Senate Commerce Subcommittee Leaders to Commerce Sec Ross: Include Us in Privacy Blueprint Plans

The White House's signal that it is working on a blueprint for a national privacy protection framework in the age of broadband and the Internet of Things has prompted some bipartisanship on Capitol Hill. A pair of Senate Commerce subcommittee leaders have written Commerce Sec Wilbur Ross to say that Congress should be included in any such effort. “To protect Americans from data misuse and establish certainty for businesses to create jobs, innovate, and compete domestically and abroad, a national privacy framework is essential,” the senators told Sec Ross. “Congress should be central to privacy blueprints. Any proposal that satisfies both the needs of American consumers and the internet economy would require Congressional action to make it an enforceable nationwide standard," they said. Signing on to the letter were Consumer Protection Subcommitteee Chairman Jerry Moran (R-KS) and Ranking Member Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), and Communications Subcommittee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Ranking Member Brian Schatz (D-HI).