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The U.S. Chamber of Commerce warned that a private right of action in federal data privacy legislation would hurt efforts to protect consumers.
Why it matters: A national data protection law that includes a private right of action would encourage an influx of abusive class action lawsuits, create more confusion about the enforcement of privacy rights, harm small businesses, and hinder data-driven innovation.
Be smart: More than 130 countries have enacted general privacy protections, and five state legislatures have passed comprehensive data protection bills.
Yes but: For good reason, private right of action for privacy is not included in any of the state laws, nor is it part of the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation.
Our take: The Chamber strongly urges Congress to pass durable, bipartisan national privacy legislation that protects all Americans equally.
A national law should be enforced by the Federal Trade Commission with adequate funding and due process protections as well as state attorneys general.
The Chamber will strongly oppose legislation that fails to provide meaningful preemption or any proposal that creates a blanket private right of action.
Dig deeper:
The Chamber’s letter to the leadership of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
It’s Time to Get Serious About National Data Privacy Legislation
The 10 Principles of Data Privacy
