Main Street Privacy Coalition Welcomes New Federal Privacy Bill
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The Act will ensure that everyone will need to comply with privacy laws and will not let powerful firms off the hook.”
WASHINGTON, DC, UNITED STATES, March 10, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The Main Street Privacy Coalition welcomed comprehensive federal privacy legislation introduced today by Representative Suzan DelBene, D-Wash., saying the measure would strengthen trusted relationships between businesses and their customers.— MSPC
“The Information Transparency and Personal Data Control Act embodies important principles that are essential to effective and fair privacy legislation designed to protect consumers comprehensively,” the coalition said in a letter to DelBene. “The Act ensures that everyone will need to comply with privacy laws and will not let powerful firms off the hook.”
DelBene introduced the Information Transparency and Personal Data Control Act, which would establish important rights giving consumers control over their personal information along with a framework for businesses on the collection, processing, disclosure, transmission and storage of sensitive data. Businesses would be required to obtain an opt-in before using sensitive information while consumers would be able to opt-out of the use of non-sensitive information in a way that would allow Main Street businesses to continue to provide products and services consumers expect. Loyalty and rewards programs, which MSPC said “customers know and love,” would be protected.
The bill would establish uniform federal standards for privacy, with state attorneys general sharing enforcement authority with the Federal Trade Commission. The coalition said uniform standards “will allow both consumers and businesses to understand the rules of the road.”
The coalition also praised the bill for setting its requirements as a matter of law and avoiding “the pitfalls of past privacy proposals” that would have relied on contracts to set standards. Contract-based requirements “break down quickly” when business partners have unequal market powers and bargaining positions, the coalition said.
MSPC was established in 2020 and has advocated for principles Congress and federal agencies should adopt as they advance solutions to address consumer privacy concerns. The principles include a comprehensive and uniform federal standard, transparency for consumers, preservation of customer services and benefits such as loyalty programs, legal responsibility for businesses’ own conduct, statutory obligations for all businesses that handle consumers’ personal information, and no exemptions for any industry sector that handles consumer data. The coalition includes 19 national trade associations representing a wide range of customer-serving Main Street businesses.
About MSPC
The Main Street Privacy Coalition is comprised of a broad array of national trade associations representing businesses that line America’s Main Streets. From retailers to Realtors, hotels to home builders, grocery stores to restaurants, and gas stations to convenience stores, its member companies interact with consumers day in and day out. Collectively, the industries that MSPC trade groups represent directly employ nearly 34 million Americans and constitute over one-fifth of the U.S. economy by contributing $4.5 trillion to U.S. gross domestic product. www.mainstreetprivacy.com
J. Craig Shearman
Main Street Privacy Coalition
+1 202-257-3678
craig@shearmancommunications.com
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