The state Senate will vote this Thursday, Sept. 25, on an omnibus data privacy bill released by the Senate Ways & Means Committee last week. This bill, S.2608, An Act establishing the Massachusetts Data Privacy Act, will ban the sale of sensitive personal data, including geolocation, health and biometric data.  The Location Shield Act, one of our priority bills at Day on the Hill, has been folded into this bill.

Call or email your Senator TODAY and ask for support of this bill and the amendments listed in the email template below. Find your Senator’s contact information HERE.

This is an important bill. As we live more of our lives online, preventing the sale and misuse of our most sensitive personal data has become an increasingly critical consumer protection and civil liberties issue. And in light of unprecedented political extremism and violence, targeted acts of hate, federal assaults on vulnerable groups, and attempts to quell dissent, it has become clear that shoring up our digital privacy is a significant public safety concern.

The proposed bill is a strong one. Our partners in the ACLU and other organizations are suggesting some amendments to make it even stronger. Ask your Senator to support both the amendments below and the final bill.  

Here's a template for your phone call or email:

Dear Senator ________:

I urge you to support S.2608, An Act establishing the Massachusetts Data Privacy Act, when it comes up for a vote Thursday, and to support the amendments listed below as well. As a member of the League of Women Voters of ___________, I strongly endorse these safeguards to protect our personal data and thank the Senate for bringing this bill to a vote.

Please vote YES on these amendments to S.2608: 

#52 (Rausch) – Closing Loophole to Prevent All Sales of Sensitive Data

• No one should be able to sell the most intimate details about our lives. Even if certain industries are regulated in a general way under federal law, none of those regulations ban the sale of our sensitive data. Amend the bill to limit the collection and processing of all personal information to what is reasonably necessary to provide the services requested. Ban the sale of our data.

#25 (Friedman) and #4 (Creem) – Preventing Location Tracking for People Traveling to Massachusetts

• These amendments are important to protect those seeking reproductive or gender-affirming health care in Massachusetts who live in states that restrict access to those forms of health care.  It’s critical for this new law to protect the privacy of people’s location data collected in our state, whether they are residents of the state or not.

#55 and #56 (Rausch) – Strong Enforcement

• #55 Private Right of Action – allow people to seek redress in court when their rights are violated. A law without a strong enforcement mechanism is just a recommendation.
• #56 Enforcing Sensitive Data Sale Prohibition – a private right of action just for the most egregious violations of the law, when companies illegally sell people’s sensitive data. 
• Attorney General Andrea Campbell strongly supports a private right of action because her office alone will never have sufficient resources to fully enforce the law.

In addition, I ask that you REJECT all industry-driven amendments that would weaken the bill by narrowing its scope, changing definitions or standards for companies to follow, or otherwise reducing or eliminating the bill’s protections.

Please vote YES on the strongest version of S.2608 and bring a robust consumer privacy law to Massachusetts.

Thank you.

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