In a letter to U.S. House of Representative leaders, Federal Trade Commission Chairman Joseph Simons requested additional resources to aid with policing tech companies and enforcement matters, The Hill reports. Having clarified that the agency only has 40 full-time employees dedicated to internet privacy and data security, Simons pointed to the U.K. Information Commissioner’s Office, which has about 500 employees, and the Irish Data Protection Commissioner, which has roughly 110 employees, as comparisons and noted, “the contrast is stark” when either is compared to the U.S. Meanwhile, Republican Federal Trade Commissioner Christine Wilson said a federal privacy law should preempt state law and called the state patchwork “unworkable for industry.” All five commissioners have supported new rulemaking and enforcement authority for the agency. Editor's Note: Simons will be interviewed by the IAPP's Omer Tene at the Global Privacy Summit in Washington.
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