Potential Commerce Chairman Wicker Says Privacy Bill Achievable, Top Priority
Moving privacy legislation will be “right at the top of necessary and achievable goals” in 2019, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., expected to chair the Senate Commerce Committee, told us. Whether a split Congress improves prospects for achieving compromise on a privacy bill is unclear, said lawmakers from both chambers this week.
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“Democrats on the House side will want to do something meaningful, and we’ll see what happens with Senate Republicans, but hope springs eternal in a new Congress,” said Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii. Schatz said he has no plans to leave his seat as ranking member of the Senate Communications Subcommittee in 2019.
Outgoing Senate Commerce Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., told reporters he's considering a potential additional data privacy hearing (see 1810100066) in December and hopes to release a draft bill this year. “Obviously, there won't be any action on it until the next Congress,” he said: “We're trying as best we can to be thorough and to build the record so that when we do move, that we will have done all the diligence that's necessary” to ensure legislation represents the input of all stakeholders.
“We were always open to working in a bipartisan way on the telecom issues,” said House Commerce Committee Chairman Greg Walden, R-Ore. Asked what agenda he expects from Democratic leadership, Walden cited privacy, data security and tech antitrust scrutiny. “The concentration of power on these platforms is pretty enormous," he said. "Whether they focus on that now or not is their call. ... On some of these issues, you’ve got such division among the different players outside of Congress that you couldn’t get to consensus, especially on data breach."
Lawmakers have questioned whether platforms like Amazon, Facebook and Google abuse dominant positions. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., a favorite to replace Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, who might move to Senate Finance Committee chair (see 1810310025), was asked about his Silicon Valley-related priorities. “Definitely look at their business models,” he told us.
Prospects for privacy legislation depend on “how the House Democrats channel their energy, but we certainly need to do something,” said Sen. John Kennedy, R-La. “The best approach would be to have Congress leave the internet alone, but I never imagined that these companies were going to get as big as they’ve gotten.” Kennedy expressed disappointment Silicon Valley hasn’t offered a legislative solution: “It doesn’t appear they’re going to do that, and the hits just keep on coming, in terms of violation of privacy and other misbehavior. Congress is going to have to address it.”
Observers could argue either way whether a split Congress improves prospects, noted Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C. Asked where parties remain the furthest apart, Tillis said there’s not one particular issue: “I think we got a lot of member support on both sides of the aisle, but we want to craft it in a way that isn’t an overreach.” Some believe California or the EU’s general data protection regulation should be the model, which Tillis said would be “problematic.” Congress needs to look at both new privacy laws, assess the risks and “come up with something that’s a better baseline,” he said.
Hopefully, a split Congress bodes well for consensus, said Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass. “The time has arrived, and clearly there will be a privacy bill that does pass out of the House that will be strong.”