Consumer Reports respectfully opposes H.B. 4, Texas consumer privacy legislation. The bill seeks to provide to Texas consumers the right to know the information companies have collected about them, the right to access, correct, and delete that information, as well as the right to stop the disclosure of certain information to third parties. However, in its current form it would do little to protect Texas consumers’ personal information, or to rein in major tech companies like Google and Facebook. The bill needs to be substantially improved before it is enacted; otherwise, it would risk locking in industry-friendly provisions that avoid actual reform.
To read the full letter, please see the attached PDF.