During its June 8, 2022 board meeting, the California Privacy Protection Agency (CPPA) voted to initiate the formal California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA) rulemaking process.  The draft rules are expected to be very similar to those previously published in advance of the Board meeting, although Deputy Attorney General Lisa Kim noted during the meeting that minor errors may be updated prior to the formal submission of the draft rules.  The current draft rules and Initial Statement of Reasons (ISOR) continue to be accessible on the CPPA website.

During the meeting, Ms. Kim described three categories of changes to the rules: (1) updates to the existing California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) rules to harmonize with the CPRA and address existing areas of confusion; (2) operationalization of new concepts introduced in the CPRA; and (3) reorganization and consolidation of CCPA/CPRA requirements for clarity.  Ms. Kim and Supervising Deputy Attorney General Stacey Schesser also summarized the provisions of the draft rules for the Board members and public.  For example, Ms. Kim discussed the draft rules addressing opt-out preference signals, which have already attracted attention from stakeholders.  She noted that she views the statutory provisions on opt-out preference signals as having been misunderstood to make honoring such signals optional.  She referred interested parties to Section 7025 of the draft rules and ISOR for further explanation.

The agency will now be filing a notice of proposed action to begin the formal rulemaking process under the California Administrative Procedure Act (APA).  Authority has been delegated to Ashkan Soltani, Executive Director of the CPPA, to manage the rulemaking process.  The California APA requires the agency to provide a public comment period that must last at least 45 days.  If the agency makes substantial or major changes to its rules, the agency must provide an additional notice and comment period.  However, if the agency chooses to enact the rules without such changes, the rules could be finalized as early as late Q3.