At the conclusion of today’s House Energy and Commerce hearing on “Protecting America’s Consumers: Bipartisan Legislation to Strengthen Data Privacy and Security,” the Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) President Jeff Joseph released the following statement:
This hearing was a great example of the work Americans hope to see in Congress – bipartisan, collaborative, forward looking and engaging a cross-section of experts across industry and civil society. That fulsome discussion revealed several areas that still require substantive attention in the legislation, including: the protection of children’s personal information, First Amendment issues around “derived data,” definitions of “sensitive data” and “large data holders,” treatment of information in a business to government context, restrictions on using data to improve consumer experiences, and issues around algorithmic impact assessments.
In a letter sent yesterday, we joined with the Computer & Communications Industry Association and TechNet in recognizing the forward progress while noting serious concerns with the draft bill as proposed. Together, we urged Congress to pass a federal privacy law to protect American consumers and strengthen innovation.
We look forward to working with members of Congress as they continue to refine this important legislation.
