A hearing to consider a bipartisan tech privacy bill was abruptly canceled at the last minute by House Energy and Commerce Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), who planned to advance the legislation despite opposition from House GOP leadership.
The sudden scheduling change, which occurred minutes before lawmakers on the panel were set to convene, came as some Republicans expressed reservations over the breadth of the bill, as well as concerns that some of its provisions could have unintended consequences for smaller companies and law enforcement.
Just before canceling a markup hearing to debate and possibly advance the bill to the floor, McMorris Rodgers vowed to continue pushing for her measure, the American Privacy Rights Act.
“For every parent, for individual liberty, and for the future of this country, we will continue our pursuit to give Americans privacy rights online,” she said in a statement. “The American people are asking Congress to step up and pass a privacy bill. It is foundational to our future and the next generation.”
The measure, which McMorris Rodgers has spent months crafting, would limit how private companies collect people’s online data.
The bill has bipartisan and bicameral backing, with several Democrats helping to draft the proposal, including the committee’s top Democrat, Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ), Rep. Janice Schakowsky (D-IL), and Senate Commerce Committee Chairwoman Maria Cantwell (D-WA).
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Pallone angrily denounced the markup’s cancellation, calling it “outrageous that Republican Leadership would interfere with the committee’s bipartisan regular order process.”
“I’m committed to continuing to work with Chair Rodgers — we’re not giving up,” he said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) released a statement emphasizing he is “committed to working to build consensus in the House on a data privacy bill.”
