H 650

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1H.650
2 Introduced by Representatives Arsenault of Williston and Graning of Jericho
3 Referred to Committee on
4 Date:
5 Subject: Commerce and trade; protection of personal information; educational
6technology certification
7 Statement of purpose of bill as introduced: This bill proposes to require that
8 providers of educational technology products register annually with the State.
9 It also requires the Secretary of State to create a certification standard and
10 review process for these products before they can be used by schools.
11    An act relating to educational technology products
12 It is hereby enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Vermont:
13 Sec. 1. 9 V.S.A. chapter 62 is amended to read:
14CHAPTER 62. PROTECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
15***
16Subchapter 3A. Student Privacy
17***
18 § 2443f. ENFORCEMENT
19    A person who violates a provision of this chapter subchapter commits an
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1 unfair and deceptive act in commerce in violation of section 2453 of this title.
2Subchapter 3B. Educational Technology
3 § 2444a. DEFINITIONS
4    As used in this subchapter:
5(1) “Educational technology product” and “product” means any student-
6 facing software, application, or platform that may collect, process, or transmit
7 student data and that is used for teaching and learning purposes in a school.
8(2) “Provider of an educational technology product” and “provider”
9 means a person that operates an educational technology product that is in use
10 at a school with or without a contract with the school or school district.
11(3) “School” means a public school or an independent school approved
12 pursuant to 16 V.S.A. § 166.
13 § 2444b. ANNUAL REGISTRATION
14    (a) Annually, on or before January 31 following a year in which a person
15 meets the definition of a provider of an educational technology product as set
16 forth in section 2444a of this subchapter, the person shall:
17(1) register with the Secretary of State;
18(2) pay a registration fee of $100.00;
19(3) provide the following information during registration:
20(A) the name and primary physical, email, and internet addresses of
21 the person; and
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1(B) the most recent version of the privacy policy and terms and
2 conditions in use by the product; and
3(4) list the names of all the products operated by the provider and which
4 products, if any, have been certified by the Secretary of State pursuant to this
5 subchapter.
6    (b) A provider that fails to register and provide all required information
7 pursuant to subsection (a) of this section:
8(1) is liable to the State for:
9(A) a civil penalty of $50.00 for each day, not to exceed a total of
10 $10,000.00 for each year, it fails to register pursuant to this section;
11(B) an amount equal to the fees due under this section during the
12 period it failed to register pursuant to this section; and
13(C) other penalties imposed by law; and
14(2) does not otherwise limit the provider’s responsibility to comply with
15 the provisions required of providers set forth in this subchapter.
16    (c) The Attorney General may maintain an action in the Civil Division of
17 the Superior Court to collect the penalties imposed in this section and to seek
18 appropriate injunctive relief.
19 § 2444c. PRODUCT CERTIFICATION
20    (a)(1) The Secretary of State shall:
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1(A) have the sole authority to certify an educational technology
2 product as set forth in this section; and
3(B) create a form on its website where a provider of an educational
4 technology product can apply for the product to be reviewed by the Secretary
5 of State for certification.
6(2) No school shall use an educational technology product that has not
7 been certified by the Secretary of State pursuant to this section.
8    (b) The Secretary of State shall develop, publish, and annually review the
9 standards for the certification of an educational technology product. In
10 developing the certification standards, the Secretary of State shall consider the
11 following about an educational technology product:
12(1) the product’s compliance with State curriculum standards;
13(2) advantages of using the product compared with nondigital methods;
14(3) whether the product was explicitly designed for educational use;
15(4) design features of the product, including any:
16(A) geolocation tracking;
17(B) use of artificial intelligence;
18(C) targeted advertising;
19(D) personalized recommendation systems;
20(E) access to adults unknown to a student; and
21(F) features that would lead to compulsive use;
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1(5) the data privacy practices of the provider of the product; and
2(6) any other factor the Secretary of State believes is relevant to the
3 education, privacy, and safety of students.
4    (c) Notwithstanding subsection (b) of this section, a certified product shall:
5(1) be compliant with all federal and State privacy laws, including the
6 federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act;
7(2) include clear and easy-to-understand product information;
8(3) provide the following to a parent or guardian of a student:
9(A) what personal information of the student is collected by the
10 product;
11(B) how the personal information collected pursuant to subdivision
12 (A) of this subdivision (3) is maintained, used, and shared by the product; and
13(C) the ability to access, correct, and delete the personal information
14 of the student;
15(4) not collect:
16(A) student data that is not essential for the product to function
17 effectively for the purpose for which it is being utilized;
18(B) demographic data of a student except for the name and grade
19 level of the student; and
20(C) behavioral, interactional, or sensitive health data of a student;
21 and
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1(5) not use any data collected to:
2(A) sell to or share with a third party; or
3(B) create a student profile for noneducational uses, which includes
4 targeted advertising and disciplinary actions.
5    (d) The Secretary of State shall post on its website and regularly update a
6 list of educational technology products that have been certified by the
7 Secretary of State pursuant to this section. The Secretary of State may list
8 products that are under active consideration by the Secretary of State and
9 products that have failed certification.
10    (e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit or alter obligations
11 under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, Section 504 of the
12 Rehabilitation Act, or the Americans with Disabilities Act. Schools shall
13 provide reasonable modifications and necessary assistive technology to ensure
14 Free Appropriate Public Education and equal access.
15    (f)(1) A provider that violates this section commits an unfair and deceptive
16 act in commerce in violation of section 2453 of this title.
