The New York Times – The United States is virtually the only developed nation without a comprehensive consumer data protection law and an independent agency to enforce it – “Why are Americans protected from hazardous laptops, fitness trackers and smartphones — but not when hazardous apps on our devices expose and exploit our personal information?… Continue Reading
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Category Archives: Legislation
The Law of Immigration Detention – A Brief Introduction
The Law of Immigration Detention: A Brief Introduction, October 24, 2019. “The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) authorizes— and in some cases requires—the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to detain non-U.S. nationals (aliens) who are subject to removal from the United States. This detention scheme is multifaceted, with rules that turn on several factors, such… Continue Reading
‘Ignorance is not an excuse’: California draft rules on data privacy released
San Francisco Chronicle: “California Attorney General Xavier Becerra released a series of draft regulations Thursday aimed at getting businesses to comply with the state’s landmark data privacy law, scheduled to take effect Jan. 1. Under the California Consumer Privacy Act, signed into law in June 2018, businesses must disclose to consumers the various kinds of… Continue Reading
The Endangered Species Act and Climate Change: Selected Legal Issues
EveryCRSReport – The Endangered Species Act and Climate Change: Selected Legal Issues . September 20, 2019 R45926:”For more than a decade, federal agencies have grappled with how to address climate change effects when implementing the Endangered Species Act of 1973 (ESA). The ESA aims to protect threatened and endangered fish, wildlife, and plants from extinction.… Continue Reading
New Cybersecurity and Privacy Law in NY Affects Employers in NY and Beyond
JDSupra – Pillsbury – “The SHIELD Act will impose substantial new obligations on any employer with an employee residing in New York State, as well as on many employers across the country that conduct online hiring. TAKEAWAYS Regardless of their location or size, employers that receive, collect or otherwise possess private information about New York… Continue Reading
U.K.-U.S. CLOUD Act Agreement Is Finally Here, Containing New Safeguards
Lawfare: “On Oct. 7, the United Kingdom and the United States released the text of the long-awaited data-sharing agreement—the first of the executive agreements envisioned by the CLOUD Act, enacted in May 2018 in order to better facilitate cross-border access to data in the investigation of serious crime. At the time of enactment, there was… Continue Reading
The Rich Really Do Pay Lower Taxes Than You
The New York Times – “Almost a decade ago, Warren Buffett made a claim that would become famous. He said that he paid a lower tax rate than his secretary, thanks to the many loopholes and deductions that benefit the wealthy. His claim sparked a debate about the fairness of the tax system. In the… Continue Reading
The future of privacy starts in California
Axios – “A landmark privacy law in California, which kicks in Jan. 1, will give Golden State residents the right to find out what a company knows about them and get it deleted — and to stop the company from selling it. Why it matters: It could effectively become a national privacy law, since companies… Continue Reading
Exposing Animal Abusers: Update on the Animal Welfare Blackout
Animal Legal Defense Fund: “In early 2017, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) purged tens of thousands of important documents related to animal welfare from the agency’s website. The purged inspection reports documented violations of the federal Animal Welfare Act (AWA) and inhumane treatment of animals in research labs, zoos, circuses, and puppy mills, as… Continue Reading
The Language of Congress – What topics do members of Congress tweet about most frequently?
The Pudding – “We fed thousands of Congressional tweets to a machine learning algorithm in order to recognize political issues. We’ll keep doing this every day of the 116th congress, from January 3 2019 through January 3, 2021. These are the topics that dominate members of Congress’ public discourse—the issues they discuss (and don’t discuss).… Continue Reading
Secret F.B.I. Subpoenas Scoop Up Personal Data From Scores of Companies
The New York Times – “The F.B.I. has used secret subpoenas to obtain personal data from far more companies than previously disclosed, newly released documents show. The requests, which the F.B.I. says are critical to its counterterrorism efforts, have raised privacy concerns for years but have been associated mainly with tech companies. Now, records show… Continue Reading
Deepfakes Deserve Policymakers’ Attention, and Better Solutions
Center for Data Innovation: “Deepfakes—realistic-looking images and videos altered by AI to portray someone doing or saying something that never actually happened—have been around since the end of 2017, yet in recent months have become a major focus of policymakers. Though image and video manipulation have posed challenges for decades, the threat of deepfakes is… Continue Reading
