A Pennsylvania House committee approved a consumer data privacy bill Tuesday that would set rules for how companies collect, store and sell individualized information from people’s online activities.
Though the bill, HB78, was approved unanimously, Republicans on the committee indicated there would likely be changes proposed to it before a final House vote.
“I do think that there is a tension with this legislation,” said Rep. John Lawrence, R-Chester, the committee’s minority chair. “Certainly, we don’t want to see more onerous regulations on business, but we also want to respect the fact that people are entitled to be secure and safe with their own data privacy.”
The bipartisan legislation, which follows an industry-friendly model enacted by 17 other states, was approved by the House last year but did not win Senate consideration before the end of the 2023-24 legislative session.
California and Maryland are the only states with substantially more robust protections that put the onus on companies to limit the data they collect rather than on the consumer to manage their data with each company separately. Maryland also bans companies from sending targeted ads to minors.
HB78’s sponsors, Reps. Ed Neilson, D-Philadelphia, and Stephenie Scialabba, R-Butler, said they hope the bill moves quickly to avoid being delayed or tied up by the summer’s budget negotiations.
Regulating cryptocurrency transfers
Pennsylvania lawmakers are again trying to regulate transfers of virtual currency, which include cryptocurrencies.
The House Commerce Committee considered HB881, which would require companies that transfer virtual currencies to obtain a license. Twenty-six states already regulate these transfers.
The bill passed out of the Commerce committee on a party-line vote Tuesday with Democrats for and Republicans against.
Indira Ridgeway, the committee’s executive director, answered questions from Republican lawmakers about whether people’s individual virtual wallets would require licensure.
“Self-hosted wallets would not be required to be licensed under the bill, only transmission of a third party for a fee would require licensure,” Ridgeway said, referring to guidance from the Department of Banking and Securities.
Lawmakers indicated the bill was likely to face amendments before the vote on the House floor.
A similar bill passed unanimously out of the Senate Banking & Insurance Committee on Feb. 3. The Senate also unanimously passed the legislation last in the session, but the proposals didn’t make it out of the House by the end of 2024.
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