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Committee approves data-privacy updates aimed at narrowing law-enforcement access to state data
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Summary
House Bill 711, amended in committee, tightens the Maryland Data Privacy Act and related driver-privacy provisions to close gaps cited by agencies and restrict sharing with federal immigration enforcement absent a warrant; sponsors said agencies had work underway accounting for a $4.3 million procurement.
Committee member (speaker 3) outlined House Bill 711 as building on the Maryland Data Privacy Act and the 2021 driver-privacy law to close identified gaps, including data-broker sales of phone location and cross-agency sharing that could expose residents to federal immigration enforcement.
"We've been working with DPSCS and MVA to make sure that we have those gaps filled," Committee member (speaker 3) said, adding the amendments tighten definitions and the knowingly standard for controllers who share data and add a six-month look-back for agencies that have been involved in immigration enforcement.
Members raised the $4.3 million fiscal note; Committee member (speaker 3) said the procurement had already been initiated by the governor's office and agencies and that the bill itself did not create a new procurement beyond what agencies were already undertaking. The member agreed to share agency correspondence and the updated fiscal information with the committee.
The committee moved the bill favorable as amended and voted to pass. Members asked for the amendment language and supporting agency clarifications to be distributed to the committee.
