[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 17, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1120-S1121]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 4415. Mr. WYDEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 1383, to establish the Veterans Advisory Committee
on Equal Access, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on
the table; as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Privacy Act Modernization
Act of 2026''.
SEC. 2. MODERNIZING PRIVACY ACT DEFINITIONS.
(a) Records.--Section 552a(a) of title 5, United States
Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (2), by striking ``a citizen of the United
States or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent
residence'' and inserting the following: ``a natural person
who is--
``(A) a United States person, as defined in section 101 of
the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C.
1801); or
``(B) in the United States;'';
(2) by striking paragraphs (4) and (5) and inserting the
following:
``(4) the term `record' means any personally identifiable
information processed by an agency;
``(5) the term `system of records' means a group of any
records maintained by or for, or otherwise under the control
of, any agency;'';
(3) in paragraph (12), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(4) in paragraph (13), by striking the period at the end
and inserting a semicolon; and
(5) by adding at the end the following:
``(14) the term `personally identifiable information' means
any information that identifies, or is linked or reasonably
linkable, alone or in combination with other data, to--
``(A) an individual; or
``(B) a device that identifies, or is linked or reasonably
linkable to, an individual; and
``(15) the term `process', with respect to personally
identifiable information, means to perform an operation or
set of operations on the personally identifiable information,
including by storing, analyzing, organizing, structuring,
using, modifying, or otherwise handling the personally
identifiable information, whether or not by automated
means.''.
(b) Matching Programs.--Section 552a(a)(8)(A) of title 5,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding clause (i), by striking ``of'';
(2) in clause (i), in the matter preceding subclause (I),
by striking ``two or more automated systems of records or a
system of records with non-Federal records'' and inserting
the following: ``involving any data from 1 or more systems of
records''; and
(3) in clause (ii), by striking ``two or more'' and
inserting ``of 2 or more''.
(c) Government Contractors.--Section 552a(m)(1) of title 5,
United States Code, is amended by striking ``for the
operation by or on behalf of the agency of a system of
records to accomplish an agency function'' and inserting ``or
other agreement, including with another agency, for the
operation by or on behalf of the agency of a system of
records''.
(d) Technical Amendments.--Section 552a of title 5, United
States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (1), by striking ``section 552(e)'' and
inserting ``section 552(f)''; and
(B) in paragraph (8)(B)--
(i) in clause (iv)(III), by striking ``section 404(e), 464,
or 1137'' and inserting ``section 464 or 1137''; and
(ii) in clause (x), by striking ``section 3(d)(4) of the
Achieving a Better Life Experience Act of 2014'' and
inserting ``section 529A(d)(4) of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986''; and
(2) in subsection (l), by striking ``National Archives of
the United States'' each place that term appears and
inserting ``National Archives and Records Administration''.
SEC. 3. STRENGTHENING PROTECTIONS FOR INDIVIDUALS.
(a) Additional Protections for Collections, Uses, and
Disclosures.--Section 552a of title 5, United States Code, is
amended--
(1) in subsection (a)(7), by inserting ``and is appropriate
and reasonably necessary for the efficient and effective
conduct of the Government'' before the semicolon at the end;
(2) in subsection (b)(1), by inserting ``and that
disclosure is consistent with, and related to, a purpose
described under subsection (e)(4)(D) of this section'' before
the semicolon at the end; and
(3) in subsection (e)--
(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking
``that maintains a system of records'';
(B) in paragraph (2), by striking ``under Federal
programs'';
(C) in paragraph (4)--
(i) by amending subparagraph (D) to read as follows:
``(D) any purpose for which the information is intended to
be used, including each routine use;'';
(ii) in subparagraph (H), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(iii) in subparagraph (I), by inserting ``and'' after the
semicolon; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following:
``(J) the legal authority for each purpose for which the
records contained in the system are used, which shall contain
a citation to the applicable law, executive order, or other
authority;'';
(D) in paragraph (11), by striking ``and'' at the end;
(E) in paragraph (12), by striking the period at the end
and inserting a semicolon; and
(F) by adding at the end the following:
``(13) use records only for a legally authorized purpose;
and
``(14) take reasonable efforts to ensure that a record that
is disclosed contains the minimum amount of information
necessary to accomplish the purpose of the disclosure.''.
(b) Additional Protections for Matching Programs.--Section
552a(a)(8)(B) of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by amending clause (ii) to read as follows:
``(ii) matches performed to support any research or
statistical project, if the results of the match are not
intended to be used, and are not used, to--
``(I) make decisions concerning the rights, benefits, or
privileges of specific individuals; or
``(II) take any adverse financial, personnel, or
disciplinary action, or any other adverse action, against
Federal personnel;'';
(2) in clause (viii), by inserting ``or'' after the
semicolon at the end;
(3) by striking clause (ix); and
(4) by redesignating clause (x) as clause (ix).
