Privacy bill focuses on agency regulations
Citing the need to restore balance to laws impacting the privacy of Americans, several House lawmakers on Wednesday unveiled legislation that would require federal agencies to disclose the privacy implications of their proposed regulations.
Rep. Bob Barr, R-Ga., introduced the unnumbered measure, which would require all agencies to include the privacy implications of regulations when posting them for public comment. He unveiled his measure while flanked by the bill's cosponsors, Republicans George Gekas of Pennsylvania, Steve Chabot of Ohio and Ronnie Shows of Mississippi, and Democrats Jerrold Nadler of New York and Melvin Watt of North Carolina.
After the public responds to proposed regulations, the measure would require agencies to disclose a privacy analysis and explain the steps that would be taken to minimize privacy vulnerabilities.
The measure "will be a very small but important step in the process of raising the issue of protection of privacy against government intrusion to the level where it sees the attention of those in the Congress, [and] we hope those in the administration, so that something can actually begin to happen to stem the tide of government intrusion and to protect that ever-shrinking sphere ... of personal privacy," Barr said.
The union of conservative Republicans and liberal Democrats "typically ... occurs on a matter involving individual liberties versus the right of the government," said Watt, who praised the measure for "setting up a process of public disclosure" on privacy efforts.
"When personal information is often the key to unlocking modern services and paying for them, it is critical that we limit access to private personal information and prevent the government from inadvertently sharing information," Nadler added.
After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Congress has granted some federal agencies new powers to track citizens and share data. Barr said he hoped his measure would strike the proper balance between giving agencies the tools and information they need to secure the nation and limiting the invasion of personal privacy.
"This will not in any reasonable interpretation, way, shape or form negatively impact law enforcement," he said.
The bill attracted several strange bedfellows as supporters, from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Electronic Privacy Information Center to the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Eagle Forum. NRA lobbyist John Frasier and ACLU legislative counsel Katie Corrigan touted the measure for giving Americans the ability to learn and respond to the treatment of their personal information.
The House Judiciary Commercial and Administrative Law Subcommittee, which Barr chairs, is expected to convene a hearing on the legislation next week.