Colorado Governor vetoes surveillance pricing legislation

Colorado Governor Jared Polis has vetoed a bill designed to prevent companies from using personal data to set individualized prices, a practice often referred to as ‘surveillance pricing.’ While lawmakers aimed to stop companies from using search history, location, and income data to charge different amounts for the same goods, Polis argued the legislation could have unintended consequences.

In a veto letter, Polis stated that the bill might ‘punish differentially lower prices, not just higher prices,’ suggesting that the same algorithms used to increase costs could also be used to offer discounts.

As various cities and states consider similar restrictions on data-driven pricing and electronic shelf labels, some experts and economists warn that broad bans could prevent consumers from benefiting from lower prices and reduced food waste facilitated by these technologies.