Washington – Congress gave final approval on legislation that will give European citizens additional privacy protections after the House and Senate reconciled the Judicial Redress Act Wednesday evening. The measure updates the Privacy Act to give citizens of some allied countries the right to review and correct inaccurate information about them held by federal agencies, and seek judicial recourse in the alternative. The bill now heads to the President to be signed.
This final passage of the Judicial Redress Act clears the way for the final adoption of an agreement facilitating law enforcement-related data transfers between Europe and the U.S., an accord that has been pending in the E.U. called the Data Privacy and Protection Agreement. The rights the Act affords to covered foreign citizens are already available to U.S. citizens in most EU Member States.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association has been urging passage of the Judicial Redress Act through letters, editorials, and congressional advocacy for more than a year. The following can be attributed to CCIA privacy counsel Bijan Madhani:
“Passage of this bill is a sign to our allies that the U.S. is committed to providing reciprocal rights for their citizens. We hope this becomes a turning point in rebuilding trust post-Snowden.”
“Now that Congress has finalized this bill, the EU can now move forward with finalizing the transatlantic Data Privacy and Protection Agreement, which will improve law enforcement-related data transfers between the EU and U.S. This is a welcome step for privacy and security on both sides of the Atlantic.”