N.M. Data Protection Bill Slammed by Consumer Advocates
Nine people testified in opposition to New Mexico’s proposed Consumer Information and Data Protection Act during a bill hearing Wednesday, arguing that the comprehensive privacy bill doesn't protect minority groups and provides exemptions for large corporations. Despite two business groups testifying in favor of the bill, House Commerce Committee Chair Doreen Gallegos (D) delayed a vote until a later date.
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HB-410 would provide processes for collecting and protecting data as well as give the attorney general investigative authority. It affords consumers the right to opt out but lacks a private right of action (see 2502130006). Lena Weber, policy director at ACLU-New Mexico, opposed the bill because opt-outs are too burdensome and time-consuming to be effective, she said.
“We have to be really clear-eyed about the seriousness of the threats to New Mexico and New Mexicans' personal information being used against us in this moment when we are quite literally surrounded by hostile out-of-state governments, anti-abortion, anti-LGBTQ and anti-immigration vigilantes and militia groups who are already purchasing our data from data brokers and tech billionaires, who will always prioritize their profit over safety,” said Weber.
Marshall Martinez, executive director of Equality New Mexico, also touched on how the bill will disproportionally impact certain groups of people. “Queer and trans people have been left begging governments to defend or protect us for decades, and even currently are begging for that protection by this attorney general with no response or action,” he said. “Please do not put us in this position when it comes to the very real harm from the misuse of data against us.”
Others testified in opposition because they claim HB-410 contains too many loopholes. “Not only does this bill exempt some of the biggest actors from regulation, it also allows for widespread sale and purchase of sensitive data,” said Rachel Arrey of Bold Futures. “This exposes marginalized groups to tracking and surveillance by data brokers and hostile entities risking our safety and privacy at a time when so many of our communities are being targeted for violence and discrimination.”
Isaiah Torres, the statewide policy manager at the Center for Civic Policy, opposed the measure “because it exempts many of the large entities that collect and sell vast amounts of personal data,” he said. “These exemptions weaken the bill's intended protections and overlook the reality that these entities are often the primary data collectors.”
Arturo Castillo, director of equity and culture at Conservation Voters New Mexico, said similar bills haven’t worked, so this one needs significant changes. “House Bill 410 appears to be modeled off of legislation passed in other states that, unfortunately, hasn't succeeded in changing business as usual,” he said. “New Mexico deserves something different, because we have seen how disinformation and misinformation take hold in our local communities, creating polarization and division.”
Others testified against the bill because they said it places an unfair burden and cost on small businesses and for its redundancies. Those who testified in favor of the bill -- J.D. Bullington, on behalf of the Greater Alburquerque Chamber of Commerce and Jason Weaks, a registered lobbyist for the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce -- said they did so because it gives strong data protections without disrupting existing business models.
“In listening to the testimony today, I think that there's still some area to be worked on,” Gallegos concluded. “I'm hoping that you all can somehow figure out one bill … I think you heard where some of the [cleanup] needed to happen, on what section, and I'm looking at being able to reschedule for Monday.”