A slew of comprehensive privacy law bills from 2025 are expected to return in the new year. While no new states joined about 20 others with broad consumer privacy laws this year, 16 additional states had bills that either will carry over to 2026 or could be reintroduced.
Efforts continue to pass a New Mexico comprehensive privacy bill that includes a private right of action, but logistical issues in the legislature could prevent the measure from getting a hearing in 2026, supporters said.
Florida Senate Commerce Chair Tom Leek (R) prefiled a proposed AI Bill of Rights after Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) called for one earlier this month (see 2512040046). Prefiling readies the bill for the Florida legislative session opening Jan. 23.
The House Commerce Committee plans to take “action” on comprehensive privacy legislation after considering kid bills this spring, a committee staffer said in a statement Friday.
A federal court permanently blocked a Louisiana law that would require age verification before a user could access social media platforms Monday, ruling that it violated the First Amendment. The decision Monday was a win for NetChoice, which sued the state over the statute in March claiming free speech violations and privacy risks (see 2503180048).
Consumer advocates released a model bill on AI chatbots Tuesday that aims to address growing privacy concerns around the technology. Consumer Federation of America, Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) and Fairplay have already shared the "People-First Chatbot Bill" with lawmakers in several states and plan to talk to more legislators soon, EPIC counsel Kara Williams told Privacy Daily.
New York senators delivered a controversial New York health data privacy bill to Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) on Monday, nearly a year after it quickly passed the legislature back in January (see 2501280023). Transmission of S-929 gives Hochul 10 days to decide its fate, a spokesperson for the governor's office said Tuesday. “The Governor will review the legislation."
State privacy trends this year include increased transparency requirements, enhanced protections for children and tinkering with existing privacy laws to clarify obligations and close loopholes, the Computer & Communications Industry Association said Thursday. CCIA released a report and updated maps on state privacy legislation in 2025.
Vermont Rep. Monique Priestley (D) will push again for comprehensive privacy legislation -- and probably one of two data broker bills -- when the legislature returns Jan. 8, she said in an interview last week with Privacy Daily. A series of town halls yielded much public excitement for privacy protections and potential new support from small businesses next year, said Priestley, who also will be running for state senator in 2026 (see 2510290024).
Aiming to stop a surge of litigation under New Jersey’s Daniel’s Law, state Sen. Gordon Johnson (D) introduced a bill this week to amend the legislation to protect the privacy of judges and other public servants. Atlas Privacy, which has sued many times as an assignee under Daniel’s Law, condemned the proposal Friday. However, a privacy lawyer who defends businesses welcomed the bill.