Washington, D.C. –U.S. Congressman John D. Dingell (D-MI15) issued the following statement today at the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade hearing titled, “The Threat of Data Theft to American Consumers”:

“Thank you, Madam Chairman, for calling today’s very topical hearing.  Recent highly publicized data security breaches and the lack of unified federal data security requirements highlight the ongoing need for consumer protection legislation in this area.  Today’s hearing is an opportunity to explore how such legislation should be structured and function, as well as the burdens – both in terms of compliance and enforcement – it will impose. 

“Given the continually evolving technical complexities of ensuring data security, I suggest we strive to incorporate a reasonable degree of regulatory flexibility in statutory data security requirements.  Moreover, such requirements should be holistic in nature, meaning they cast as wide a net possible over the various means by which personal information is collected.  Further, any data security legislation must provide federal agencies sufficient resources for the purposes of enforcement, while simultaneously recognizing that data security is a matter of not only domestic, but increasingly international, concern and must be protected via transnational collaboration.

“This Committee approved and the House passed data security legislation in 2009.  That bill, the Data Accountability and Trust Act, provides a thoughtful and bipartisan framework from which we can proceed.  I look forward to being an active participant in the Committee’s deliberations on this matter.  Thank you for your courtesy, Madam Chairman.  I yield back the balance of my time.”

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