A recent bill introduced by Assemblymember Chris Ward aims to tackle surveillance pricing, a practice where companies use personal data to set individualized prices for products and services. This bill, known as AB 446, would prohibit companies from setting prices based on personally identifiable information gathered through electronic surveillance technology. Ward argues that surveillance pricing is predatory, discriminatory, and violates public trust, especially impacting lower-income shoppers.
In a related effort to protect consumers, State Senator Steve Padilla introduced a bill to set energy rates for data centers. The bill, called the Ratepayer and Technological Innovation Protection Act, aims to protect residential ratepayers and small businesses from excess costs created by the energy use of data centers, which has tripled over the past decade.
Additionally, California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara announced that the FAIR Plan will impose a $1 billion charge on insurance companies to cover claims from the Los Angeles fires last month. Commercial insurers will pass this cost along to homeowners, leading to increased costs for ratepayers throughout California.
These legislative efforts are part of a broader push to address the impacts of big tech on consumers, with a focus on protecting privacy, ensuring transparency in pricing, and guarding against unfair practices that disproportionately affect vulnerable populations.
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