(c) Additional Civil Remedies.--Section 552a(g) of title 5,
United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) by amending subparagraph (D) to read as follows:
``(D) fails to comply with any other provision of this
section, or any rule promulgated thereunder, in such a way as
to have, or that could reasonably lead to, an adverse effect
on any person (including any State or territory (or any
political subdivision of any State or territory) or any
Indian Tribe),''; and
(B) in the flush text following subparagraph (D), by
inserting ``or person, as applicable,'' after ``the
individual''; and
(2) by amending paragraph (4) to read as follows:
``(4) In any suit brought under the provisions of
subsection (g)(1)(C) or (D) of this section--
``(A) the court may provide such preliminary and other
equitable or declaratory relief as may be appropriate; and
``(B) if the court determines that the agency acted in a
manner that was intentional or willful, the United States
shall be liable to the individual or person, as applicable,
in an amount equal to the sum of--
``(i) actual damages, including nonpecuniary damages,
sustained by the individual or person as a result of the
refusal or failure, but in no case shall an individual or
person entitled to recovery receive less than the sum of
$1,000;
``(ii) the costs of the action together with reasonable
attorney fees as determined by the court; and
``(iii) punitive damages in an amount determined
appropriate by the court.''.
(d) Additional Criminal Penalties.--Section 552a(i) of
title 5, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by adding at the end the following:
``A person who commits an offense described in the previous
sentence with the intent to sell, transfer, use, or disclose
a record described in that sentence for commercial advantage,
personal gain, or malicious harm shall be guilty of a felony
and fined not more than $250,000, imprisoned for not more
than 10 years, or both.''; and
[[Page S1121]]
(2) in paragraph (3), by striking ``misdemeanor and fined
not more than $5,000'' and inserting ``felony and fined not
more than $100,000''.
SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATES.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Agency; matching program; recipient agency; record;
source agency; system of records.--The terms ``agency'',
``matching program'', ``recipient agency'', ``record'',
``source agency'', and ``system of records'' have the
meanings given those terms in section 552a of title 5, United
States Code, as amended by section 2.
(2) Special government employee.--The term ``special
Government employee'' has the meaning given the term in
section 202(a) of title 18, United States Code.
(3) Temporary or intermittent expert or consultant.--The
term ``temporary or intermittent expert or consultant'' means
an expert or consultant or an organization thereof, the
services of which are procured pursuant to section 3109 of
title 5, United States Code.
(4) Temporary transitional schedule c position.--The term
``temporary transitional Schedule C position'' means a
position established under section 213.3302 of title 5, Code
of Federal Regulations, or any successor regulation.
(b) General Effective Date.--Except as provided in
subsection (c), the amendments made by sections 2 and 3 shall
take effect on the date that is 2 years after the date of
enactment of this Act.
(c) Exceptions.--The amendments made by sections 2 and 3
shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act with
respect to each of the following:
(1) Any use of a record by, any disclosure of a record by
or to, any maintenance of a system of records by or for, any
control of a system of records by, the taking of any other
action that is governed by section 552a of title 5, United
States Code (as amended by this Act) by, or the taking of any
of the preceding actions that is caused by any action by any
of the following:
(A) The United States DOGE Service, or any successor
organization.
(B) The U.S. DOGE Service Temporary Organization, or any
successor organization.
(C) Any special Government employee, any temporary or
intermittent expert or consultant, or any individual
occupying a temporary transitional Schedule C position.
(D) Any agency not described in subparagraph (A) or (B)
that is headed by, or subject to the control of--
(i) the head of the entity described in subparagraph (A);
(ii) the head of the entity described in subparagraph (B);
or
(iii) any person described in subparagraph (C).
(E) Any DOGE Team (as described in Executive Order 14158
(90 Fed. Reg. 8441), relating to establishing and
implementing the President's ``Department of Government
Efficiency''), or any successor organization.
(F) Any agency that is within, or subject to the review of,
an entity described in subparagraph (A), (B), (D), or (E).
(G) Any officer, employee, expert, consultant, contractor,
volunteer, or other individual, without regard to title or
compensation, of, within, or providing services to an entity
described in subparagraph (A), (B), (D), (E), or (F).
(2) Any matching program in which--
(A) an entity or person described in any subparagraph of
paragraph (1) is the source agency or recipient agency; or
(B) a system of records is maintained by or for, or
otherwise under the control of, an entity or person described
in any subparagraph of paragraph (1).
(d) Applicability.--If a person described in any
subparagraph of paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection (c),
outside of the capacity of the person as described in the
applicable subparagraph, disclosures a record, maintains a
system of records, controls a system of records, participates
in a matching program, takes any other action that is
governed by section 552a of title 5, United States Code (as
amended by this Act), or causes any other person to take any
of the preceding actions, the exception under subsection (c)
shall still apply with respect to that action by that person.
SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
(a) Definition.--In this section, the term ``Privacy Act''
means section 552a of title 5, United States Code, as in
effect at any time before the date of enactment of this Act.
(b) Rule.--Nothing in this Act, or any amendment made by
this Act, may be construed to create an inference with
respect to the interpretation of any provision of the Privacy
Act, any regulation promulgated under the Privacy Act, or any
application of such a provision or regulation, including with
respect to the scope of activity covered under the Privacy
Act, the legality of any activity under the Privacy Act, or
the availability of any remedy or award of damages with
respect to a violation of the Privacy Act.
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