Strengthening America's Security in the Middle East Act of 2019--Motion

Floor Speech

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Mr. WICKER. What is the pending business?
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Mr. WICKER. Mr. President, today is Data Privacy Day, a day set aside to raise awareness about how personal information is being used, collected, and shared in today's digital society. It is also an opportunity to educate the public about how to safeguard individual data and also an opportunity to encourage businesses to respect consumer privacy when correcting and dealing with data.

As we all know, data-driven innovation is exploding today, and that is a good thing. It allows developers, entrepreneurs, small businesses, and large companies to create applications, products, and services that are increasingly customized for users. This is great for consumers and great for the economy.

The benefits from this explosion of data come in the form of increased productivity, convenience, and cost savings. The benefits also extend to our very health and safety. In using data and in using this data economy, we can serve to improve the daily quality of life for every American.

All in all, opportunity in this digital era is potentially limitless. However, to realize our Nation's economic and societal potential in the global digital economy, consumers need to have trust and confidence that their data will be protected and secure in the internet marketplace. That is the reason we are emphasizing data privacy today.

I want to talk briefly about the potential for legislation in this Congress. Over the last decade, there have been numerous calls at all levels of government in the United States and elsewhere for baseline privacy legislation to protect consumers in a world of Big Data. Some jurisdictions have already acted. For example, the European Union recently enacted the General Data Protection Regulation--commonly known as GDPR. California has enacted and signed into law the California Consumer Privacy Act, CCPA. We see some American companies, not based in California, certainly not based in Europe but who are dealing with data across the board, calling on Congress to act and enact baseline privacy protections across the board in the United States of America.

I say that we have reached a point where Congress needs to act to develop Federal privacy legislation, and this is a viewpoint that is accepted and supported across the aisle by Democrats and Republicans in both Houses of the Congress. Strengthening consumer data protections will be a top legislative priority for the Commerce Committee during this Congress. We will continue to build on the current momentum in the Senate as we discuss how to approach the development of bipartisan privacy legislation in this Congress.

This is one of the best opportunities in this Congress, will be one of the best opportunities for Democrats and Republicans to work together and put something on the President's desk for his signature. I know that through collaboration, we can develop a legislative proposal that provides consumers with meaningful choices and strong protections of their data, both online and offline. We need a legislative proposal that will be balanced, balancing the need for flexibility, for businesses to innovate, invest, and compete. This issue is critical to maintaining U.S. leadership in the global digital economy.

I hope next year, at this point in time, we will be discussing and celebrating the enactment of bipartisan legislation to ensure both consumer protection and continued innovation in the United States. Happy Data Privacy Day.

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