Texas Data Broker Law Changes Take Effect Sept. 1
More companies could soon be covered by a Texas data broker law because of two Texas amendments to the statute that take effect on Monday.
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The changes to the Texas Data Broker Act bring the state more in line with California’s data broker law, which is leading companies to consider multistate compliance approaches, privacy attorneys told us (see 2508050057).
One big change to the Texas law (SB 2121) changes its application to data brokers who collect more than 50% of their revenue from processing or transferring data not collected directly from the consumer, or when the company earns revenue from processing or transferring personal data of more than 50,000 individuals if the data is collected indirectly from the consumer. Previously, the law applied to businesses with a "principal source of revenue” derived from collecting, processing or transferring personal data that wasn’t collected directly from consumers.
“The law continues to maintain certain entity- and data-level exemptions, which entities should review when determining its applicability,” Troutman privacy attorney David Stauss blogged on Aug. 20. “However, entities -- especially those registered as data brokers in other states who previously concluded that the Texas law did not apply to their operations -- should carefully examine these changes in the law’s scope.”
The other change to the Texas data broker law, through SB-1343, requires data brokers registering in Texas to include a link to their website instructing consumers about exercising data privacy rights under the state’s comprehensive privacy law. “These changes present an opportunity for registered data brokers to review their disclosures for compliance with Texas law,” said Stauss.