Your private information shouldn’t be for sale

Dear Neighbors,

This week, the House unanimously passed my bipartisan bill to protect your data and safeguard our national security by prohibiting data brokers from selling sensitive personal information to our foreign adversaries. Most Americans are unaware that data brokers compile detailed dossiers about their interests, beliefs, actions, and movements. Data brokers then sell billions of data elements on nearly every consumer in the United States, including information about children and active members of the U.S. military.

This sensitive information allows data brokers and their customers to make invasive inferences about an individual, including about a person’s travel patterns, health, political beliefs, personal interests, and financial well-being. The breadth and scope of sensitive personal information aggregated by data brokers makes the sale of that data to our foreign adversaries a unique threat to national security and individual privacy.

Right now, there are no restrictions on who can buy this information. Congress took a significant step by specifically prohibiting the sale of Americans’ sensitive information to our foreign adversaries. I’m hopeful that this unanimous vote will build momentum for action in the Senate soon so that we can get this important bipartisan legislation signed into law. Read more here

Federal Funding Coming to Woodbridge to Support the Waterfront

I held a press conference in Woodbridge this week to highlight federal funding I secured for the Township to repair existing walkways and construct new ones along the Township’s waterfront. Woodbridge will receive $4 million to construct a new footpath and repair dilapidated pedestrian footpaths along the Arthur Kill in Sewaren.

The project will provide Woodbridge residents with new and enhanced access to the waterfront, local and county parks, and the marinas. This funding will help revitalize the area around the waterfront and bolster economic development in Woodbridge. I’m looking forward to seeing the new development once it is completed. Read more here

New Action to Ban Asbestos

The Biden Administration this week took action to ban ongoing uses of asbestos, including imports. I am thrilled that asbestos is finally set to be banned in the United States. Asbestos is still being used in auto parts, construction materials, and chemical manufacturing throughout the country, but with the White House’s action the Biden Administration is firmly saying – enough is enough. This toxic chemical, which still kills more than 40,000 Americans every year, has no business being used or imported into our country. For decades we have known how deadly asbestos is, and there is no excuse for allowing our communities and workers to be exposed to it any longer.

The asbestos ban is the first rule to regulate an existing chemical under the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act. I was a key author of this bill and helped pass it in the House as the top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Committee in 2016. I applaud the Environmental Protection Agency for using the tools Congress gave it to take this step toward banning this toxic substance once and for all, and I look forward to working closely with the Agency to protect every American from asbestos exposure. Read more here

Click here to visit my website or call my offices directly if you have questions or need help with a federal agency:

Middlesex County: 732-249-8892

Monmouth County: 732-571-1140

Sincerely,

Congressman Pallone