A01071 Summary:

BILL NOA01071A
 
SAME ASSAME AS S06796
 
SPONSORBraunstein
 
COSPNSRAbinanti, Gunther, Mosley, Markey, Gottfried, Weprin, Montesano, Rosenthal, Colton, Jaffee, Cahill, O'Donnell, Peoples-Stokes, Steck, Raia, Perry, Hooper, Moya, Skoufis, Simotas, Otis, Rodriguez, Blake
 
MLTSPNSRArroyo, Brennan, Cook, Crouch, Galef, Glick, McDonough, Schimel, Simanowitz, Stec, Titone
 
Rel S380-v to be S380-w, add S380-v, Gen Bus L
 
Bans the sale of employment data reports without written consumer consent; provides such employment data reports shall include, but not be limited to, payroll and earnings information, hours worked, consumer history and health insurance information.
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A01071 Actions:

BILL NOA01071A
 
01/08/2015referred to consumer affairs and protection
02/10/2015reported referred to codes
05/21/2015amend and recommit to codes
05/21/2015print number 1071a
05/28/2015reported
05/29/2015advanced to third reading cal.459
01/06/2016referred to consumer affairs and protection
01/26/2016reported referred to codes
02/02/2016reported
02/04/2016advanced to third reading cal.358
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A01071 Memo:

NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY
MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION
submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
 
BILL NUMBER: A1071A
 
SPONSOR: Braunstein (MS)
  TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the general business law, in relation to the sale and use of employment information   PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL: Bans the sale of employment information, including payroll and earnings information, hours worked, consumer history and health insurance infor- mation.   SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS: Section 1: Section 380-v of the article is relettered section 380-w, and a new section 380-v is added. Section 2: Section 380-v(a) is added to ban the sale of employment information by consumer reporting agencies without verifying that such sale was disclosed to consumer in a separate stand-alone document, This section also adds what is included in employment information, such as payroll and earning information, hours an employee has worked, consumer history and health insurance information. Section 380-v(b) requires that disclosure and consumer consent must be given in a separate, stand-alone document, and the consent is limited to the particular use or transaction for which the consent is given. Section 380-v(c) charges the Attorney General with the enforcement of this law. This section also includes a civil penalty of 2,000 dollars for each violation of this statute to be imposed on the consumer report- ing agencies. Section 380-v(d) allows for a private cause of action to be commenced by any person injured by the violation of this section. Additionally, the individual injured may recover actual damages and one thousand dollars. The court may award the plaintiff an additional award not to exceed $5,000 if the court finds that the defendant willfully violated the provisions of this section. The court may also award reasonable attor- neys' fees to a prevailing plaintiff. Section 3: Contains the effective date.   JUSTIFICATION: The "Work Number" provides employment data reports, and is operated by TALX Corporation, which is owned by the credit reporting agency Equifax. The "Work Number" permits companies to outsource payroll and human resource functions and maintains information on at least 30% of the U.S. working population. According to an NBC News report, Equifax has been selling employment reports, including detailed health insurance and payroll information, to third parties, such as debt collectors and other financial services corporations. This is an invasion of consumers' and employees' privacy. Moreover, many employees are unaware of this sale of their detailed payroll information to third parties. This legislation would prohibit consumer reporting agencies from selling employment data reports to third parties.   PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: None.   FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None.   EFFECTIVE DATE: This act shall take effect on the one hundred and eightieth day after it shall have become a law.
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A01071 Text:



 
                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                         1071--A
 
                               2015-2016 Regular Sessions
 
                   IN ASSEMBLY
 
                                     January 8, 2015
                                       ___________
 
        Introduced  by  M.  of A. BRAUNSTEIN, ABINANTI, GUNTHER, MOSLEY, MARKEY,
          GOTTFRIED,  WEPRIN,  MONTESANO,  ROSENTHAL,  COLTON,  JAFFEE,  CAHILL,
          O'DONNELL,  PEOPLES-STOKES, ROBERTS, STECK, RAIA, PERRY, HOOPER, MOYA,
          SKOUFIS, SIMOTAS, OTIS, RODRIGUEZ -- Multi-Sponsored by --  M.  of  A.
          ARROYO,  BRENNAN,  CLARK, COOK, CROUCH, GALEF, GLICK, McDONOUGH, SCHI-
          MEL, SIMANOWITZ, STEC, TITONE -- read once and referred to the Commit-
          tee on Consumer Affairs and Protection -- reported and referred to the
          Committee on Codes --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
 
        AN  ACT  to  amend the general business law, in relation to the sale and
          use of employment information
 
          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:
 
     1    Section  1.   Section 380-v of the general business law, as relettered
     2  by chapter 441 of the laws of 2014, is relettered section  380-w  and  a
     3  new section 380-v is added to read as follows:
     4    §  380-v.  Sale  and  use of employment information.   (a) No consumer
     5  reporting agency or any subsidiary thereof  shall  sell  or  resell,  or
     6  offer  for  sale  or  resale or distribute employment information to any
     7  principal creditor, as that term is  defined  in  subdivision  three  of
     8  section  six  hundred  of  this chapter, or other debt collector without
     9  verifying that such sale, resale, or distribution was disclosed  to  the
    10  consumer  to  whom  such  employment  information pertains in a separate
    11  stand-alone document.  Employment information shall include, but not  be
    12  limited  to,  payroll  and  earnings information, hours worked, consumer
    13  history and health insurance information.
    14    (b) Such disclosure and consumer consent shall be given in a separate,
    15  stand-alone document and consent shall be limited to the particular  use
    16  or transaction for which consent is given.
    17    (c)  Wherever  there shall be a violation of this section, an applica-
    18  tion may be made by the attorney general in the name of  the  people  of
 
         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02323-03-5

        A. 1071--A                          2
 
     1  the  state  of  New  York to a court or justice having jurisdiction by a
     2  special proceeding to issue  an  injunction,  and  upon  notice  to  the
     3  defendant  of not less than five days, to enjoin or restrain the contin-
     4  uance  of  such violation; and if it shall appear to the satisfaction of
     5  the court or justice that the defendant  has,  in  fact,  violated  this
     6  section, an injunction may be issued by such court or justice, enjoining
     7  and  restraining any further violation, without requiring proof that any
     8  person has, in fact, been  injured  or  damaged  thereby.  In  any  such
     9  proceeding,  the  court  may  make allowances to the attorney general as
    10  provided in paragraph six of subdivision  (a)  of  section  eighty-three
    11  hundred  three  of the civil practice law and rules, and direct restitu-
    12  tion. Whenever the court  shall  determine  that  a  violation  of  this
    13  section  has  occurred, the court may impose a civil penalty of not more
    14  than two thousand dollars for each violation.  In  connection  with  any
    15  such  proposed  application,  the attorney general is authorized to take
    16  proof and make a determination  of  the  relevant  facts  and  to  issue
    17  subpoenas in accordance with the civil practice law and rules.
    18    (d) In addition to any right of action granted to the attorney general
    19  pursuant  to  this section, any person who has been injured by reason of
    20  any violation of this section may bring an action in his or her own name
    21  to enjoin such unlawful act or practice, an action to recover his or her
    22  actual damages and one thousand dollars, or both such actions. The court
    23  may, in its discretion, award the prevailing plaintiff in such action an
    24  additional award not to exceed five thousand dollars, if the court finds
    25  the defendant willfully violated the provisions  of  this  section.  The
    26  court may award reasonable attorneys' fees to a prevailing plaintiff.
    27    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    28  it shall have become a law.
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