House Panel Unveils Long-Awaited Bipartisan Privacy Draft

A top House panel unveiled long-awaited draft privacy legislation that calls for limits on sharing consumers’ information and would allow users to correct their personal data.

The draft, which also calls for the Federal Trade Commission to establish a new privacy bureau, could become the basis for the country’s first federal privacy law. However, unless and until it’s adopted, a strict California rule, which takes effect Jan. 1, could become the de facto national standard.

The initiative, which staff from the Energy and Commerce Committee circulated on Wednesday, comes after a year of talks among members and is the ...