Monday’s brief meeting of the California legislature didn’t produce any broadband-related bills, with the possible exception of a placeholder introduced by assemblyman Ed Chau (D – Los Angeles). Assembly bill 25 would amend the privacy bill that California lawmakers passed in 2018, but it doesn’t say how.
California’s new privacy law puts tight restrictions on how online companies can use customer data, and how they have to safeguard it. Chau was the author of that bill, which was passed as part of a deal to keep an even tougher privacy initiative off of the November ballot. But what the legislature gives, it can also take away. A coalition of various kinds of advocacy groups sent a letter to lawmakers on Monday, asking them to strengthen the law, and resist attempts to change it…
Irresponsible data practices lead to a broad range of harms, including discrimination in employment, health care, and advertising, data breaches, and loss of individual control over personal information. Technology practices and resulting concerns can limit adoption and use of new technology such as internet-connected devices, threaten e-commerce, and even decrease democratic engagement and speech. Many individuals do not understand and are worried about how their information is used or shared online. They feel that they have lost control of their data and they want government to protect them.
Whether or not consumers are really clamouring for more government protection is an open question. But there doesn’t seem to be much interest in having less, except among the telecoms and online services companies that opposed California’s new privacy law. Some of those companies give millions of dollars to lawmakers, and particularly to senators and assembly members that sit on key committees in Sacramento. With the help of those friend, their lobbyists are adept at carving up laws they don’t like. Chau’s new bill needs to be watched carefully.