: “We are pleased that many top priorities to create a safer internet for children and families are included in the draft comprehensive privacy legislation released today. Most notably, the bill would ban data driven advertising to children under the age of 17. Surveillance advertising not only allows marketers to target young people’s greatest vulnerabilities, but it fuels a system that manipulates children and teens into spending too much time online and exposes them to harmful content. We are also glad to see additional protections for children and teens, including the establishment of a division of Youth Privacy and Marketing at the Federal Trade Commission.
The Washington, D.C.-based Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law also released a statement on June 3, in the form of a press release posted to its website. The press release began, “Privacy rights are civil rights. The Lawyers’ Committee is encouraged by this bipartisan effort to protect our personal data and curb the rampant data-driven discrimination that occurs due to a lack of privacy protections. We need Congress to act now to ensure that everyone has an equal right to use the internet free from discrimination. That starts with a robust privacy bill with civil rights protections, substantive data protections and a robust enforcement regime.”
Further, the group’s statement went on to say that “Now is the time to come together, work together, and deliver results for all Americans. When individuals don’t have control of their own data, it opens up a world of possibilities for that data to be weaponized against them. For example, algorithms determining eligibility for essential needs such as housing, employment, credit, healthcare, education, and public accommodations are often discriminatory. The ramifications of these biases disproportionately impact Black and brown communities, as well as other marginalized and disenfranchised groups. The Lawyer’s Committee looks forward to working with both Republican and Democratic leaders to push this legislation over the finish line, and secure long overdue data privacy and online civil rights protections for the marginalized communities that are most vulnerable to harm.”
