Prohibits digital advertisers from establishing a virtual "geofence" around a health care facility that enables the advertiser to send targeted advertisements to any cellphones or mobile devices that enter such health care facility; prohibits the delivery of digital advertisements to persons in a health care facility using geofencing technology.
NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A10677
SPONSOR: Rules (Rosenthal L) TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
geofencing by digital advertisers at health care facilities
PURPOSE:
This legislation will prohibit targeted advertising to individuals
through the use of geofencing technology at health care facilities.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section one amends the general business law by adding a new section
396-aaaa.
Section two establishes the effective date.
JUSTIFCATION:
Geofencing is a technology that uses global positioning system coordi-
nates, cellular data, Wi-Fi data or other means of location detection to
create an electronic border around a particular geographic area. This
technology allows companies to target cellphoues and electronic devices
that enter a geofenced zone with specific advertisements. Some retail
establishments use this technology to send targeted advertisements to
customers for relevant products and services. However, some companies
have used this technology to target patients of certain healthcare
facilities, including abortion and reproductive health clinics and clin-
ics that provide methadone.
In 2015, Copley Advertising, LLC, a Massachusetts-based company, began
using the technology to target "abortion-minded women" in these facili-
ties, sending them advertisements for weeks following their visit with
messages like "Pregnancy Help" and "You Have Choices." When clicked on,
the advertisements would direct patients to webpages urging them to
consider alternatives and to chat with "pregnancy support" specialists.
The company, which was barred from conducting such advertising in Massa-
chusetts in 2017, sent similar advertisements to patients in New York
City, Pittsburgh, Columbus, Richmond, and St. Louis.
While reproductive health clinics have long been the target of harass-
ment, geofencing technology allows it to become even more invasive,
sending harassing messages to one's personal cellphone for weeks on end
and making inferences about their healthcare decisions. A person's
visit to a healthcare facility should not open them up to targeted
harassment.
In 2017, the Massachusetts Attorney General's Office reached a settle-
ment with Copley Advertising that barred them from conducting such
advertising at Massachusetts healthcare facilities. With the overturning
of Roe v. Wade and increased attacks on reproductive health care provid-
ers, this legislation would ensure that New York State residents can
seek care without virtual harassment by prohibiting geofencing at any
health care facility in New York State.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None to the State.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
30 days.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10677
IN ASSEMBLY
August 12, 2022
___________
Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M. of A. L. Rosen-
thal) -- read once and referred to the Committee on Consumer Affairs
and Protection
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to prohibiting
geofencing by digital advertisers at health care facilities
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new section
2 396-aaaa to read as follows:
3 § 396-aaaa. Prohibition on geofencing. 1. For the purposes of this
4 section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
5 a. "Digital advertiser" shall mean any person, corporation, partner-
6 ship or association that delivers digital advertisements by electronic
7 means.
8 b. "Digital advertisement" shall include any communication delivered
9 by electronic means that is intended to be used for the purposes of
10 marketing, solicitation, or dissemination of information related,
11 directly or indirectly, to goods or services provided by the digital
12 advertiser or a third party.
13 c. "Delivered by electronic means" shall include delivery to an elec-
14 tronic mail address, posting on an electronic network or site accessible
15 via the internet, mobile application, computer, mobile device, tablet,
16 or any other electronic device used by a natural person.
17 d. "Geofencing" shall mean a technology that uses global positioning
18 system coordinates, cell tower connectivity, cellular data, radio
19 frequency identification, Wi-Fi data and/or any other form of location
20 detection, to establish a virtual boundary or "geofence" around a
21 particular location that allows a digital advertiser to track the
22 location of an individual user and electronically deliver targeted
23 digital advertisements directly to such user's mobile device upon such
24 user's entry into the geofenced area.
25 e. "Health care facility" shall mean any governmental or private agen-
26 cy, department, institution, clinic, laboratory, hospital, physician's
27 office, nursing care facility, health maintenance organization, associ-
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16111-03-2
A. 10677 2
1 ation or other similar entity that provides medical care or related
2 services pursuant to the provisions of the public health law or the
3 mental hygiene law, including the building or structure in which the
4 facility is located.
5 f. "User" shall mean a natural person who owns or uses a mobile device
6 or any other connected electronic device capable of receiving digital
7 advertisements.
8 2. a. It shall be unlawful for any person, corporation, partnership or
9 association to deliver by electronic means any digital advertisement to
10 a user through the use of geofencing at any health care facility as
11 defined in paragraph e of subdivision one of this section.
12 b. It shall be unlawful for any person, corporation, partnership or
13 association to establish a geofence or similar virtual boundary in or
14 around any health care facility for the purpose of delivering by elec-
15 tronic means a digital advertisement to a user within such health care
16 facility.
17 § 2. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall
18 have become a law.
