I
106TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 3560
To require the Federal Trade Commission to prescribe regulations to protect
the privacy of personal information collected from and about individuals
who are not covered by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act
of 1998 on the Internet, to provide greater individual control over the
collection and use of that information, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JANUARY 31, 2000
Mr. FRELINGHUYSEN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Commerce
A BILL
To require the Federal Trade Commission to prescribe regu-
lations to protect the privacy of personal information
collected from and about individuals who are not covered
by the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998
on the Internet, to provide greater individual control
over the collection and use of that information, and
for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Online Privacy Protec-
tion Act of 2000’’.
SEC. 2. REGULATION OF UNFAIR AND DECEPTIVE ACTS
AND PRACTICES IN CONNECTION WITH THE
COLLECTION, USE AND DISCLOSURE OF PER-
SONAL INFORMATION.
(a) ACTS PROHIBITED.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—It is unlawful for an oper-
ator of a Web site or online service to collect, use
or disclose personal information in a manner that
violates the regulations prescribed under subsection
(b).
(2) DISCLOSURE.—Notwithstanding paragraph
(1), neither an operator of a Web site or online serv-
ice nor the operator’s agent shall be held to be liable
under this Act for any disclosure made in good faith
and following reasonable procedures in responding to
a request under subsection (b)(1)(B) by an indi-
vidual for disclosure of personal information per-
taining to such individual.
(b) REGULATIONS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis-
sion shall promulgate under section 553 of title 5,
United States Code, regulations that—
(A) require the operator of any Web site or
online service—
(i) to provide notice on its Web site,
in a clear and conspicuous manner, of the
identity of the operator, what personal in-
formation is collected by the operator, how
the operator uses such information, and
what information may be shared with other
companies; and
(ii) to provide a meaningful and sim-
ple online process for individuals to con-
sent to or limit the disclosure of personal
information for purposes unrelated to
those for which such information was ob-
tained or described in the notice under
clause (i);
(B) require the operator to provide, upon
request of an individual under this subpara-
graph who has provided personal information to
that Web site or online service, upon proper
identification—
(i) a description of the specific types
of personal information collected by that
operator that was sold or transferred to an
external company; and
(ii) notwithstanding any other provi-
sion of law, a means that is reasonable
under the circumstances for the individual
to obtain the personal information de-
scribed in paragraph (i) from such indi-
vidual; and
(C) require the operator of such Web site
or online service to establish and maintain rea-
sonable procedures to protect the confiden-
tiality, security, and integrity of personal infor-
mation it collects or maintains.
(2) WHEN
PURPOSE
LIMITATION
NOT
RE-
QUIRED.—The regulations shall provide that the
purpose 
limitation 
required 
under 
paragraph
(1)(A)(ii) is not required for—
(A) transactional information where identi-
fiable information is not removed;
(B) personal information where it is used
to render or conduct a legitimate business activ-
ity related to the business of the operator (for
example, the use of an e-mail address to re-
spond to an e-mail communication); or
(C) the collection, use, or dissemination of
such information by the operator of such a Web
site or online service necessary to the extent
permitted under other provisions of law.
(3) WHEN ACCESS NOT REQUIRED.—The regu-
lations shall provide that access as required under
paragraph (1)(B)(ii) is not required—
(A) to transactional information where
identifiable information is not removed;
(B) to information that is commercially
confidential to the operator and is obtained
from sources outside of the individual’s contact
with the operator’s web site;
(C) to information that is solely for inter-
nal company processes and is neither sold,
transferred, nor used for activities external to
the web site’s operator;
(D) to information that is discarded upon
the conclusion of the process that generates it;
or
(E) to information that has no impact
upon an individual.
(4) TERMINATION
OF
SERVICE.—The regula-
tions shall permit the operator of a Web site or an
online service to terminate service provided to an in-
dividual who has refused, under the regulations pre-
scribed under paragraph (1)(B)(ii), to permit the op-
erator’s further use or maintenance in retrievable
form, or future collection, of personal information.