Two federal laws work together to govern public access to information held by federal agencies:
FOIA is the primary statute — it sets the rules for what records the federal government has to release and when.
The Privacy Act works the other direction — it protects private information that agencies hold about individuals, limits how that information can be shared, and gives people a right to see and correct their own records.
Together, these two laws form the framework for what the federal government can release, what it has to release, and what it has to protect.
Freedom of Information Act
FOIA — 5 U.S.C. § 552
Gives any person the right to request access to federal agency records. Heavily used by businesses, law firms, and lawyers to obtain government data about competitors, regulatory proceedings, enforcement actions, and agency decision-making. Official portal: foia.gov.
Governs federal agency collection, maintenance, use, and dissemination of personal information. Applies to information the government holds about individuals — relevant to tech companies whose products interact with federal agencies or whose data may be in government systems.
Two federal laws cover open meetings, and they apply to two different kinds of bodies:
FACA (the Federal Advisory Committee Act) covers outside committees that give advice to federal agencies — those committees have to operate in the open with public notice and accessible records.
The Government in the Sunshine Act covers federal agencies that are run by a board or commission instead of a single administrator (think FCC, FTC, SEC, NLRB) — those bodies have to hold their formal meetings in public.
Together they make sure that federal decision-making by groups happens where the public can watch.
Federal Advisory Committee Act
FACA — 5 U.S.C. §§ 1001–1014
Governs advisory committees that advise federal agencies — including many AI and technology advisory panels. Requires public notice and open meetings for most advisory committee sessions.
Requires multi-member federal agencies to conduct meetings open to the public. Applies to agencies like the FTC, FCC, SEC, and similar collegial bodies. Relevant for monitoring regulatory rulemaking and enforcement policy decisions.
Federal procurement law is layered. The two main rulebooks are:
The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) — the main rulebook for how civilian federal agencies buy goods and services.
DFARS — adds rules specific to the Department of Defense.
Several specialized statutes cover narrower issues:
Bayh-Dole governs who owns the patents when the federal government funds research.
SBIR/STTR sets aside contracting opportunities for small businesses doing R&D.
Stevenson-Wydler promotes federal technology transfer.
GSA Schedules let agencies use pre-negotiated contracts instead of running their own competition.
Together they tell agencies what they can buy, how to pick vendors, and what protections both sides get.
Federal Acquisition Regulation
FAR — 48 CFR Ch. 1
The primary body of rules governing all federal government procurement. Applies to all executive branch agencies. Micro-purchase threshold: $15,000. Simplified acquisition threshold: $350,000. Formal competition required above $350,000.
Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs provide federal R&D funding to small businesses across 11 agencies. Awardees generally retain IP rights under Bayh-Dole principles. A major entry point for tech companies seeking federal contracts.
The U.S. Department of Justice's 2024 rule under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act requiring state and local governments to make their websites and mobile apps accessible to people with disabilities. It adopts WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the technical standard and sets phased compliance deadlines based on population size. It applies to public entities including state agencies, cities, counties, public colleges, and K–12 school districts — as well as to third-party EdTech and software vendors whose content or services are offered through those entities.
Prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability by places of public accommodation. Courts are split on whether websites qualify, but plaintiffs continue to pursue website accessibility claims — the practical standard is WCAG 2.1 AA.
Requires financial institutions (broadly defined to include many fintechs and money services businesses) to keep records, file reports, and maintain customer identification programs to assist in detecting money laundering and financial crime.
Sets rules for commercial email and gives recipients the right to opt out. Requires honest subject lines, clear sender identification, a functional unsubscribe mechanism, and a valid physical postal address in every commercial message.
Prohibits specific anticompetitive practices including price discrimination, tying arrangements, and mergers that substantially lessen competition. It supplements the Sherman Act by giving regulators and private plaintiffs more targeted tools to challenge anti-competitive conduct. Applies to all businesses engaged in interstate commerce.
Section 230 provides significant immunity to online platforms for third-party content posted by users. It is particularly relevant to AI chat systems, social platforms, marketplaces, moderation systems, and products involving user-generated or AI-assisted content, although important limitations and ongoing legal challenges exist.
The federal anti-hacking statute. Criminalizes unauthorized access to computer systems and creates a civil cause of action companies use against former employees and competitors who misuse credentials or exceed authorized access.
The foundational federal law protecting original works of authorship. Copyright attaches automatically upon fixation; registration is not required for protection but is required before suing for infringement and to recover statutory damages.
Cyber Incident Reporting for Critical Infrastructure Act
CIRCIA — 6 U.S.C. §§ 681–681g
Requires critical infrastructure entities to report substantial cyber incidents to CISA within 72 hours and ransomware payments within 24 hours. CISA is developing final implementing rules. Applies to entities in the 16 critical infrastructure sectors — including IT, communications, financial services, and energy. Tech companies operating critical infrastructure or providing services to those that do should monitor CISA's rulemaking.
Implements Executive Order 14117 restricting the bulk transfer of Americans' sensitive personal data to countries of concern (China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela). Effective April 2025. Covers genomic data, biometric data, precise geolocation, health data, financial data, and certain government-related data. Tech companies handling large-scale personal data should evaluate whether their data flows implicate these restrictions.
Created a federal civil cause of action for trade secret misappropriation. Lets companies sue in federal court and seek injunctions, damages, and — in egregious cases — seizure of misappropriated materials.
Establishes safe harbors for online service providers against liability for user-uploaded infringing content, provided they implement notice-and-takedown procedures. Critical for any platform hosting user-generated content.
Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act
Dodd-Frank — 12 U.S.C. § 5301 et seq.
Sweeping financial reform law that created the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and imposed new obligations on fintech companies, payment processors, and any business offering consumer financial products.
The EEOC has issued guidance explaining how employers may violate anti-discrimination laws when using AI hiring or workforce management tools. If your company uses or builds resume screening systems, automated interview tools, employee scoring systems, or workforce analytics platforms, this guidance outlines how existing civil rights laws apply to those tools.
Governs how the government and private parties can access electronic communications and stored data, covering real-time interception, stored records, and metadata collection. It is the primary federal statute protecting the privacy of digital communications. Applies to any entity that intercepts, accesses, or stores electronic communications.
Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility (Section 508)
Section 508 — 29 U.S.C. § 794d
Requires federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. Directly applicable to any tech company selling to the federal government — your product must meet Section 508 standards or you cannot win federal contracts. Standards align with WCAG 2.1 AA for web content. Enforced through the Access Board and federal procurement requirements.
Controls the export and re-export of dual-use items -- commercial goods with potential military applications -- including encryption technology and certain software. Administered by the Bureau of Industry and Security, it requires export licenses for controlled items. Applies to any company exporting technology, software, or technical data outside the United States.
Section 5 prohibits unfair or deceptive acts or practices in commerce and serves as the FTC's primary authority for regulating deceptive AI claims, unfair automated systems, and problematic data practices. It applies broadly to technology companies making representations about AI capabilities, automation, security, personalization, or algorithmic decision-making.
Regulates the collection, use, and sharing of consumer credit and background information. Applies to any company using background checks, credit reports, or algorithmic consumer evaluations for employment, housing, or credit decisions.
A government-wide program establishing security assessment standards for cloud services used by federal agencies. Not a law but effectively mandatory if you want to sell cloud services to the federal government. Authorization is expensive and time-consuming but creates a significant competitive moat — relatively few cloud providers have full authorization. Managed by GSA. Authorization levels: Low, Moderate, High corresponding to sensitivity of data processed.
Requires financial institutions to explain their information-sharing practices and protect sensitive customer data. The Safeguards Rule mandates specific administrative, technical, and physical data security measures.
Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act
HITECH — 42 U.S.C. §§ 17931–17954
Strengthened HIPAA enforcement and extended HIPAA obligations directly to business associates. Introduced tiered civil penalties and required HHS to conduct periodic audits of covered entities and business associates. Relevant to any tech company that is or may become a HIPAA business associate.
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act
HIPAA — 42 U.S.C. §§ 1320d–1320d-9
Any tech company building health apps, handling patient records, operating as a business associate of a covered entity, or processing protected health information must understand HIPAA. The Privacy Rule, Security Rule, and Breach Notification Rule each impose distinct obligations. HIPAA's definition of "covered entity" and "business associate" is broader than most tech founders assume — a SaaS platform that processes health data on behalf of a hospital is a business associate and must have a signed BAA. HHS Office for Civil Rights actively enforces, particularly against tech companies following data breaches.
The NIST AI Risk Management Framework provides a widely used structure for identifying and managing AI-related risks, including bias, reliability, explainability, and governance concerns. Although voluntary, it is increasingly referenced in enterprise contracts, cybersecurity reviews, and government procurement — making it practically important for any company selling AI-powered products to larger organizations or government agencies.
A voluntary framework — not a law — but practically functions as a de facto compliance standard. Referenced in state breach notification laws (Tennessee), required or strongly encouraged for federal contractors, and used by courts and regulators to assess reasonableness of cybersecurity programs. CSF 2.0 released February 2024 adds a new "Govern" function to the original five (Identify, Protect, Detect, Respond, Recover). Any tech company should understand this framework before claiming to have "reasonable" security.
Not a single law but a critical compliance area. Open source licenses create legally binding obligations when you use, modify, or distribute open source software. Key license families: Permissive (MIT, Apache 2.0, BSD — few obligations, allow proprietary use); Weak Copyleft (LGPL, MPL — share-alike requirements apply only to the licensed component); Strong Copyleft (GPL, AGPL — require distributing source code of the entire combined work). AGPL is particularly significant for SaaS companies — network use may trigger copyleft obligations even without distributing software. Every tech company needs an open source policy.
The federal law governing patents for inventions and designs. Establishes the USPTO, defines patentable subject matter, and creates enforcement rights. Patent eligibility for software remains a contested area post-Alice.
The foundational federal antitrust statute, prohibiting agreements in restraint of trade and monopolization or attempted monopolization of any market. Violations can carry criminal penalties including imprisonment. Applies to all businesses in interstate commerce and is increasingly used to challenge the market power of major technology platforms.
Restricts telemarketing calls, auto-dialed calls, prerecorded voice messages, and unsolicited text messages. It requires prior express consent for most automated contacts and maintains the National Do Not Call Registry. Applies to any business that contacts consumers by phone or text, making it one of the most heavily litigated consumer protection statutes in the country.
The VPPA restricts the disclosure of personally identifiable information relating to a consumer's video viewing history without consent. Although originally enacted for video rental records, it is increasingly invoked in litigation involving online video platforms, embedded video content, tracking pixels, analytics tools, and advertising technologies that share user viewing activity with third parties.
Prohibits unfair or deceptive practices in the online collection of personal information from children under 13. Requires parental consent before collecting, using, or disclosing a child's data. Enforced by the FTC through the COPPA Rule (16 CFR Part 312), which specifies notice, consent, security, and data retention obligations for operators of child-directed websites and services.
