WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. lawmakers said on Friday they plan to introduce legislation early next year that would provide basic privacy protections for Web surfers without burdening Internet businesses struggling in a tough business climate.
The measure is designed to set a basic standard of protection for the personal information of visitors to commercial Web sites, and to reduce fears among businesses that they could face a patchwork of conflicting state laws.
"We plan to come up with what we think is finite general information privacy, online and offline, and then we plan to offer the bill, get bipartisan support and hope the president will sign it," Rep. Cliff Stearns, a Florida Republican who is spearheading the effort, told a news conference.
The measure being developed would preempt state privacy laws and leave enforcement up to the Federal Trade Commission, preventing companies from private suits for intentional or unintentional violations, according to an outline provided by Stearns.
The measure would require companies to provide notice of where a consumer can obtain a privacy statement at the first opportunity for data collection, although small companies could be exempt, the outline said.
It would also afford the consumer the chance to limit the sale or disclosure of their personal information to a third party, Stearns said.