PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Dec 3, 2019
Consumer Online Privacy Rights Act
This bill places requirements on entities that process or transfer a consumer's data.
Specifically, the bill requires such entities to
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make their privacy policy publicly available and provide an individual with access to their personal data;
delete or correct, upon request, information in an individual's data;
export, upon request, an individual's data in a human-readable and machine-readable format;
establish data security practices to protect the confidentiality and accessibility of consumer data; and
designate a privacy officer and a data security officer to implement and conduct privacy and data security programs and risk assessments.
Further, the bill prohibits such entities from
engaging in deceptive or harmful data practices;
transferring an individual's data to a third party if the individual objects;
processing or transferring an individual's sensitive data without affirmative express consent;
processing or transferring data beyond what is reasonably necessary or for which they have obtained affirmative express consent;
processing or transferring data on the basis of specified protected characteristics (e.g., race, religion, or gender);
conditioning the provision of a service or product on an individual's agreement to waive their privacy rights; and
retaliating against an employee who provides information about a potential violation of the bill's provisions, or who testifies or assists in an investigation or judicial proceeding concerning such a violation.
The Federal Trade Commission must establish a new bureau to assist with enforcement of these provisions.
People & committees
Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-WA] · D–WA
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
Source last updated: Sep 8, 2026. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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Analyze S.2968 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine S.2968 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
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