Bill Text: NY A01867 | 2017-2018 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Creates a temporary state commission on personal privacy, in light of the rapid advancement of technology in recent years, and provides for its powers, functions and duties; provides that said commission shall undertake a comprehensive study of the condition of personal privacy in the state and how best to protect it; directs the commission to report its findings and recommendations to the governor and the legislature.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2017-12-15 - enacting clause stricken [A01867 Detail]
Download: New_York-2017-A01867-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 1867 2017-2018 Regular Sessions IN ASSEMBLY January 13, 2017 ___________ Introduced by M. of A. KAVANAGH -- read once and referred to the Commit- tee on Consumer Affairs and Protection AN ACT in relation to creating a temporary state commission on personal privacy to examine and assess the privacy of individuals in the state of New York and to make recommendations relative to the protection thereof; and providing for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. New York state historically has been a leader in protecting 2 the personal privacy of its citizens. Today governmental agencies and 3 commercial firms are constantly gathering and distributing more and more 4 detailed information on the personal lives of the citizens of New York. 5 The rapid advancement in technology in recent years has created new 6 potential threats to the privacy of individuals. The ability to collect, 7 collate, and transmit personal data using information technology now 8 allows isolated pieces of information on an individual to be compiled 9 into profiles of the individual. No comprehensive federal or state law 10 governs personal privacy, nor is any federal or state agency charged 11 with the sole responsibility of identifying personal privacy problems 12 that need to be addressed and encouraging the development and enactment 13 of policies aimed at protecting individuals' privacy. A thorough under- 14 standing of the potential dangers to personal privacy is necessary in 15 order that the legislature may take the appropriate steps to protect the 16 privacy of the state's citizens at this pivotal point in time. 17 § 2. A temporary state commission is hereby established to be known as 18 the "commission on personal privacy". The role of the commission 19 includes, but is not limited to: 20 (a) assessing the level of citizen concern about personal privacy and, 21 to the extent possible, the incidence of privacy intrusions suffered by 22 New York citizens; EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD02834-01-7A. 1867 2 1 (b) examining the practices of state and local governmental agencies 2 and businesses related to the collection, storage, and distribution of 3 personal information and assessing the potential privacy issues associ- 4 ated with such collection, storage and distribution; 5 (c) assessing the scope and effectiveness of existing federal and 6 state privacy protection laws and self-regulatory efforts undertaken by 7 businesses in protecting personal privacy; 8 (d) recommending appropriate legislative and administrative reforms 9 relating to state systems that collect and maintain personal information 10 of employees, public retirees and other persons to ensure that personal 11 information is not subject to misappropriation; and 12 (e) recommending appropriate legislation relating to the collection, 13 storage, and distribution of personal information by businesses to 14 ensure that personal information is not subject to misappropriation. 15 § 3. The commission shall make a preliminary report to the governor 16 and the legislature of its findings, conclusions, and recommendations 17 not later than the one hundred eightieth day after the effective date of 18 this section and a final report of its findings, conclusions, and recom- 19 mendations not later than one year after the effective date of this 20 section, and shall submit with its reports such legislative proposals as 21 it deems necessary to implement its recommendations. 22 § 4. The commission shall consist of a total of fifteen members who 23 shall be appointed not later than the thirtieth day after the effective 24 date of this section and shall include the superintendent of the depart- 25 ment of financial services, the secretary of state, the director of the 26 office of information technology services, and the attorney general, or 27 a designee of any of said officers. The remaining eleven, at-large 28 members shall be appointed as follows: three shall be appointed by the 29 governor; three shall be appointed by the temporary president of the 30 senate and one by the minority leader of the senate; three shall be 31 appointed by the speaker of the assembly and one by the minority leader 32 of the assembly. One each of the appointments of the governor, temporary 33 president of the senate, and the speaker of the assembly shall be a 34 member, officer, or employee of a consumer advocacy organization. One 35 of the appointments of the governor shall be a member, officer, or 36 employee of a statewide association representing and advocating for the 37 interests of businesses. One of the appointments of the governor shall 38 be a member, officer, or employee of a statewide association represent- 39 ing and advocating for the interests of local governments. One of the 40 appointments of the speaker of the assembly shall be an individual who 41 has conducted academic research on personal privacy protection. One of 42 the appointments of the speaker of the assembly shall be a member, offi- 43 cer, or employee of a manufacturer of systems used by state and local 44 governments to electronically store data. One of the appointments of the 45 temporary president of the senate shall be a member, officer, or employ- 46 ee of a statewide trade association representing the health care indus- 47 try. One of the appointments of the temporary president of the senate 48 shall be a member, officer, or employee of a statewide trade association 49 representing financial institutions. An organization shall be considered 50 a consumer advocacy organization if it advocates for enhanced consumer 51 protection in the marketplace, educates consumers, and researches and 52 analyzes consumer issues, including consumers' right to privacy. 53 § 5. The secretary of state shall serve as chairperson of the commis- 54 sion. The commission may consult with any organization, educational 55 institution, governmental agency, or person.A. 1867 3 1 § 6. The members of the commission shall serve without compensation, 2 except that at-large members shall be allowed their necessary and actual 3 expenses incurred in the performance of their duties under this act. 4 § 7. The department of state shall provide the commission with such 5 facilities, assistance, and data as will enable the commission to carry 6 out its powers and duties. Additionally, all other departments or agen- 7 cies of the state or subdivisions thereof shall, at the request of the 8 chairperson, provide the task force with such facilities, assistance, 9 and data as will enable the commission to carry out its powers and 10 duties. 11 § 8. With the approval of the chairperson of the commission, members 12 of the commission may participate in meetings of the commission by means 13 of videoconference or similar equipment that allows all members partic- 14 ipating in such meetings to see and hear each other at the same time and 15 allows the public attending the meeting in person to see and hear the 16 members of the commission participating in such manner. 17 § 9. This act shall take effect on the thirtieth day after it shall 18 have become a law and shall expire and be deemed repealed on the three 19 hundred ninety-fifth day after it shall have taken effect.
