Establishes a process for regulating the collecting, recording, and disclosing of confidential information by state employees; defines "confidential information".
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
2517--B
2009-2010 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
February 23, 2009
___________
Introduced by Sen. THOMPSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes -- recommitted to
the Committee on Codes in accordance with Senate Rule 6, sec. 8 --
committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and
recommitted to said committee -- committee discharged, bill amended,
ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the civil rights law, in relation to regulating the
collection, recording and disclosing of confidential information by
state employees obtained by state employees in the course of official
duties
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The civil rights law is amended by adding a new section
2 50-f to read as follows:
3 § 50-f. Disclosure of confidential information by state employees. 1.
4 Definitions. As used in this section, "confidential information" means
5 any information maintained or obtained by a state agency, state officer
6 or state employee concerning an individual's health or disability
7 status, income tax records, sexual orientation, status as a victim of
8 domestic violence, status as a crime victim or witness, public assist-
9 ance status, immigration status or any information that is otherwise
10 protected from disclosure by any provision of federal, state or local
11 law.
12 2. Procedure for the disclosure of confidential information.
13 a. Except as otherwise provided in paragraph b of this subdivision, no
14 state officer or state employee shall disclose confidential information
15 to anyone except another state officer or state employee acting in the
16 scope of his or her official duties.
17 b. Confidential information may be disclosed by a state officer or
18 state employee only if:
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD00075-05-0
S. 2517--B 2
1 (i) the state agency employing such officer or employee is required by
2 law to disclose such confidential information and provided that such
3 disclosure is limited to that required by law; or
4 (ii) the state agency employing such officer or employee has been
5 authorized, in writing signed by the individual or, if the individual is
6 a minor or otherwise incompetent, signed by the individual's parent or
7 legal guardian, to disclose such confidential information, and provided
8 that the disclosure is limited to that authorized in writing by the
9 individual; or
10 (iii) the disclosure of confidential information is necessary to coop-
11 erate with a law enforcement agency or agencies investigating that crim-
12 inal activity.
13 3. Procedure for collecting and recording confidential information.
14 This subdivision shall apply to any documentation, questionnaire, inter-
15 view sheet or other official form used to apply for or otherwise access
16 benefits or services provided by the state.
17 a. No state officer or state employee shall make inquiry regarding
18 collecting or recording of confidential information of any individual,
19 when such individual, on his or her behalf or on behalf of another, is
20 applying for or is receiving any service or benefit provided by the
21 state, unless such confidential information is specifically required by
22 federal or state law to be provided as a condition of receipt of such
23 service or benefit.
24 b. If confidential information is required by federal or state law to
25 be provided as a condition of receipt of a service or benefit provided
26 by the state, the state officer or employee shall make only those
27 inquiries necessary to determine if an applicant or recipient is quali-
28 fied for and otherwise meets the conditions for receipt of such service
29 or benefit.
30 4. Penalties for unauthorized disclosure. Any state officer or employ-
31 ee who violates the provisions of this section shall be subject to a
32 fine of not less than one hundred dollars. Any state officer or employee
33 shall be subject to a fine of not less than three hundred dollars for
34 each violation occurring within five years of a prior violation.
35 5. Other laws respecting confidentiality. Nothing in this section
36 shall be deemed to limit, abridge or otherwise affect any other
37 protection in federal, state or local law respecting the confidentiality
38 of information.
39 6. Severability. If any subdivision, sentence, clause, phrase or other
40 portion of this section is, for any reason, declared unconstitutional or
41 invalid, in whole or in part, by any court of competent jurisdiction,
42 such portion shall be deemed severable, and such unconstitutionality or
43 invalidity shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of
44 this section, which remaining portions shall continue in full force and
45 effect.
46 § 2. Section 51 of the civil rights law, as amended by chapter 674 of
47 the laws of 1995, is amended to read as follows:
48 § 51. Action for injunction and for damages. 1. Any person whose
49 name, portrait, picture or voice is used within this state for advertis-
50 ing purposes or for the purposes of trade without the written consent
51 first obtained as above provided may maintain an equitable action in the
52 supreme court of this state against the person, firm or corporation so
53 using his name, portrait, picture or voice, to prevent and restrain the
54 use thereof; and may also sue and recover damages for any injuries
55 sustained by reason of such use and if the defendant shall have knowing-
56 ly used such person's name, portrait, picture or voice in such manner as
S. 2517--B 3
1 is forbidden or declared to be unlawful by section fifty of this arti-
2 cle, the jury, in its discretion, may award exemplary damages. But noth-
3 ing contained in this article shall be so construed as to prevent any
4 person, firm or corporation from selling or otherwise transferring any
5 material containing such name, portrait, picture or voice in whatever
6 medium to any user of such name, portrait, picture or voice, or to any
7 third party for sale or transfer directly or indirectly to such a user,
8 for use in a manner lawful under this article; nothing contained in this
9 article shall be so construed as to prevent any person, firm or corpo-
10 ration, practicing the profession of photography, from exhibiting in or
11 about his or its establishment specimens of the work of such establish-
12 ment, unless the same is continued by such person, firm or corporation
13 after written notice objecting thereto has been given by the person
14 portrayed; and nothing contained in this article shall be so construed
15 as to prevent any person, firm or corporation from using the name,
16 portrait, picture or voice of any manufacturer or dealer in connection
17 with the goods, wares and merchandise manufactured, produced or dealt in
18 by him which he has sold or disposed of with such name, portrait,
19 picture or voice used in connection therewith; or from using the name,
20 portrait, picture or voice of any author, composer or artist in
21 connection with his literary, musical or artistic productions which he
22 has sold or disposed of with such name, portrait, picture or voice used
23 in connection therewith. Nothing contained in this section shall be
24 construed to prohibit the copyright owner of a sound recording from
25 disposing of, dealing in, licensing or selling that sound recording to
26 any party, if the right to dispose of, deal in, license or sell such
27 sound recording has been conferred by contract or other written document
28 by such living person or the holder of such right. Nothing contained in
29 the foregoing sentence shall be deemed to abrogate or otherwise limit
30 any rights or remedies otherwise conferred by federal law or state law.
31 2. a. Any person whose confidential information was disclosed in
32 violation of section fifty-f of this article may maintain an equitable
33 action in the supreme court of this state against the person or persons,
34 firm or corporation directly responsible for disclosing such confiden-
35 tial information, to prevent and restrain the use thereof.
36 b. In addition to suing for injunctive relief pursuant to paragraph a
37 of this subdivision, an aggrieved party may institute a civil action
38 against the person or persons, firm, or corporation directly responsible
39 for disclosing the confidential information for the greater of his or
40 her actual damages or one thousand dollars. In addition to any monetary
41 award, an aggrieved individual is entitled to costs and his or her actu-
42 al attorneys' fees.
43 § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
44 it shall have become a law.
