US Sen. Gillibrand Announces Legislation to Create a Data Protection Agency
The Data Protection Act (DPA) would create a consumer watchdog to give Americans control and protection of their data, promote a competitive digital marketplace, and prepare the U.S. for the digital age.
Introduced by U.S. Kirsten Gillibrand, the DPA will have the authority and resources to effectively enforce data protection rules—created either by itself or congress—and would be equipped with a broad range of enforcement tools, including civil penalties, injunctive relief, and equitable remedies. The DPA would promote data protection and privacy innovation across public and private sectors, developing and providing resources such as Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) that minimize or even eliminate the collection of personal data. The U.S. is one of the only democracies, and the only member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), without a federal data protection agency, says a press release.