Informing Consumers About Smart Devices Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 4081) to require the disclosure of a camera or recording capability in certain internet-connected devices, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 4081

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Informing Consumers about Smart Devices Act''. SEC. 2. REQUIRED DISCLOSURE OF A CAMERA OR RECORDING CAPABILITY IN CERTAIN INTERNET-CONNECTED DEVICES.

Each manufacturer of a covered device shall disclose whether the covered device manufactured by the manufacturer contains a camera or microphone as a component of the covered device. SEC. 3. ENFORCEMENT BY THE FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION.

(a) Unfair or Deceptive Acts or Practices.--A violation of section 2 shall be treated as a violation of a rule defining an unfair or deceptive act or practice prescribed under section 18(a)(1)(B) of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 57a(a)(1)(B)).

(b) Actions by the Commission.--

(1) In general.--The Federal Trade Commission shall prevent any person from violating this Act or a regulation promulgated under this Act in the same manner, by the same means, and with the same jurisdiction, powers, and duties as though all applicable terms and provisions of the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.) were incorporated into and made a part of this Act.

(2) Penalties and privileges.--Any person who violates this Act or a regulation promulgated under this Act shall be subject to the penalties and entitled to the privileges and immunities provided in the Federal Trade Commission Act (15 U.S.C. 41 et seq.).

(c) Commission Guidance.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Commission, through outreach to relevant private entities, shall issue guidance to assist manufacturers in complying with the requirements of this Act, including guidance about best practices for making the disclosure required by section 2 as clear and conspicuous as practicable.

(d) Tailored Guidance.--A manufacturer of a covered device may petition the Commission for tailored guidance as to how to meet the requirements of section 2.

(e) Limitation on Commission Guidance.--No guidance issued by the Commission with respect to this Act shall confer any rights on any person, State, or locality, nor shall operate to bind the Commission or any person to the approach recommended in such guidance. In any enforcement action brought pursuant to this Act, the Commission shall allege a specific violation of a provision of this Act. The Commission may not base an enforcement action on, or execute a consent order based on, practices that are alleged to be inconsistent with any such guidelines, unless the Commission determines such practices expressly violate section 2. SEC. 4. DEFINITION OF COVERED DEVICE.

As used in this Act, the term ``covered device''--

(1) means a consumer product, as defined by section 3(a) of the Consumer Product Safety Act (15 U.S.C. 2052(a)) that is capable of connecting to the internet, a component of which is a camera or microphone; and

(2) does not include--

(A) a telephone (including a mobile phone), a laptop, tablet, or any device that a consumer would reasonably expect to have a microphone or camera;

(B) any device that is specifically marketed as a camera, telecommunications device, or microphone; or

(C) any device or apparatus described in sections 255, 716, and 718, and subsections (aa) and (bb) of section 303 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 255; 617; 619; and 303(aa) and (bb)), and any regulations promulgated thereunder. SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.

This Act shall apply to all devices manufactured after the date that is 180 days after the date on which guidance is issued by the Commission under section 3(c), and shall not apply to devices manufactured or sold before such date, or otherwise introduced into interstate commerce before such date. SEC. 6. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall be determined by reference to the latest statement titled ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

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Mr. PALLONE. 4081.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4081, the Informing Consumers About Smart Devices Act.

For consumers, the benefits of technological progress are all around us. Perhaps nowhere is this more apparent than in our homes. The growing array of smart devices and household appliances with voice, video, and internet connectivity and technology make our lives easier, more entertaining, and more comfortable.

So, while there is no question that smart refrigerators, home assistants like Amazon's Alexa, and the countless other internet- connected devices that have microphones or cameras benefit consumers, there is also no question that these devices should not be able to listen to or watch us without our knowledge or consent. Unfortunately, studies confirm that many devices do not disclose these capabilities. Some are easily tricked into recording when people do not want them to do so.

So H.R. 4081 addresses this straightforward problem with a straightforward solution. The bill requires manufacturers of internet- connected devices that are equipped with a camera or microphone to disclose to consumers that a camera or microphone is part of the device. The bill does not apply to mobile phones, laptops, or other devices that a consumer would already reasonably expect to include a camera or microphone.

Now, the Federal Trade Commission must issue guidance to help businesses comply with these new requirements and may seek penalties, including civil penalties, for violations.

This bill will protect consumers; and I commend Representatives Curtis and Moulton for their bipartisan work on this legislation.

This bill is commonsense, balanced, and bipartisan. It is a solution to an issue that touches all Americans. It unanimously passed out of the Energy and Commerce Committee in July by a vote of 53-to-0 and is yet another example of the work the committee is doing to protect consumers. I hope that trend continues today here on the House floor because there is no reason why consumers should ever be spied on by their own household devices without their knowledge and consent.

I want to take this opportunity to talk about one of our key staff people who is leaving in the next few days. The person, of course, is Jerry Leverich, who is right behind me here.

Jerry has played an instrumental role in the committee's work, not only with consumer protection but on so many issues. Shortly after I became the top Democrat on the committee, more than 7 years ago, he started. He is currently the staff director for both our Subcommittee on Communications and Technology and our Subcommittee on Consumer Protection and Commerce.

Over these last 7 years since he has been here, he has played a critical role in our efforts to expand access to broadband nationwide, make internet service more affordable, and protect consumers from annoying robocalls.

I have to also say that if it wasn't for him, I don't know that I would be able to deal with a lot of technological issues in the committee or even explain a lot of what we are doing on the issues.

He led our efforts this summer, on the Democratic side, on passing out of committee for the first time the bicameral and bipartisan consumer data privacy bill, which we consider on both sides of the aisle a significant achievement. We are still working, obviously, to bring that to the House floor before the end of this session of Congress.

Mr. Speaker, I thank him for his counsel. I wish him nothing but the best in his future endeavors. Obviously, we don't want him to leave. I also want to say that not only is Jerry such an expert and so intelligent and wise on so many issues, but he is also a great individual and someone you can always rely on to be straightforward and tell us when we are doing good things, tell us when we are not, telling us when we can do things that are achievable and when they are not. Generally, overall, he has been a great staff member, so I thank him.

Mr. Speaker, I ask that we all support this legislation, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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