US Federal Privacy Legislation

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Keypoint: As currently drafted, the ADPPA’s private right of action provides U.S. citizens with the opportunity to enforce their privacy rights but limits lawsuits to federal court and provides covered entities and service providers with mechanisms to mitigate the risk of such claims, including through the use of arbitration provisions and class action waivers.

As we previously reported, the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (ADPPA) (H.R. 8152) is eligible for a full House vote after the House Committee on Commerce & Energy (House Committee) reported out an amended version on July 20, 2022. Prior to reporting out the ADPPA, the House Committee adopted an Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute (AINS) that made numerous changes to the bill, including modifications to the bill’s private right of action (PRA).

The contours of the ADPPA’s PRA are crucial.

Privacy advocates point to the inclusion of the PRA as one way in which the ADPPA is stronger than the California Consumer Privacy Act. However, Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) – whose support is necessary to pass the bill because she chairs the relevant Senate committee – stated that the ADPPA contains “major enforcement holes” and does not have her support. Recently, Senator Cantwell stated that “she couldn’t support the bipartisan framework unless House lawmakers add tougher enforcement measures, including limits on forced arbitration and a broad right for individuals to sue companies that violate the law.” According to Cantwell, “The problem is it’s taking the House a long time to come to reality about what strong enforcement looks like.” “If you’re charitable, you call it ignorance. If you think that it’s purposeful, it literally won’t pass the House because they just won’t meet the test of what a strong federal bill looks like.” Meanwhile, business advocates such as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are adamantly opposed to any bill “that creates a blanket private right of action.”

Given how important this issue is to passing a federal privacy bill, the below article contains a detailed analysis of the ADPPA’s current PRA as the House Committee passed it on July 20. The article then outlines the PRA contained in Senator Cantwell’s 2019 bill, the Consumer Online Privacy Right Act for comparison purposes.

If you are interested in learning more about the ADPPA, we are hosting a webinar on it on August 18, 2022. Click here for more information and to register. We also would like to thank the Future of Privacy Forum and the IAPP’s Cobun Zweifel-Keegan whose redline of the latest version of the ADPPA was instrumental in the drafting of this article.

Keypoint: The House Committee on Energy & Commerce reported out the American Data Privacy and Protection Act by a vote of 53-2, referring the bill to the full House.

On July 20, 2022, the House Committee on Energy & Commerce reported out an amended version of the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (ADPPA) (H.R. 8152) after holding a markup. The bill passed by a vote of 53-2 and is now eligible for a  full House floor vote. Lawmakers previously voted the bill out of a House subcommittee on June 23, 2022.

In the below article, we provide a brief overview of the amendments to the ADPPA as well as a discussion of recent objections raised by various entities and individuals.

Keypoint: A revised version of the American Data Privacy and Protection Act was formally introduced in the House and voted out of a subcommittee.

As we previously reported, on June 3, 2022, a bipartisan and bicameral group of lawmakers released a discussion draft of a comprehensive data privacy bill called the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (ADPPA). Representatives Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.), Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), and Senator Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) all supported the discussion draft although it lacked the key support of Senator Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.).

On June 21, 2022, lawmakers formally introduced the ADPPA as H.R. 8152. On June 23, 2022, the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce of the House Committee on Energy and Commerce held an open mark up session on the ADPPA and seven other bills. During the mark up session, the subcommittee ordered and favorably reported the bill, as amended by a substitute, to the full committee.

In the below post, we analyze some of the key changes between the discussion draft and current version of the ADPPA, briefly recap the mark up session, and discuss the bill’s path forward.

Keypoint: The chances for the United States to finally enact a federal privacy bill appear to have increased with the circulation of a bipartisan discussion draft although its chances for passage are far from clear.

On Friday, June 3, House and Senate leaders released a bipartisan discussion draft of a comprehensive data privacy bill called the American Data Privacy and Protection Act (ADPPA). Although there have been many federal privacy bills introduced in the past, this discussion draft is gaining widespread attention because of its timing, bipartisan support, and the fact that it reaches compromise positions on state law preemption and enforcement (the two primary obstacles for passing a federal privacy law).

In the below article, we first discuss the background of the discussion draft, including its chances for passage. We then provide a list of high-level takeaways.