Veteran DATA Act
House Bill Would Ban VA Contractors from Selling Veterans' Private Data
Legislative Progress
Key Points
- This bill stops the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) from making deals with companies that want to sell veterans' private information. It ensures that any company working for the VA cannot treat a veteran's personal data like a product to be sold for profit.
- The rule covers a wide range of sensitive data, including health records and personal details like names or addresses. Even if a company tries to "anonymize" the data by removing names to hide who it belongs to, they are still banned from selling or monetizing it.
- If this becomes law, the VA would have one year to update all its current and future contracts to include these strict privacy rules. This means even companies already working with the VA would have to follow the new ban or change their business practices.
- The VA would also have to create a new guide for its employees to help them spot when a company might be misusing or selling veteran data. This adds a layer of oversight to make sure contractors are actually following the rules.
- The bill requires the VA to report back to Congress within one year to prove they have updated their contracts and created the necessary training for staff to protect veteran privacy.
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
Life & Work
VA employees would receive new guidance and training on how to identify when contractors are monetizing, selling, or misusing veteran data. This adds new oversight responsibilities to their existing duties, though it also gives them clearer tools and authority to enforce data protection rules in contractor relationships.
Programs
Broader Impacts
Milestones
Referred to the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
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Reps. Nikki Budzinski and Tom Barrett introduced the Veteran Data Accountability for Third-party Actors (DATA) Act to prevent third-party entities from monetizing sensitive veteran data. The bill requires VA contracts to be updated with anti-monetization clauses and mandates guidance on misuse.
Bipartisan bill aims to protect veterans’ data from being sold
Sens. Sherrod Brown and Mike Braun introduced the Veteran DATA Act, which would prohibit the Department of Veterans Affairs from entering into contracts with companies that sell veterans’ data to third parties, ensuring sensitive information is not treated as a product for profit.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Veteran DATA Act
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
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