Cliff Stearns: “Earlier this week, Jim Matheson and I introduced H.R. 1528, the Consumer Privacy Protection Act. Our legislation…”

“Earlier this week, Jim Matheson and I introduced H.R. 1528, the Consumer Privacy Protection Act. Our legislation attempts to strike the proper balance between consumer privacy and innovation by requiring entities to provide consumers, in clear and easy to understand language, what information is being collected and how the information is being used. By giving the consumer more notice and choice, we can encourage strong Internet commerce while protecting consumer privacy. Overreaching privacy regulations could have a significant, negative economic impact at a time when many small businesses are struggling today. Only the consumer knows how he or she feels about the information being collected, the parties doing the collecting, and the purpose for which the information is collected. Congress cannot and should not make that decision for them. We need to place the control over consumer information with the actual consumer, and our legislation does this. ____________________”