In the lead-up to implementing stringent new digital privacy safeguards for their constituents earlier this spring, Oregon legislators contemplated a significant enforcement strategy — affording citizens the authority to legally challenge companies for breaches of privacy.
However, the tech lobby, represented by groups like TechNet, influenced legislators to remove key provisions from the bill, showcasing their ability to shape privacy laws, according to an Aug. 16 Politico report.
"One thing that I think everyone assumed was going to happen when just California had passed a privacy law was that basically every other liberal state would pass a pretty similar law very quickly after," Ashley Johnson, senior policy analyst at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation, said in the report.
Champions of consumer rights, who devoted three years to collaboratively shaping this legislation, perceived it as a potential blueprint for like-minded states to adopt, a counteraction to an industry reliant on extracting and profiting from individuals' data, the report said. Yet, their enthusiasm was short-lived.
As deliberations commenced on the bill this spring, the tech sector's lobby swiftly descended upon it, the report noted. Notable representatives from TechNet, the Computer and Communications Industry Association and the State Privacy and Security Coalition swayed Oregon's lawmakers to discard a pivotal component of the proposal — the introduction of a private right of action.
“It is frustrating for me as a legislator, learning that lobbyists in many cases win the day based on the information that they’ve provided to members and members not necessarily taking a step back and looking at the bigger picture,” the lead sponsor, Oregon state Sen. Floyd Prozanski, D-4th, said in an interview, according to Politico.
The tech industry's influence is not confined to Oregon. A comprehensive evaluation of all state privacy laws enacted in 2023 unveils a consistent pattern of wins for the tech sector. In Oregon and the six other states that successfully passed privacy legislation from January to July, the enacted bills bore evident hallmarks of lobbying sway, Politico reported. Any provisions that could potentially establish more robust privacy protections faced dilution, courtesy of industry intervention.
This flurry of triumphs at the state level signifies a pivotal juncture in America's prolonged struggle concerning digital privacy safeguards. When California pioneered the nation's inaugural comprehensive data privacy law in 2018, industry lobbyists harbored concerns its stringent provisions might swiftly proliferate to other states, Politico said.
Paradoxically, the tech lobby maintained its momentum, securing the passage of industry-friendly laws in 11 states. Notably, these victories span the political spectrum, demonstrating the tech sector's formidable influence, Politico reported. To date, no state has mirrored California's approach.
The tech lobby proudly celebrates its accomplishments. Linda Moore, CEO of TechNet, affirmed her group's diligent efforts in ensuring the widespread adoption of the industry-friendly bill passed in Virginia in 2021, according to Politico.
During a recent event on Capitol Hill, Jordan Crenshaw, the head of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's Technology Engagement Center, emphasized the consistent trend of privacy legislation aligning with the Virginia model in states across the country, with the exception of California, Politico reported.
