Prohibits persons or business entities from filing unnecessary personal identifying information with an agency; provides for enforcement by the attorney general.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
307
2015-2016 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE(Prefiled)
January 7, 2015
___________
Introduced by Sen. ESPAILLAT -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Consumer Protection
AN ACT to amend the general business law, in relation to personal infor-
mation restrictions for public records
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
2 399-jj to read as follows:
3 § 399-jj. Personal information restrictions for public records. 1. No
4 person or business entity shall intentionally create an instrument
5 available for public inspection that is to be filed with or submitted to
6 an agency containing personal identifying information of any other
7 person, unless such other person is a dependent child or has consented
8 to the inclusion of such personal identifying information, which is not:
9 (a) relevant and necessary to accomplish the purpose of the filing; or
10 (b) required by federal, state or local law, rule or regulation, or by
11 court rule.
12 For the purpose of this section, the printing or other reproduction of
13 a document received by electronic or any other means does not constitute
14 creation of the document.
15 2. Any agency that receives instruments for filing shall post in a
16 place or places, clearly visible to all persons, adjacent to or near the
17 location where such agency has designated for the receipt of instruments
18 for filing, a notice describing the prohibition contained in subdivision
19 one of this section and subdivision six of section three hundred nine-
20 ty-nine-ddd of this article.
21 3. For purposes of this section the following terms shall mean:
22 (a) "Agency" means any state or municipal department, board, bureau,
23 division, commission, committee, public authority, public corporation,
24 council, office or other governmental entity performing a governmental
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01908-02-5
S. 307 2
1 or proprietary function for the state or any one or more municipalities
2 thereof, except the judiciary or the state legislature;
3 (b) "Personal identifying information" means a driver's license
4 number, mother's maiden name, consumer credit account number or code,
5 savings account number or code, checking account number or code, or
6 debit card number or code.
7 4. Upon any violation of the provisions of this section, an applica-
8 tion may be made by the attorney general in the name of the people of
9 the state of New York to a court or justice having jurisdiction to issue
10 an injunction, and upon notice to the defendant of not less than five
11 days, to enjoin and restrain the continuance of the violation. If it
12 shall appear to the satisfaction of the court or justice that the
13 defendant has violated this section, an injunction may be issued by the
14 court or justice, enjoining and restraining any further violation, with-
15 out requiring proof that any person has, in fact, been injured or
16 damaged thereby. In any such proceeding, the court may make allowances
17 to the attorney general as provided in paragraph six of subdivision (a)
18 of section eight thousand three hundred three of the civil practice law
19 and rules, and direct restitution. In connection with an application
20 made under this section, the attorney general is authorized to take
21 proof and to make a determination of the relevant facts and to issue
22 subpoenas in accordance with the civil practice law and rules. Any
23 penalty or injunction for a violation of subdivision one of this section
24 shall be assessed against the person or business entity that created the
25 instrument. No person, business entity or agency shall be deemed to have
26 violated the provisions of subdivision one of this section if such
27 person, business entity or agency had no involvement in the creation of
28 the instrument, or created the instrument without the intention or know-
29 ledge that the instrument was to be filed with an agency.
30 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
31 have become a law.
