Proposed U.S. Privacy Legislation
Background
The United States is now considering several bills to protect privacy. These bills are intended to address growing public concern about the absence of adequate legal protection in the United States for personal data. EPIC has been calling for comprehensive federal privacy legislation for over 20 years.
Documents
EPIC and a coalition of privacy and consumer privacy groups have long recommended that Congress enact a privacy law that:
- limits the collection and use of personal data;
- prohibits discriminatory uses of data;
- requires algorithmic fairness and accountability;
- bans manipulative design and unfair marketing practices;
- limits government access to personal data;
- provides for a private right of action;
- preserves states’ rights to enact stronger provisions; and
- establishes a federal data protection agency to enforce these new rules.
EPIC has been calling for comprehensive federal privacy legislation for over 20 years. In July 1999, then-EPIC Executive Director Marc Rotenberg testified before Congress and said:
He went on to warn of what has become the surveillance advertising ecosystem of today:
But Congress failed to act in 1999 and in the over 20 years since then, and EPIC’s predictions unfortunately came true. Earlier this year, EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald said in testimony before Congress:
Recent Documents on Proposed U.S. Privacy Legislation
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Statements
EPIC Statement re: Data Privacy Act of 2023
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Testimony
Hearing on “Big Data: Privacy Risks and Needed Reforms in the Public and Private Sectors”
EPIC's testimony regarding privacy risks in the public and private sector and what a privacy law should look like.
Top Updates
EPIC's Experts on Proposed U.S. Privacy Legislation
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Caitriona Fitzgerald
Deputy Director
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Alan Butler
Executive Director and President
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John Davisson
EPIC Senior Counsel and Director of Litigation
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