A scourge.

Rhode Island said it’s being extorted after hack of Deloitte-run benefits system.

To date, 20 states have passed data privacy laws in the U.S. Other states have also introduced bills to keep up with the data privacy race.

CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act) went into effect more than five years ago. I was in grad school when this legislation was signed into law. I distinctly remember being hopeful that it would be a good model that could be adopted at the federal level. Fast forward to 2025 and I am not actually surprised that this remains at the state level and has that classic patchwork approach vibe.

This bulletin was prepared by the Bureau of Justice Statistics of the U.S. Department of Justice.

An Act providing for consumer data privacy, for duties of controllers and for duties of processors; and imposing penalties.

Pennsylvania Consumer Data Privacy Act

In the business world, they say that culture eats strategy for breakfast—meaning that the people implementing the strategy, and the skills, attitudes, and assumptions they bring to it, will make more difference than even the most brilliant plan. In government, culture eats policy.

This article is also a story about the importance of domain knowledge and why it's difficult (and risky) to push back against the norms, especially when it's the right thing to do. As I say: the process is not the point.