Authors:
Wynter L. Deagle, Partner, Troutman Sanders
Sharon R. Klein, Partner, Pepper Hamilton
Alex C. Nisenbaum, Partner, Pepper Hamilton
Ronald I. Raether, Partner, Troutman Sanders
Anne-Marie Dao, Associate, Troutman Sanders
Sadia Mirza, Associate, Troutman Sanders

Attorney General Xavier Becerra submitted the final proposed regulations package under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) to the state Office of Administrative Law (OAL) on June 1, 2020. Normally, for the CCPA regulations to be effective by the originally-anticipated July 1 enforcement date, AG Becerra should have submitted the proposed regulations to the OAL, and filed the approved rules with the Secretary of State no later than May 31, 2020.

The final proposed regulations package was submitted to the OAL for review on June 1, 2020. Additionally, the AG must also contend with the Executive Order issued by Governor Newsom giving the OAL additional time to review regulations. To address this issue, AG Becerra requested an expedited review stating that “[w]hile the Attorney General is mindful of the challenges imposed by COVID-19 and Governor Newsom’s Executive Order N-40-20 granting additional time to finalize proposed regulations, the Attorney General respectfully requests that the Office of Administrative Law complete its review within 30 business days, given the statutory mandate for regulations.” AG Becerra has requested that these regulations become effective upon filing with the Secretary of State, meaning that they would be immediately enforceable.

The Final Text of Proposed Regulations are identical in substance to the March 27, 2020 Second Modified Regulations. This is good news for businesses that have been updating their CCPA processes and procedures to align with the draft regulations since no further changes have been introduced. For businesses that opted to establish procedures only in compliance with statutory requirements, the next month may be an uphill battle given the AG’s efforts for the proposed regulations to take effect July 1. In any event, compliance efforts should continue as there is no indication of delay in CCPA enforcement, even in light of COVID-19.