Policy Blog Templates (11)

SIIA Joins Other Associations in Asking for Stronger U.S. Leadership in Digital Trade Advocacy

The Software Information and Industry Association (SIIA) joins multiple associations in voicing concern over recent U.S. administration actions on digital trade, particularly the withdrawal of support for proposed WTO disciplines and exclusion of digital trade barriers from the 2024 National Trade Estimate Report. It highlights bipartisan opposition from Congress and alarm from various stakeholder groups, emphasizing the importance of policies that safeguard cross-border data flows and prevent discrimination against American companies. Furthermore, the letter refutes claims that strong digital trade rules only benefit big tech, asserting their significance for firms of all sizes and sectors. It argues against the notion that such rules impede domestic legislation, citing examples of other countries with similar norms and underscoring the bipartisan nature of U.S. leadership on digital trade. Ultimately, it urges the USTR to prioritize a digital trade agenda that serves the nation’s economy, companies, and workers.
Policy Blog Templates (10)

Joint Association Memo on 2024 NTE Digital Trade Barriers Response

SIIA joins 11 other associations and organizations in preparing a memorandum expressing concerns regarding the U.S. Trade Representative’s (USTR) 2024 National Trade Estimate Report. They highlight USTR’s significant reduction in coverage of digital trade barriers, which contradicts its statutory authority and Congressional intent. The signatories stress the importance of digital trade across all sectors of the U.S. economy and urge Congress to compel USTR to reverse its decision and fulfill its duty to safeguard American interests in digital trade, which supports millions of jobs. They emphasize the need for the U.S. to reclaim its leadership role in shaping global trade rules to benefit American workers and businesses, align with national priorities and values, and address regulatory overreach. The memorandum underscores that digital trade is a bipartisan priority for Congress and calls USTR’s neglect of digital trade barriers a policy failure that requires immediate correction by Congress.

 
 
 
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SIIA’s Opposition to SB 1154: California Preventing Algorithmic Collusion Act of 2024

The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) joins 9 organizations to express our opposition to SB 1154 (Hurtado). It is unnecessary, creates onerous reporting requirements, chills price competition by exposing businesses to significant uncertainty and aggressive liability, and imposes significant cost on all but the smallest of businesses using tools that fall under the bill’s definition of price algorithms. Alarmingly, the bill also grants the Attorney General (AG) authority to request reports detailing a business’s use of pricing algorithms for any reason, without regard to whether the business is alleged to have behaved anticompetitively or harmed consumers, and then permits the AG to share the report with a third party, NIST (the National Institute of Standards and Technology), to decipher the reported information.
Policy Blog Templates (8)

SIIA’s Opposition to AB 3204: Data Digesters

The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA) joins 11 organizations to express our opposition to AB 3204 (Bauer-Kahan). This bill’s mandated disclosures are not only impractical if not infeasible, but they can also be rather invasive. To the extent that the intent is to promote transparency and understand the degree to which consumers’ personal information (PI) is being used to train AI systems, we believe that the approach taken by AB 3204 is akin to taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut. We are unclear what the end goal of creating a central repository of these businesses is, when reasonable disclosures could accomplish the same purpose without incurring incredible costs to the state and to businesses.

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SIIA Statement on Kids Online Safety Act

The following statement regarding the introduction of Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) can be attributed to Sara Kloek, Vice President, Education and Children’s Policy, Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA).

This bill does not protect the privacy and safety of young Americans. Instead, it essentially requires companies to censor content for users and raises constitutional concerns.  A negligence standard for “duty of care” would create such a huge risk of liability that online platforms will be left with virtually no choice but to restrict content. The law is not content neutral and almost certainly runs afoul of the constitution.

The current text also requires companies to offer different services to users of different ages effectively requiring age verification. Experts have noted this could require companies to collect more information than necessary on all users, not just kids. Age verification requirements are privacy invasive.

We urge Congress to reject attempts to score a quick political win by passing this legislation in an election year and instead concentrate on ways to meaningfully strengthen privacy protections and uphold Constitutional rights for all Americans.