That puts the state in the position of benefiting from the sale of its citizens' private data. At that point, what incentive would CA have to oppose further encroachment on privacy?
Thanks for the reply - interesting concern. By analogy, I don't think putting taxes on cigarettes means the state will try to get more people to smoke. I also think it depends on how the money is allocated. Your concern would be strongest, I think, if the money went into some general-purpose fund. But if it funds open-source projects or a data-relations board, then I don't see much cause for concern.
> By analogy, I don't think putting taxes on cigarettes means the state will try to get more people to smoke.
To be clear: I don't mean that the state would try to encourage companies to collect and monetize more of their users' information. What I'm suggesting is that they would have a weaker incentive to protect the privacy of their citizens if part of their revenue depended on it being infringed.