LANSING — The Michigan Senate passed a set of bills this week that supporters say would help combat identity theft.
The bills — SB 360 through SB 364 — would require private companies and state agencies with sensitive data to maintain a security coordinator who would ensure proper safeguards are in place.
The plan would also establish new requirements for companies reporting data breaches.
The bills were passed separately from a proposal that would establish consumer rights over personal data and restrict how companies can use that data. That bill — SB 359 — has not yet received a vote.
The proposals would be the first personal privacy laws passed in Michigan, and a majority of other states already have similar policies in law.
“These bills require an impacted organization to investigate and to provide notification to impacted Michiganders of a breach so they can take action to protect their identity or resolve an issue before it becomes worse,” said Sen. Rosemary Bayer, (D) District 13, West Bloomfield. “If the breach involves more than 100 people, then the incident needs to be reported to the attorney general.”
The proposals were passed with party-line support from Senate Democrats, and it’s unclear if they will move forward in the Republican-controlled House.