17(2) The Attorney General shall have the same authority under this
18 subchapter to make rules, conduct civil investigations, bring civil actions, and
19 enter into assurances of discontinuance as provided under chapter 63 of this
20 title.
21***
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1 Sec. 2. CERTIFICATION TRANSITION
2    A school shall submit a list of educational technology products, as that term
3 is defined in 9 V.S.A. § 2444a, that are currently in use at the school to the
4 Secretary of State on or before December 15, 2026, in a form and manner
5 prescribed by the Secretary of State. A school may use an educational
6 technology product that has not been certified by the Secretary of State on or
7 before June 30, 2027.
8 Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE DATES
9    This act shall take effect on July 1, 2026, except that 9 V.S.A. § 2444c(a)(2)
10 (certified product requirement) shall take effect on July 1, 2027.
 Sec. 1. 9 V.S.A. chapter 62 is amended to read:
          CHAPTER 62. PROTECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION
                                       ***
                         Subchapter 3A. Student Privacy
                                       ***
 § 2443f. ENFORCEMENT
    (a) A person who violates a provision of this chapter subchapter commits
 an unfair and deceptive act in commerce in violation of section 2453 of this
 title.
    (b)    The Attorney General has the same authority to adopt rules to
 implement the provisions of this subchapter and to conduct civil investigations,
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enter into assurances of discontinuance, and bring civil actions as provided
under chapter 63, subchapter 1 of this title.
                 Subchapter 3B. Educational Technology
§ 2444a. REGISTRATION REQUIREMENTS
   (a) Definitions. As used in this section:
  (1)    “Educational technology product” and “product” mean any
student-facing software, application, or platform that may collect, process, or
transmit student data and that is used for teaching and learning purposes in a
school in Vermont.
  (2) “Filing” means an initial registration, amendment, periodic report,
or other filing with the Secretary of State as the Secretary may require.
  (3) “Provider of an educational technology product” and “provider”
mean a person that provides an educational technology product that is in use
at a school with or without a contract with the school or school district.
  (4) “School” means a public school or an independent school approved
pursuant to 16 V.S.A. § 166.
   (b) Mandatory data reporting. In addition to all other requirements of a
person registering with the Secretary of State pursuant to State law, a person
doing business in this State as a provider of an educational technology product
shall, at the time of a filing, provide the following:
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  (1) the name and primary physical, email, and internet addresses of the
person;
  (2) a link to the most recent version of the privacy policy and terms and
conditions of each product in use;
  (3) the name of each school or school district in which the provider is
operating pursuant to a contract;
  (4) the name and a brief description of each product of the provider,
also indicating which products are offered at no cost to schools;
  (5) which products are known by the provider to be in use in any school
or school district; and
  (6) an attestation that each product meets:
      (A) the standards set forth in subchapter 3A of this chapter and
subchapter 6 of this chapter (the Vermont Age-Appropriate Design Code Act);
and
      (B)   all federal and State privacy laws, including the federal
Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act.
                                 ***
Sec. 2. EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY REGISTRATION REVIEW;
      CERTIFICATION; AGENCY OF EDUCATION; REPORT
   (a) Task. The Agency of Education shall:
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   (1) in consultation with the Secretary of State, review all educational
technology product provider registrations pursuant to 9 V.S.A. § 2444a;
   (2) in consultation with schools, create a list of educational technology
products in use across the State;
   (3) cross-reference the information gathered in subdivisions (1) and (2)
of this subsection to determine the names of any unregistered educational
technology providers operating in the State and forward the names of such
providers to the Office of the Attorney General;
   (4)      determine where assistive technology may be included in an
individualized education plan;
   (5)     provide a recommendation as to how the State should certify
educational technology products for use in schools, including:
         (A)   which State entities should be involved in the certification
process and to what extent;
         (B) the criteria to be considered in the certification process, which at
the minimum shall include:
            (i) the product’s compliance with State curriculum standards;
            (ii) advantages of using the product compared with nondigital
methods;
            (iii) whether the product was explicitly designed for educational
use;
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        (iv) design features of the product, including any:
           (I) geolocation tracking;
           (II)      use of artificial intelligence, which includes chatbots,
synthetic content, and automated decision-making tools;
           (III) targeted advertising;
           (IV) personalized recommendation systems;
           (V) access to adults unknown to a student; and
           (VI) features that would lead to compulsive use;
        (v) whether the product serves as beneficial assistive technology
or provides some other form of benefit for special education purposes; and
        (vi) the data privacy practices of the provider of the product;
     (C) the timeline and estimated cost to establish and implement the
certification process;
     (D) the estimated cost or cost savings for schools assuming a State
certification process is established; and
     (E) whether any third-party services, including Internet Safety Labs,
should be utilized to assist in certification; and
  (6) provide the General Assembly with any other information it deems
relevant to help ensure that educational technology products are safely and
smartly used in Vermont schools.
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   (b) Report. On or before November 15, 2027, the Agency of Education
shall submit a written report to the House Committees on Commerce and
Economic Development and on Education and the Senate Committees on
Economic Development, Housing and General Affairs and on Education with
its findings and information gathered pursuant to subsection (a) of this section
along with any recommendations for legislative action concerning the
certification of educational technology products.
Sec. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE
   This act shall take effect on July 1, 2026.