Senate Commerce Committee Republicans Include 13(b) Fix In New Privacy Legislation

Late last week, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS), along with Senators John Thune (R-SD), Deb Fischer (R-NE), and Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), introduced S. 4626, the Setting an American Framework to Ensure Data Access, Transparency, and Accountability (SAFE DATA) Act. The comprehensive privacy bill was years in the making and follows a discussion draft released last November. The SAFE DATA Act expands upon last year's discussion draft, among other things, strengthening the Federal Trade Commission's enforcement authority.

Specifically, Section 403 of the bill, as introduced, would clarify the FTC's ability under Section 13(b) of the FTC Act to obtain monetary remedies for consumers. The provision comes in response to numerous agency requests for Congressional action on 13(b) following ongoing legal challenges to the scope of its authority.