Congress needs to pass comprehensive privacy and data security legislation and make sure companies that store and share individuals' information are held accountable, Rep. Cliff Stearns, R-Fla., said at a Wednesday event recognizing Data Privacy Day, which was being celebrated in Washington, around the United States and in 27 European countries. He said businesses should be required to encrypt data, employ an information security chief and retain an outside auditor to ensure compliance.

During his chairmanship of the House Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection Subcommittee in the Republican-controlled 109th Congress, Stearns held more than a half-dozen hearings on privacy and technology. Various data privacy bills were introduced last Congress but were overshadowed. This year, consumer privacy has arisen as a hot topic within the multibillion-dollar health information technology provisions in the House and Senate economic stimulus packages.

On Monday, the House passed a resolution Stearns co-sponsored with Rep. David Price, D-N.C., that formally recognized Data Privacy Day in the United States. The Senate approved a companion resolution on Wednesday that was introduced by Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., and Senate Judiciary Committee ranking member Arlen Specter. Dorgan issued a statement saying that modern technology has connected the world and led to new developments in every aspect of citizens' lives but with those advancements come the potential for people's privacy to be compromised.

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy also released a statement saying that Data Privacy Day is an opportunity "to remind all of us about the important work that the Congress must complete to protect Americans' health privacy rights." The Senate is expected to take up it stimulus package, which contains health IT privacy provisions, next week. Leahy's committee held a hearing on electronic medical records and privacy Tuesday, which he said was one of many steps he will take this Congress to underscore the importance of privacy. He is expected to reintroduce a bill with Specter that would enhance criminal penalties and assistance to law enforcement agencies that fight ID theft.

European Commission policy adviser Leonardo Cervera Navas -- who attended the Capitol Hill privacy briefing with Alexander Alvaro, a German member of the European Parliament -- said the lawmakers he works for look forward to dealing with President Barack Obama's administration on international data protection and privacy issues.