Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee
Introduced
In Committee
On Floor
Passed Chamber
Enacted
The "Protecting Americans from Doxing and Political Violence Act" is designed to improve the safety and security of specific individuals by restricting the public dissemination of their personal information. It defines an at-risk individual to include Members of Congress, their immediate family members (spouse, parent, sibling, child, or household member), designated Senate and House employees, and former Members of Congress. The bill identifies covered information as sensitive personal data such as home addresses, personal phone numbers, email addresses, social security numbers, financial account details, vehicle identifiers, and information about children under 18, including school attendance and routes. This protection does not extend to information required for Federal Election Commission filings or candidate qualification. Under the bill, at-risk individuals can notify government agencies to mark their covered information as private, and agencies are then prohibited from publicly posting or displaying it. Upon request, agencies must remove such information from public content within 72 hours. Exceptions apply for court orders, signed releases, or certain financial institutions. Furthermore, the legislation imposes restrictions on data brokers , making it unlawful for them to knowingly sell, license, trade, or purchase covered information of individuals located in the U.S. or U.S. persons. Other businesses and associations are also prohibited from publicly posting or displaying covered information of at-risk individuals on the internet if requested not to. Upon receiving a written request, these entities must remove the covered information from the internet within 72 hours and ensure it is not transferred to other parties, with limited exceptions for news reporting or information voluntarily published by the individual. At-risk individuals whose covered information is made public in violation of this act may seek injunctive or declaratory relief in court.
Protecting Americans from Doxing and Political Violence Act
USA119th CongressS-2851| Senate
| Updated: 9/17/2025
The "Protecting Americans from Doxing and Political Violence Act" is designed to improve the safety and security of specific individuals by restricting the public dissemination of their personal information. It defines an at-risk individual to include Members of Congress, their immediate family members (spouse, parent, sibling, child, or household member), designated Senate and House employees, and former Members of Congress. The bill identifies covered information as sensitive personal data such as home addresses, personal phone numbers, email addresses, social security numbers, financial account details, vehicle identifiers, and information about children under 18, including school attendance and routes. This protection does not extend to information required for Federal Election Commission filings or candidate qualification. Under the bill, at-risk individuals can notify government agencies to mark their covered information as private, and agencies are then prohibited from publicly posting or displaying it. Upon request, agencies must remove such information from public content within 72 hours. Exceptions apply for court orders, signed releases, or certain financial institutions. Furthermore, the legislation imposes restrictions on data brokers , making it unlawful for them to knowingly sell, license, trade, or purchase covered information of individuals located in the U.S. or U.S. persons. Other businesses and associations are also prohibited from publicly posting or displaying covered information of at-risk individuals on the internet if requested not to. Upon receiving a written request, these entities must remove the covered information from the internet within 72 hours and ensure it is not transferred to other parties, with limited exceptions for news reporting or information voluntarily published by the individual. At-risk individuals whose covered information is made public in violation of this act may seek injunctive or declaratory relief in court.