Though it seems Virginia is following California's lead by
becoming the second state with its own comprehensive data privacy
legislation, Virginia's Consumer Data Protection Act (CDPA)
diverges from the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the
California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) in that it is far more
business-friendly and does not have the “teeth” that
the CCPA does.
The Virginia House of Delegates adopted the CDPA, HB 2307, on January 29, 2021, and the Virginia
Senate approved an identical companion bill, SB 1392, on February
5. The General Assembly voted to send the CDPA to Governor Ralph
Northam, who is expected to sign the bill into law. The new
legislation would take effect on January 1, 2023.
