Tech bills of the week: Restricting biometric use; expanding the quantum workforce; and more

"This frictionless mass surveillance is the stuff of nightmares, and it raises serious questions about how the Trump administration developed and tested this technology, how often officers are using it, and what happens to the data once it is collected, Markey said during a Wednesday press conference. This bill shuts the door on biased, error-ridden facial recognition tools and requires these lawless agencies to delete any data they collected without your knowledge, without your consent."

"Introduced Feb. 5 by Sens. Ed Markey, D-Mass., Mark Warner, D-Va., and Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., along with Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., the ICE Out of Our Faces Act aims to place a broad prohibition on the acquisition and use of facial recognition and other biometric technologies by ICE and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. It also calls for the deletion of all biometric data collected by a covered immigration officer and creates legal recourse for individuals who believe their biometric data was unlawfully harnessed."

"The bill, which was announced Feb. 2, would amend the National Quantum Initiative Act to order biennial reports from the National Science and Technology Council's Subcommittee on Quantum Information Science documenting the implementation of the national strategic workforce plan to scale a quantum-ready workforce. Those reports would be submitted every two years to the president, the National Quantum Initiative Advisory Committee and relevant lawmakers."

A bicameral Democratic-led bill would prohibit Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection from acquiring or using facial recognition and other biometric technologies. The measure would require deletion of all biometric data collected by a covered immigration officer and establish legal recourse for individuals who believe their biometric data was unlawfully used. Sponsors framed the ban as a response to mass deportation operations and concerns about biased, error-prone surveillance tools and data misuse. Separately, lawmakers proposed amending the National Quantum Initiative Act to require biennial reports on implementing a national strategic quantum workforce plan.

Read at Nextgov.com