california capitol Sacramento State Capitol building on Capitol Way. Credit: Jason Doiy/The Recorder

A measure to give state residents the right to sue for violations of the new California Consumer Privacy Act died in a state legislative fiscal committee Thursday amid opposition from business and tech groups.

Senate Bill 561, sponsored by Attorney General Xavier Becerra, did not receive a vote in the Senate Appropriations Committee, effectively blocking the bill from moving past a procedural deadline.

In addition to creating a private right of action, which Becerra said would be key to the new law's enforcement, the bill would have dropped language requiring the attorney general to counsel companies on how to comply with the act. It would also have eliminated a 30-day right-to-cure period for alleged violators.

“This was a major setback for California's privacy rights,” the bill's author, Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, said in a statement that expressed her disappointment. “I remain committed to ensuring California's privacy protections are preserved and strengthened.”

The bill had been targeted by the California Chamber of Commerce, the Internet Association and other tech trade lobbies that said the changes would have encouraged litigation instead of compliance.

The Consumer Privacy Act “is stronger with unified, well-funded enforcement through the California Attorney General's office,” Kevin McKinley, director of the Internet Association's California operations, said in a statement. “The internet industry will keep working with policymakers and other stakeholders to ensure the AG's office is resourced to protect consumers, enforce the CCPA effectively, and provide both large and small businesses the guidance they'll need to comply with the law.”

The new law allows consumers to sue for Consumer Privacy Act violations in limited instances surrounding data breaches. Otherwise, only the Attorney General's Office can bring enforcement actions, a responsibility that Becerra has said he cannot fully take on without significantly more staffing and funding.

“I don't think the Legislature wants only the Attorney General's Office to be able to protect people's rights,” Becerra told reporters in February when he endorsed SB 561. “We need to have some help.”

Becerra's office did not respond to a message seeking comment on Thursday.

The Consumer Privacy Act, slated to go into effect next year, will require companies to disclose what information they've collected about consumers and will give those consumers more control over what happens with that data.

Lawmakers this year have introduced a handful of bills aimed at limiting the law's reach, including measures to allow data collection for customer loyalty programs and to restrict the definition of personal information that can be shared. Floor votes on those bills are expected over the next two weeks.

 

Read more:

California Lawmakers Embrace Limits on New Data Privacy Law

What Big Law, Tech Leaders Say About California's New Data-Privacy Law

Let Consumers Sue Under New Data Privacy Law, Becerra's Office Says

Business Groups Lobby for Changes to California Data Privacy Law