The proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act could have a far-reaching impact on health data that is not protected by the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, Health IT Security reports. Invitae's Deven McGraw said, "HIPAA was never intended to be a privacy rule that covered all health data. ... The fact that we have this quite comprehensive piece of federal legislation that would cover personal data and extend additional protection to sensitive data is quite exciting. .... Read More

The U.S. House New Democrat Coalition announced its support for the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act. The NDC, with 99 members, is the largest caucus in the House. NDC Chair Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., said the coalition's support comes as it has "prioritized advancing policies that make privacy the default and put people in control of their own information." She added the NDC calls on "Republicans and Democrats in the House and the Senate to seize this moment to come to an agreemen... Read More

Prospects for a landmark vote in the U.S. House on the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act boil down to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who decides when or if the comprehensive privacy bill's number will be considered on the House floor. Pelosi did not take a side upon the ADPPA becoming available for a floor vote just ahead of U.S. Congress' summer recess, leaving many wondering where the chips would fall when federal lawmakers returned to work Sept. 6. Following weeks of u... Read More

Forty-eight advocacy groups joined on a letter asking U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., to consider and pass the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act. The letter touts the many civil rights protections the bill adds for consumers nationwide and expresses satisfaction preemption provisions are stronger than existing state laws, including the California Privacy Rights Act. Politico reports data brokers increased their lobbyist spending 11% in 2022's second quarter compared... Read More

Information Accountability Foundation Chief Policy Innovation Officer Martin Abrams wrote an op-ed discussing how to potentially tweak the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act "without changing its design in a fashion that might make passage more difficult." Abrams explained IAF devised a 10-factor criteria for evaluating the ADPPA based on considerations for consumer protections, data transfers to the U.S. and future-proofing provisions. Abrams also pointed to lessons learned from ... Read More

California Privacy Protection Agency Executive Director Ashkan Soltani wrote a letter to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., doubling down on its opposition to the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act. Soltani told House leadership the ADPPA's "sweeping preemption" works to "remove important protections and significantly weaken the privacy Californians currently enjoy." Soltani called preemption "an anomaly for federal priva... Read More

Cyberscoop reports privacy advocates are concerned with provisions for telecommunications data oversight in the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act. The current proposal strips the U.S. Federal Communications Commission of its ability to enforce privacy rules, leaving telecom companies to potentially benefit from a new enforcement regime under the Federal Trade Commission. "The problem with the Federal Trade Commission is it has fewer tools that it can use to enforce the rule and i... Read More

The proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act feels so close and yet so far away. The comprehensive privacy bill is on the cusp of a U.S. House floor vote, a first for any federal privacy proposal. But the bill's fragile nature is being tested at a crucial point in the legislative process as California lawmakers and stakeholders prefer the bill fail or be refit in order to preserve the California Consumer Privacy Act and its successor, the California Privacy Rights Act. Opposition to th... Read More

California Attorney General Rob Bonta and 10 state attorneys general sent the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce a letter urging reconsideration of preemption provisions in the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act. Bonta said U.S. Congress should draft a federal privacy law that "creates a floor, not a ceiling" and allows states "to continue building on state privacy laws that currently exist." The attorneys general explained states have played "a critical role" in "setting... Read More

On Tuesday, June 14, the U.S. House Committee on Energy and Commerce held a hearing on the American Data Privacy and Protection Act discussion draft — a leading contender for a comprehensive federal privacy framework. The famed sticking points of individual redress mechanisms, preemption of state laws and the role of the U.S. Federal Trade Commission — the law’s likely federal enforcer — were among the slew of debated aspects. However, the cybersecurity provisions and data security requirements ... Read More

As the policy community takes time to absorb and reflect on the substantive provisions of the draft American Data Privacy and Protection Act, it is worth exploring the basic scope of application of the bill. What organizations would be expected to comply? How do obligations differ based on size or function in the data economy? The ADPPA presents a somewhat complex array of organizational roles, with different names than privacy professionals may be used to. For example, what’s the difference bet... Read More

Members of U.S. Congress appear to be full-steam ahead in their pursuit of finalizing comprehensive federal privacy legislation by year's end. A day after revelations of a draft bill circulating, a bipartisan group of lawmakers published a discussion draft for the proposed American Data Privacy and Protection Act for full public consumption. U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation Ranking Member Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and House Committee on Energy and Commerce's Frank Pal... Read More

Publicly released last Friday, the discussion draft of the American Data Privacy and Protection Act gave the privacy community plenty of food for thought for the weekend. Initial impressions and analyses of the text ranged from “very promising,” “a valuable first step,” and “hugely impactful” to “not bad.” Omer Tene perhaps described it most poetically as: “a tsunami that may yet make GDPR seem like a storm in a teacup.” Jim Steyer, founder and CEO of Common Sense Media, said that while the dra... Read More