Virginia Lawmakers to Review Proposed Privacy Legislation

A committee of the Virginia House of Delegates voted last week to send several privacy-related bills to a legislative commission for study, including the Virginia Privacy Act (VPA).

The VPA is proposed as a less onerous version of the recently passed California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), which came into effect in the state of California just last month and aims to protect consumers from having their data used, shared, and stored without their consent.

Some of the other bills that were also part of the referral to study include ones addressing requirements for the destruction of records, the use of online advertising and digital marketing services directed at minors, and the safe-keeping of biometric data.

As Lexology reports, the Joint Commission on Technology and Science (JCOTS) — a body of 13 legislators that aims to evaluate emerging technology and science to promote the development of sound public policies geared toward them — was requested to study the legislation in advance of the 2021 legislative session by the Communications, Technology and Innovation Committee.

For businesses that will potentially be impacted by the legislation, JCOTS’ reviewing of the relevant materials during 2020 should be of great interest as it is the first serious look at comprehensive privacy legislation for the state of Virginia.

Some of the possible outcomes of JCOTS’ evaluation of the bills could include recommendations of specific legislation following stakeholder input, advising against specific legislation but expressing a need for a different solution on a given topic, or concluding that existing regulations are sufficient.

JCOTS will meet throughout the year and is likely to receive presentations on the ways other states have addressed these topics, the challenges faced by companies affected, and the potential benefits to consumers if the bills are enacted.

Source: Lexology

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February 7, 2020 – by Tony Bitzionis