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Attorneys General Prep For Privacy Fight
by Liza Porteus
The federal government is running out of time to enact comprehensive online privacy legislation before states take separate action. But state law enforcers are taking issue with a federal proposal to preempt any state laws on the topic.
In an interview with National Journal's Technology Daily, Washington Attorney General Christine Gregoire said attorneys general gave the business community and Congress one year to craft effective privacy legislation. That deadline comes in January.
"I think you may find a number of attorneys general who are going to introduce legislation in their states" if Congress does not pass an effective bill by then, said Gregoire, who co-chairs the National Association of Attorneys General's Internet Committee with California Attorney General Bill Lockyer.
But effective legislation does not mean preemption of state laws and the rescinding of state law enforcers' ability to prosecute privacy violations, Gregoire said. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman W.J. (Billy) Tauzin, R-La., and Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., proposed just such a step last week when they outlined privacy legislation they plan to introduce next year.
"I think you're going to find the AGs are unanimous. ... We will not accept preemption of our enforcement authority with regard to privacy laws," Gregoire said. Whether Tauzin and Stearns will try to preempt that authority "seems to be an open question," she added, but "we will unite in opposition to any preemption of our enforcement authority."
Attorneys general agree with the FTC's privacy principles, but Gregoire stressed that the agency alone cannot combat all of the privacy-related offenses. It needs the states' help. "I think it's undeniably an effective and very good partnership," she said. "But the FTC simply does not have the enforcement power to do it on the ground level. ... We see it on the ground every day."
Gregoire and other attorneys general have cited the issue of identity theft as a prime example of the federal government's failure to issue effective policy and states picking up the slack. At Gregoire's request, Washington passed what is considered the toughest identity-theft law in the nation this legislative session.
Homeland Defense Goes Local
The National League of Cities (NLC) is working to coordinate homeland defense between the federal government and localities.
In a letter to Tom Ridge, head of the new White House Office of Homeland Security, NLC President and Detroit Mayor Dennis Archer offered cities' support in various initiatives. NLC has argued that Ridge's office needs more resources and specific budget authority.
Archer outlined the NLC's support for efforts to: provide more airwaves to eliminate barriers to emergency communication after disasters; increase security for critical infrastructure systems; and improve procedures for sharing sensitive intelligence with local governments. Archer's letter also called on Ridge to help make emergency communications systems interoperable.
In related news, National Association of Counties (NACo) President Javier Gonzales has announced the appointment of a NACo Task Force on Homeland Security to provide a direct link between counties and federal agencies -- especially with Ridge's office. Gonzales will chair the task force, which will first meet in Washington on Oct. 26 and focus on interacting Ridge's office, the Justice and Transportation departments and other federal agencies.
South Dakota Joins Intelligence Network
South Dakota soon will have a new tool for gathering and distributing criminal intelligence. In the next month, the Division of Criminal Investigation will be connected to a nationwide network for law enforcement and will share its intelligence databases online with qualified agencies.
Currently, the system has more than 5,600 member agencies throughout the country. It is coordinated through the Regional Information-Sharing Systems (RISS), or RISS.net. The RISS program consists of six regional intelligence centers; they operate in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. territories, Canada, Australia and England.
South Dakota is a member of the Mid-States Organized Crime Information Center.
Calif. Governor Signs Voting-Reform Bill
California Gov. Gray Davis has signed a bill that places a voting-reform initiative on the March 2002 ballot. If approved by California voters, the bond initiative would provide $200 million to help California counties upgrade their voting systems.
The bill, A.B. 56, says that all voting systems must produce a paper version of ballots. "This represents a major shift in computerized voting policy," according to the California Voter Foundation.
In other California news, Davis also signed a measure, S.B. 24, that requires state candidates and committees touting ballot measures to disclose all contributions of $5,000 or more online within 10 business days. Candidates last week disclosed new financial reports that include contributions through Sept 30, and those reports are now online at the secretary of state's site.
E911 Coming To A City Near You
Enhanced 911 (E911) services that allow officials to track the location of cell-phone calls will be deployed next week in Chicago and St. Louis, as federal and state lawmakers continue to press wireless carriers to hurry the deployment of such services after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Grayson Wireless has designed a network-based call-location technology called Geometrix to meet the FCC's current E911 requirements. The firm has installed Geometrix systems so Verizon Wireless can provide services in certain areas of Chicago and St. Louis beginning Oct. 22.
The FCC recently modified its original timetable for the nation's five largest wireless carriers to adopt call-location technology in their cellular equipment.
Nebraska Gets Grant For Health Network
Nebraska Gov. Mike Johanns announced last week that Nebraska will receive a grant to help the state's public health professionals communicate with other medical and healthcare professionals. The Nebraska Health and Human Services System will get $120,000 annually from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to establish the Health Alert Network.
Funding will be used to design a telecommunications system that equips public health staff with the tools they need to obtain information and skills. A coordinator will be hired to develop a plan to connect all public health areas to the Internet.
Meanwhile, Nebraska enacted the following tech-related measures this year:
- L.B. 585, which establishes a surcharge on wireless subscribers to fund E911 services.
- L.B. 172, which authorizes the state to enter the multi-state negotiations for simplifying sales-tax systems in the hopes of someday taxing online sales.
- L.B. 833, which provides funding for schools that wish to be connected to a statewide public computer network.
- L.B. 827, which permits government entities to sell or lease "dark" fiber-optic cable capacity that do not carry a signal. Proceeds will be deposited in a newly created Nebraska Internet Enhancement Fund, which will provide financial assistance for installing and delivering high-speed Internet connections or other advanced telecom services.
- L.B. 389, which allows the state Public Service Commission to regulate telecom service providers that receive money from the Nebraska Universal Service Fund.
- L.B. 67, which creates a task force to study Nebraska's election process.
- L.B. 429, which reimburses grocery stores if they participate in an electronic benefit system.
- L.B. 225, which establishes a statewide system for facilitating venture-capital investments between investors and entrepreneurs.
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