California AG Releases Modified Draft Regulations Implementing the CCPA
On Friday, February 7, 2020, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra released modifications to the proposed regulations implementing the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), which can be accessed here (Proposed Modifications). While still in draft form, the Proposed Modifications represent an improvement to the initial draft released late 2019, but still, leave many questions unanswered. If the Proposed Modifications are adopted as-is, many organizations that were hoping to rely on the regulations for clarity will need to find an alternative path to operationalize the CCPA’s more puzzling issues.
Given that final regulations are likely to be issued in Spring 2020, businesses can expect enforcement actions to begin in July. However, AG Becerra has warned businesses that the six-month gap between the CCPA’s effective and enforcement date should not be viewed as a safe harbor. Indeed, AG Becerra noted that “If that were [the case], then you could murder someone today and if we couldn’t figure out who did it for a month, would that mean you get to go scot-free? I don’t think so. The law’s the law.”
It's also worth noting that the first class-action lawsuit hoping to rely on the CCPA was filed on February 3rd. The complaint was filed over a data breach that allegedly occurred before the CCPA’s effective date. Given this timing, the case will not test the limits of the CCPA; it is a false alarm. However, the complaint foreshadows how plaintiffs are likely to rely on the CCPA. Read our article published in Bloomberg Law for steps businesses should take to be prepared, available here.
For an overview of the most significant changes in the Proposed Modifications, read our article published in The Recorder, available here.