Blumenthal

If the Federal Communications Commission can’t or won’t guarantee internet privacy and data security oversight, one Senate Democrat has proposed transferring authority to regulate ISPs and establish data security standards to the Federal Trade Commission.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) last week alerted the media of his forthcoming bill: “The Managing Your Data Against Telecom Abuses (MY DATA) Act,” which he says will address corporate concerns over two different regulatory standards by giving the FTC oversight powers over ISPs as well as internet companies like Google, Yahoo, and others.

The bill, not yet available for review, contains language giving the FTC important rulemaking authority, something it generally lacked without specific congressional approval on a case-by-case basis. With such power, the FTC could set and enforce the rules and fine companies that break them.

The FTC has sought jurisdiction over broadband providers for years, something that has generally been left to the FCC to manage. But since the arrival of FCC chairman Ajit Pai, who has been stripping consumer protection policies and ending oversight, the FTC’s case has suddenly gotten much stronger, and more appealing to some members of Congress in both parties.

What has given the matter some urgency was Congress and President Trump’s decision to rescind FCC rules requiring ISPs to get customer consent before collecting and selling their personal information to third parties. ISPs welcomed that decision but consumers largely did not. For Blumenthal’s bill to have any chance of passage, he will need Republican co-sponsors. It is more likely Republicans will shepherd whatever final bill finally emerges from committee, if any.

If such legislation fails to win passage, expect states to begin enforcing their own privacy laws. Wisconsin and Minnesota have already enacted their own internet privacy protection laws. New York is considering one as well.