House Commerce Expects Federal Privacy ‘Action’ in Spring
The House Commerce Committee plans to take “action” on comprehensive privacy legislation after considering kid bills this spring, a committee staffer said in a statement Friday.
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“The Energy and Commerce Privacy Working Group is continuing to work through this issue,” the staffer said in response to reports about potential introduction of a federal privacy bill in early 2026. “The Committee on Energy and Commerce has a very busy schedule this coming spring -- a schedule that will include action on children and teen’s online safety and then data privacy.”
The House Commerce Subcommittee earlier this month passed the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA (HR-6484) and the Children and Teens’ Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA 2.0) (HR-6291) on party line votes. Democrats were opposed, calling them watered-down versions of bipartisan bills introduced in 2024 (see 2512110057).
House Republican leadership in 2024 opposed the bipartisan KOSA, with Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., saying he wants to get the “right” bill signed (see 2503260068). Authors of the Senate’s version of KOSA, Sens. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., oppose the current House bill in part because it lacks a duty of care.
House Commerce Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie, R-Ky., in February officially launched the Republican privacy working group, naming Rep. John Joyce, R-Pa., as leader (see 2502140044). The group later that month solicited public input on potential federal privacy legislation. The elimination of a private right of action, preemption of state privacy and AI laws and conflicts with existing federal law were among the topics Republicans outlined in their request for information (see 2502240055). Committee staff in April said leadership is “committed to moving” a federal privacy bill “this Congress” (see 2504240049).
Joyce’s office didn’t comment Friday.
In comments to the working group, the National Conference of State Legislatures urged the committee to not preempt state privacy laws: “An inflexible and complete preemption of state privacy laws that does not allow for states to tailor legislation to their specific and unique needs will stifle states' ability to respond to emerging risks.”
Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Electronic Privacy Information Center argued against federal preemption. “Federal consumer protection and privacy laws, as a general matter, operate as regulatory baselines and do not prevent states from enacting and enforcing stronger protections,” said EPIC. EFF pointed to California’s Consumer Privacy Act, Vermont’s Data Broker Act and Illinois’ Biometric Information Privacy Act as “just a few of the state laws that already protect consumers” and are influencing other state measures.
Industry groups commenting on the working group’s RFI included the Computer & Communications Industry Association, NetChoice, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and ACT | The App Association. The chamber called for “strong” preemption and the enabling of “reasonable and responsible uses of data by businesses for societally beneficial uses and allow for continued innovation.”
NetChoice said a “single, national framework should preempt state patchworks, avoid private rights of action, and instead encourage streamlined enforcement.”