Members of both parties have disagreed over a bill overriding state privacy laws and whether individuals would have the right to sue for violation of privacy under the law.
The draft was developed by the committee@@@s staff and does not necessarily represent the policy positions of members, an email from the committee to various stakeholder groups said.
The committee is seeking comments from privacy groups, trade associations and companies that have been watching the bill negotiations closely for nearly a year. Privacy concerns are mounting as big tech companies experience data breaches and public discomfort over how information is being collected and used. U.S. regulators have imposed hefty fines on Facebook Inc and Alphabet Inc-owned Google@@@s YouTube unit for privacy violations.
Earlier this month, a draft consumer privacy bill from Republican U.S. Senator Roger Wicker, who chairs the Commerce Committee, proposed nationwide rules for handling of personal information online and elsewhere that would override state laws. That followed a privacy bill introduced by the top Democrat on the committee, Maria Cantwell.
