Germany: Announced Federal Cabinet approval of draft Federal Data Protection Act including data protection authority governance

On 7 February 2024, the Federal Cabinet approved the draft law issued by the Federal Interior Minister to amend the Federal Data Protection Act, including data protection authority governance. The draft law clarifies the role of the Data Protection Conference (DSK) to ensure the protection of data rights and ensure uniform application of European and national data protection law. Further, the draft law specifies that companies and institutions processing data for scientific, historical, or statistical purposes will have a single supervisory authority as a contact for cross-border projects. The draft law also includes measures requiring national coordination between federal and state supervisory authorities within the framework of European cooperation. The draft will be introduced in the Federal Parliament for its adoption.