Article I gives Congress power to 'regulate Commerce'—why has Congress failed to pass federal data privacy laws while 20 states enacted their own by 2026?

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Tech lobbyists spent $150 million from 2020–2024 to block federal privacy bills. The American Data Privacy and Protection Act had bipartisan support in 2022 but died when industry groups demanded weaker enforcement and narrower definitions of sensitive data. Meanwhile, California's CCPA (2018) and 19 other states enacted privacy laws, creating a compliance patchwork. Congress's Commerce Clause power could preempt state laws with a uniform federal standard, but committee chairs beholden to Meta, Google, and Amazon refuse to advance bills with strong penalties or private rights of action.

Article I gives Congress power to 'regulate Commerce'—why has Congress failed to pass federal data privacy laws while 20 states enacted their own by 2026?

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