California lawmakers are looking at several technology-related bills this session, including new data protection standards, the right to human assistance in a chatbot world, and restrictions on automated decision systems in state government.
Here are a few of the proposals that caught our eye.
Senate Bill 1248 — Regulation of Automated Decision Systems in State Government
Efforts to shield “natural humans” from the potential harms caused by automated decision systems (ADS) are continuing this legislative session, and especially in Senate Bill 1248. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Christopher Cabaldon, D-District 3, would put new restrictions on ADS technology used by state agencies in areas like professional licensing, occupational credentialing, and public benefits determinations.
“The benefits of speed and efficiency must not come at the expense of due process, equal protection, or the fundamental principle that government remains accountable to the people it serves,” the bill reads.
The bill also notes that agencies would be required to verify the accuracy of system outputs and would not be allowed to rely solely on adverse service determinations affecting residents. In addition, the Government Operations Agency (GovOps) would be authorized to "develop, adopt, and make publicly available guidance for a state agency’s use of automated decision systems.”
The bill notes that the California Department of Technology (CDT) has already been tasked with conducting “a comprehensive inventory of all high-risk automated decision systems,” including their use, development and procurement.
The Committee on Privacy, Digital Technologies, and Consumer Protection unanimously passed the bill March 24.
Assembly Bill 1542 — New Rules on Sensitive Personal Information Sharing
Assembly Bill 1542 would expand on the state’s California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) with new prohibitions for businesses that sell or share consumer information.
Under the proposal, introduced by Assembly Member Christopher Ward, D-District 78, businesses, service providers and contractors would be prohibited from selling or sharing sensitive personal information with third parties.
In addition to these restrictions, consumers would also have the right to limit the use of their sensitive personal information to those strictly related to the service or good they are being provided. Businesses would be required under this proposal to disclose how data would be shared.
Under the CCPA, sensitive personal information is defined as Social Security numbers, driver’s license and identification information, geolocation data, genetic and neural data, among several others.
The bill has been scheduled for a hearing April 16 before the Assembly Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection.
Assembly Bill 1609 — Customer Service Chatbots
This bill attempts to tackle the issue of businesses misrepresenting chatbots as humans during interactions with customers.
This proposal, authored by Assembly Member Chavez Zbur, D-District 51, would prohibit operators of customer service chatbots from misleading customers while also requiring disclosures of the use of the technology if it could reasonably be mistaken for a human.
In addition, the bill would require that “operators of large online businesses” provide human assistance within five minutes of a customer request being provided to a chatbot system and would require companies to establish a complaint process. Violation of this proposal could result in fines of up to $10,000.
The bill was most recently rereferred to the Assembly Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection, and a hearing is set for April 7.
Lawmakers Weigh ADS, Data Privacy and Chatbot Bills
On the heels of a record year of technology legislation, state lawmakers are back at it with bills that tackle automated decision systems, chatbots and new personal data sales.
