Bill preventing DMV sale of driver data killed in committee
DENVER, Colo. (KRDO) — After a KRDO report shined a light on an action by the Department of Motor Vehicles exposing Coloradans' personal information, lawmakers are taking action.
In November, a KRDO Newschannel 13 investigation revealed the Colorado Department of Revenue makes millions of dollars selling drivers’ names, numbers, and addresses to a third-party data vendor. Since then, 13 Investigates presented the findings to every Colorado lawmaker.
Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg presented a new privacy bill in the Senate State, Veterans, and Military Affairs Committee this week.
Senate Bill 21-159 would have made it illegal for the state Department of Revenue and Department of Motor Vehicles to sell drivers’ personal information to third parties in bulk. Currently, the practice is legal under the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act of 1994.
However, Democrats voted to indefinitely postpone SB21-159.
"They decided to party line kill the bill," said Sen. Sonnenberg. "There was a lot of pushback from the Department of Revenue."
Sonnenberg says testimony raised concern for courts that often use state. DMV data to track down people, like delinquent parents, who might owe child support. But his bill had already taken that into consideration.
"As you know in the bill, we allowed courts and law enforcement to continue to have access to those personal records," said Sonnenberg.
But a Senate spokesperson Friday said the bill was still too restrictive.
"In general, the bill version would have restricted all driver history record purchases which would have disallowed employers, insurers, and credit agencies attempting to verify employability, insurability, and lending risks," said Bella Combest, communications director for Colorado Senate Democrats.
However, Combest said Democratic senators are open to legislation that targets the sale of driver data more specifically.
"We recognize the concerns raised by your reporting and are open to considering proposals that protect privacy as well as legitimate uses of data purchasing," said Combest.
Another bill increasing privacy protections is still under consideration. Sponsored by local Sen. Paul Lundeen, it would allow Coloradans to opt-out of having their information collected and sold.
Lundeen's legislation, SB21-190, would allow Coloradans to opt-out of having their information collected and sold. KRDO will be following that bill as it heads to committee mid-April.
