The House Energy and Commerce Committee has recently announced that a group of House Republicans has formed a data privacy working group to develop a comprehensive national privacy standard.

At this moment, the U.S. lacks a comprehensive federal data privacy law, while 20 states have enacted their own individual privacy regulations.

Established by committee Chairman Brett Guthrie (R-Kan.) and Vice Chairman John Joyce (R-Md.), the group will consist of nine lawmakers and be led by Rep. Joyce.

“We strongly believe that a national data privacy standard is necessary to protect Americans’ rights online and maintain our country’s global leadership in digital technologies, including artificial intelligence. That’s why we are creating this working group, to bring members and stakeholders together to explore a framework for legislation that can get across the finish line. The need for comprehensive data privacy is greater than ever, and we are hopeful that we can start building a strong coalition to address this important issue,” Chairman Guthrie said.