Another week, another critical stretch for the patchwork that is US privacy. Let’s run through the roster news over the last few weeks.

Upcoming State Laws

• Governor Eric Holcomb of Indiana signed SB 5 into law on May 1^st, making Indiana the eighth state to adopt comprehensive consumer data privacy legislation with an effective date of July 1, 2026. See our breakdown of the bill here.
• Washington’s Governor Jay Inslee signed the My Health My Data Act, which includes a private right of action, with much of the law going into effect on March 31, 2024.

Pending State Laws

• Tennessee’s privacy bill awaits Governor Bill Lee’s signature but will enact without signature on May 15^th. Governor Lee lets 86% of bills lapse without his signature, signs 4%, and vetoes 10%. We anticipate this bill to join that 86% next week with an effective date of July 1, 2025.
• Montana’s bill is also awaiting signature from Governor Greg Gianforte with a fast-approaching effective date of July 1, 2023.

States that Have Crossed Chamber

• Florida – With a landslide 38-0 vote, Florida Senate approved SB 262 on May 3^rd. This is a few years in the making as Florida has been unsuccessful in passing a consumer privacy bill previously. The bill from this year, known as the Florida Digital Bill of Rights, is an adaptation of the Virginia law, but with a more limited scope. The legislature is expected to publish the updated version after a flurry of amendments during passage.
• Texas – The privacy bill in Texas has momentum with favorable votes from the State House and Senate and the addition of several co-sponsors. With an amendment introduced this week, the bill emulates Virginia with elements of Colorado (assessments and sensitive opt-in), but has an unusual scope exclusion for small businesses and is on the stronger side of the copy-cat laws.

States Hanging in the Balance

• Hawaii missed the mark by as the legislature closed without passing SB 974, SB 1110, and HB 1497.
• New Hampshire’s House has put the consideration of their proposed data privacy bill on suspension for 6 months.
• Oklahoma’s HB 1030 passed the House in March and is with the Senate Rules Committee.

The wave of states seeking to fill the federal privacy gap continues to grow with no end in sight. We are seeing more copy-cat bills with elements of Virginia and Colordo. While the similarities in proposed bills to current and upcoming laws err towards the side of uniformity, we’re still a long way from a simplified privacy in the United States. We will continue to update you on progress of these bills and governor signatures as information becomes available.

If you would like to see how your current privacy practices will hold up to the catalog of proposed and pending laws, schedule your complementary privacy consultation where we’ll identify any risks and give you actionable compliance tips so your organization can achieve compliance.