Neilson introduces legislation to protect consumer’s online data

Pennsylvania House Democratic Caucus    January 9, 2025

HARRISBURG, Jan. 9 – Today, state Rep. Ed Neilson introduced legislation (H.B. 78) along with state Rep. Stephenie Scialabba to establish a Consumer Data Privacy Act, which would ensure that consumers are able to make informed decisions about how their data is being used online or sold to a third party.

“Unlike other states, Pennsylvania has no safeguard to protect our constituents’ privacy,” Neilson said. “Pennsylvanians should be able to interact online without worrying how their information is used; they deserve the option to protect themselves from targeted advertising and other nefarious ways their information can be used.”

Neilson added that it’s unfair to consumers who expect their private information to be safely stored with one business, but they are incentivized to sell it to third parties for targeted advertising purposes.

“Many other states have protections for consumer data, but we are falling behind in Pennsylvania,” Neilson continued. “I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to establish important privacy laws.”

House Bill 78 is based on similar legislation from last session (formerly H.B.1201), which received bipartisan support in the House but failed to receive a vote in the Senate before the end of the year.