Consumers are King

By Peter Swire | June 20, 2006

In testimony scheduled this afternoon before a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee, Peter Swire, the William O'Neill Professor of Law at the Ohio State University and visiting senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, will present the case for federal consumer privacy legislation as a representative of the newly formed Consumer Privacy Legislation Forum.

The CPL Forum, with members from across the political and business spectrum, has asked Professor Swire to present the group's statement in support of comprehensive consumer privacy legislation. The Forum recognizes that in today's digital economy, both beneficial and potentially harmful uses of personal information are multiplying. The time has come for a serious process to consider harmonized federal privacy legislation to create a simplified, uniform but flexible legal framework.

The legislation should provide protection for consumers from inappropriate collection and misuse of their personal information and also enable legitimate businesses to use information to promote economic and social value. Because a national standard would preempt state laws, a robust framework is warranted.

In principle, this new legislation should promote consumer trust, address the patchwork of state laws that now guide consumer protection, fill the existing gaps in consumer privacy laws, and ensure that an understandable U.S. legal framework exists so that America remains a leader in the global world of e-commerce.

Read Peter Swire's testimony before Congress alongside the names of the businesses and organizations that stand in support of the CPL Forum:

• Statement of Peter Swire Before the Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade, and Consumer Protection (PDF)

For further information on the position of the Center for American Progress regarding consumer privacy, please go to the following links:

• FTC: Consumer Protection Themes in the 21st Century
• Is Data Retention Secure?
• New Ways to Stop Phishing