Governor Jerry Brown signed the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 on Thursday, giving consumers in Santa Clarita, as well as across the state, the most control over who has access to their data in the country.

The law, which takes effect in 2020, grants California consumers the right to know what information companies online are collecting, why they are collecting it, and who they are sharing it with.

Consumers will have the option of barring tech companies from selling their data, and children under 16 must opt into allowing them to even collect their information at all, according to state officials.

The law has drawn the support of some privacy advocates including Common Sense Media.

“The state that pioneered the tech revolution is now, rightly, a pioneer in consumer privacy safeguards, and we expect many additional states to follow suit,” said James P. Steyer, CEO and founder of Common Sense Media, in a statement. “Today was a huge win and gives consumer privacy advocates a blueprint for success. We look forward to working together with lawmakers across the nation to ensure robust data privacy protections for all Americans.”

While many privacy advocates support the law, others point to several loopholes that they say don’t take enough power back form the companies.

For example, online companies can “share” people’s data even if a consumer bars them from selling it. The law also allows companies to charge higher prices to consumers who opt out of having their data sold, which critics point to as a potential “punishment” for not sharing data.

“For the first time California is explicitly allowing ‘pay for privacy’ deals that are in direct contradiction to our privacy rights,” said Emily Rusch, executive director of the nonprofit California Public Interest Research Group.

The law was passed unanimously by the California Senate and Assembly after it was proposed on June 21, but the swiftness of the legislation prompted concern from the Internet Association, which lobbies on behalf of tech companies.

“Data regulation policy is complex and impacts every sector of the economy, including the internet industry,” said Robert Callahan, the group’s vice president of state government affairs. “That makes the lack of public discussion and process surrounding this far-reaching bill even more concerning.”

The ACLU of Northern California said the legislation falls “woefully short.”

“This measure was hastily drafted and needs to be fixed,” the ACLU’s Nicole Ozer said in a statement. “Effective privacy protections must be included that actually protect against rampant misuse of personal information, make sure that companies cannot retaliate against Californians who exercise their privacy rights, and ensure that Californians can actually enforce their personal privacy rights.”

Ed. Note: Some of the above information was provided by CNN. KHTS is an affiliate of CNN.

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