[ad_1] President Trump is expected to sign the bill — the first major anti-robocall legislation to pass in decades. Though, even after it’s signed, it will take months to implement the changes. Still, supporters say this is a big step towards reducing robocalls. Earlier this year the Federal Trade Commission said it was cracking down […]
Category: legislation
Congress is raising the minimum smoking and vaping age to 21
[ad_1] President Trump said last month that the administration planned to raise the minimum vaping age to “21 or so,” so this isn’t entirely unexpected. While the current legal smoking at is 18, it is already higher in almost half of all states, BuzzFeed notes. The change comes as teen vaping rates continue to increase. […]
Russia bans the sale of devices without Russian software
[ad_1] The bill was created by a “pan-partisan group of legislators,” according to Meduza. The aim is ostensibly to give consumers more choice, according to co-author Oleg Nikolayev. “When we buy complex electronic devices, they already have individual applications, mostly Western ones, pre-installed on them,” he said. “Naturally… they might think that there are no […]
Senate bill would block US companies from storing data in China
[ad_1] The changes could impact companies like Apple and TikTok. Per Chinese law, Apple began storing Chinese users’ iCloud accounts in a Chinese data center last year. Apple says it still controls encryption keys, but Hawley sees this as a national security threat. And like other senators, Hawley fears TikTok’s owner ByteDance could be pressured […]
Senator Wyden pushes his ‘Mind Your Own Business’ privacy act forward
[ad_1] As The Verge reports, the bill would allow the FTC to set minimum privacy and cybersecurity standards for tech companies, issue fines up to four percent of a company’s annual revenue and make it a crime for senior execs to lie to the agency regarding privacy issues. It would empower state attorneys general to […]
A House bill could cap the concentration of nicotine in e-cigs
[ad_1] The European Union enforces a similar cap, but the US does not currently have a national standard. According to CNN, Juul’s five-percent pods have 59 mg/ml. Juul has said that’s equivalent to the nicotine-per-puff ratio in a pack of cigarettes. Some say the high-nicotine content in vape products is one reason the rate of […]
Congress plans to investigate how social media giants are fighting hate
[ad_1] The bill would create a “national commission” at the Department of Homeland Security. The commission would have the authority to hold hearings and issue subpoenas. It would also create a social media task force to coordinate the government’s response to security issues. The legislation could be introduced as soon as next week, The Washington […]
California governor signs labor law meant to fix the gig economy
[ad_1] The law will take effect January 1st, 2020. As with many forms of legislation, the reality is more complicated. Numerous companies have pushed for exemptions to AB 5, and there are concerns this may hurt flexibility for some workers. They may have to work a minimum number of hours at regular times instead of […]
New York state bans sales of flavored e-cigarettes
[ad_1] The state is simultaneously stepping up enforcement against retailers who sell to underage buyers, including undercover investigations that will have underage volunteers trying to buy e-cigs. He’s also moving forward legislation that aims to ban “deceptive marketing” of e-cigs to teens and kids. The moves come on top of previous crackdowns, including the passing […]
51 companies tell Congress it’s time to tackle data privacy
[ad_1] Accordingly, the companies have published a framework for what they’d like to see. They want “robust” protections for data that foster accountability, a “technology neutral” approach that spurs innovation, worldwide interoperability and, of course, a harmonized rule set. The company list includes some notable omissions, although that doesn’t necessarily reflect a lack of interest. […]