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Select committee previews sweeping 'personal data as property' draft; supporters call it transformative
Summary
Chair and LSO introduced a beta draft treating personal data as resident‑owned intangible property with four tiers of rights; supporters (including Own Your Data Foundation) said it could be a world‑leading model, while lawmakers cautioned the bill will require detailed scenario testing and stakeholder work before drafting into a formal bill.
The chair introduced a beta draft that would treat personal data generated by Wyoming residents as an intangible personal property right — a concept the chair described as an attempt to "use property law concepts" (bailment, trespass, conversion) to govern privacy and commercialization. The draft proposes four tiers: Tier 1 (inalienable, e.g., genetic, neural data, children under 13), Tier 2 (opt‑in required for sensitive categories like biometrics and precise geolocation), Tier 3 (health, religious and similar), and Tier 4 (other personal data with a time‑limited license of up to 24 months).
Britney Kaiser, president of the Own Your Data Foundation and CEO of Alpha Compute, congratulated the committee and called for explicit monetization rights so individuals can license and be paid for use of their data. "If companies are able to incentivize individuals that their data can be safely and consensually licensed, people are going to be spending more time on platforms and creating more data," she said, arguing monetization rights would strengthen competition and consent.
Industry, farm groups and privacy advocates voiced support for the concept but urged detailed drafting: Rocky Mountain Farmers Union asked the committee to consider agricultural data; the Trona industry and mining representatives warned that legacy industries already face electricity constraints and asked for complementary infrastructure solutions. Committee members described the draft as a "heavy lift" that could be groundbreaking but said LSO should prepare a formal bill and stakeholders for the next meeting.
The committee took no vote but scheduled further drafting and stakeholder outreach ahead of the September session.
