EPIC submitted testimony in support of CA SB 361, the Defending Californians’ Data Act sponsored by Senator Josh Becker. The bill expands California’s data broker registration requirements, requiring disclosure of additional sensitive personal information categories they collect. These transparency measures aim to protect vulnerable communities from surveillance and privacy risks.
EPIC submitted testimony in support of SB 977 in Maryland, a bill that would require sensible restrictions on access to Marylanders’ information for the purpose of enforcing federal immigration law.
Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed H.B. 2094, a bill that sought to regulate high-risk AI use in significant decision contexts like housing, employment, and health care. “The proposed AI bill in Virginia contained too many loopholes and exemptions to adequately protect Virginians from the harms of discriminatory, unproven AI systems, so EPIC was pleased to see it vetoed,” said Kara Williams, EPIC Law Fellow.
EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald testified before the Oregon House Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection in support of HB 3899 (amended). The key provisions of HB 3899 include a ban on the sale of precise geolocation data and data about minors, strong data minimization rules, and heightened protections for sensitive data.
EPIC, along with several other national and West Virginia-based groups, sent a letter to a West Virginia House committee opposing a weak privacy bill that would do little to meaningfully protect residents.
EPIC joined eight other national and Maryland-based public interest groups in sending a letter to a Maryland Senate committee opposing a bill that would establish an AI working group with no public interest representatives.
The Vermont Senate passed Senate Bill 69, the Vermont Age-Appropriate Design Code (Vermont AADC), on a bipartisan 25-5 vote. EPIC testified in support of the bill and submitted additional written testimony. The Vermont AADC, if passed into law, would protect kids’ privacy, enhance their autonomy, and bolster their online safety by prohibiting abusive data and design practices.
EPIC joined Consumer Watchdog, Consumer Federation of America, and Privacy Rights Clearinghouse in a letter to the Privacy and Consumer Protection Committee of the California State Assembly expressing support for A.B. 446, a bill that would protect consumers from discriminatory pricing based on data amassed about them, a practice known as “surveillance pricing.”
EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald testified before the Vermont Senate Committee on Institutions in support of S. 71, An act relating to consumer data privacy and online surveillance.
EPIC Law Fellow Kara Williams testified against a Maryland bill that would gut one of the most important provisions in the state’s data privacy law before it even goes into effect.
EPIC Deputy Director Caitriona Fitzgerald testified in support of SB 420 in New Mexico. The bill includes strong data minimization rules, heightened protections for sensitive data, prohibits data-based discrimination, and includes a private right of action to ensure adequate enforcement of the law.
EPIC Law Fellow Kara Williams testified in the House Economic Matters Committee in support of Maryland H.B. 1331, a bill regulating the development and use of high-risk AI in consequential decisions.
Senators Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Bill Cassidy (R-La.) reintroduced the bipartisan Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0), which would update online data privacy rules and help ensure children and teenagers are protected online.
