Data privacy bill markup canceled after House leadership opposition

A House Energy and Commerce Committee markup of 11 bills, including a data privacy bill that was opposed by the House Republican leaders, was canceled Thursday morning shortly before it was scheduled to begin.

The American Privacy Rights Act, which would establish federal comprehensive data privacy rules, was opposed by House leaders despite a push by Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) to move quickly on the bipartisan legislation.

“For every parent, for individual liberty, and for the future of this country, we will continue our pursuit to give Americans privacy rights online,” McMorris Rodgers said in a statement.

McMorris Rodgers spearheaded the bicameral effort alongside Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), but the House Republican faced opposition from within her party.

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) told The Hill on Wednesday that “for months” there have been “a lot of concerns expressed about different parts of the bill.”

Scalise pointed to the private right of action the bill would establish, a major priority for Democrats that would allow consumers to seek financial damages through court.

Republicans had pushed for the bill to include preemption of state laws, which was included in the legislation pulled from Thursday’s markup.

In a Thursday statement, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said he was “committed to working to build consensus in the House on a data privacy bill.”

Rep. Frank Pallone (D-N.J.), ranking member on the House Commerce Committee, called the backlash from GOP leaders “outrageous.”

“It’s outrageous that Republican Leadership would interfere with the Committee’s bipartisan regular order process. I commend Chair Rodgers for her dedication to giving Americans back control of their data,” Pallone said in a statement.

“This is a dire problem that Congress needs to solve. It is too important to the American people to not get this done,” he continued. “We’re not giving up.”

The bill was a long-awaited proposal for privacy advocates, who say they are concerned about the lack of federal privacy rules.

While some states have passed their own data privacy laws, the U.S. government has fallen behind other countries in setting rules in place in an increasingly digital world.

The committee was slated to consider 10 other bills on Thursday morning, including the Kids Online Safety Act. The bill, which would create stricter child safety regulations for tech companies, has more than 60 co-sponsors in the Senate. Advocates have pushed Congress for years to take action on the issue.

A spokesperson for McMorris Rodgers declined to comment as to why the full markup was canceled for all of the bills. The chair only released a statement regarding the American Privacy Rights Act after the markup was canceled.

Updated at 10:46 a.m. EDT.