Privacy, Small-Cell Bills Top Trends for States This Year, FCBA Told
Privacy legislation is a growing focus in states beyond California, especially in light of the EU general data protection regulation (see 1901100018), said Abbie Gruwell, National Conference of State Legislatures policy director, at an FCBA lunch Wednesday. Connecticut, Delaware, Nevada…
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and Oregon have approved similar laws giving people more control of how their data is used, she said. Lots of legislators are asking about how data brokers work “and how they can be regulated,” Gruwell said: “Disclosure is a good first step.” Among other trends is legislation on wiretapping, location data and biometric data, Gruwell said: States “are trying to keep up with technology.” They're moving away from regulating data use by specific industries to “overarching data-privacy laws,” but “nobody else has come close to California yet,” she said. Many of the state telecom bills this year are focusing on small cells, said Angelina Panettieri, National League of Cities principal associate-technology and communications. Some of the legislation is “interesting,” she said. In Mississippi, one bill would allow public utilities and rural co-ops to offer broadband, she said: “They sort of moved further towards the center of pre-emption.” Maryland has two small-cell bills, one endorsed by industry and chambers of commerce and the other by municipal groups, she said. “We’re still waiting to see what’s happening there.” Bethanne Cooley, CTIA senior director-state legislative affairs, highlighted legislation aimed at speeding siting of small cells and cutting deployment costs. Estimates are industry will need more than 800,000 small cells in the next few years, Cooley said. “If we’re paying $100,000-plus per small cell, we’re never going to get to 5G and we are in a race,” she said. So far, 21 states have passed pro-industry bills, she said. Small-cell measures are alive in five states with about “a half dozen” more to come during the 2019 session, she said. “All bills are different,” she said. CTIA is telling the states that despite work the FCC is doing on siting, and an FCC shot clock, they need to pass their own legislation, Cooley said.