Bill Text: TX SB488 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Comm Sub
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to criminal background checks on users of online dating services and to disclosures of online dating safety measures; providing a civil penalty.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2011-05-09 - Effective on 9/1/11 [SB488 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB488-Comm_Sub.html
Bill Title: Relating to criminal background checks on users of online dating services and to disclosures of online dating safety measures; providing a civil penalty.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2011-05-09 - Effective on 9/1/11 [SB488 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB488-Comm_Sub.html
By: Van de Putte | S.B. No. 488 | |
(In the Senate - Filed February 1, 2011; February 14, 2011, | ||
read first time and referred to Committee on Business and Commerce; | ||
March 7, 2011, reported adversely, with favorable Committee | ||
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0; March 7, 2011, | ||
sent to printer.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 488 | By: Van de Putte |
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relating to criminal background checks on users of online dating | ||
services and to disclosures of online dating safety measures; | ||
providing a civil penalty. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subtitle C, Title 5, Business & Commerce Code, is | ||
amended by adding Chapter 106 to read as follows: | ||
CHAPTER 106. INTERNET DATING SAFETY ACT | ||
Sec. 106.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter: | ||
(1) "Member" means a person who submits to an online | ||
dating service provider the information required by the provider to | ||
access the provider's service for the purpose of engaging in dating | ||
or participating in a compatibility evaluation with other persons. | ||
(2) "Online dating service provider" means a person | ||
engaged in the business of offering or providing to its members | ||
access to dating or compatibility evaluations between persons | ||
through the Internet to arrange or facilitate the social | ||
introduction of two or more persons for the purpose of promoting the | ||
meeting of individuals. | ||
(3) "Texas member" means a member who provides a | ||
billing address or zip code in this state when registering with the | ||
online dating service provider. | ||
Sec. 106.002. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. This chapter does | ||
not apply to an Internet service provider serving as an | ||
intermediary for the transmission of electronic messages between | ||
members of an online dating service provider. | ||
Sec. 106.003. CONDUCT OF CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK. | ||
(a) For purposes of this chapter, an online dating service | ||
provider conducts a criminal background check on a person if the | ||
provider initiates a name search for the person's convictions for | ||
any: | ||
(1) felony offense; | ||
(2) offense the conviction or adjudication of which | ||
requires registration as a sex offender under Chapter 62, Code of | ||
Criminal Procedure; and | ||
(3) offense for which an affirmative finding of family | ||
violence was made under Article 42.013, Code of Criminal Procedure. | ||
(b) The name search described by Subsection (a) must be | ||
conducted by searching: | ||
(1) available and regularly updated government public | ||
record databases for criminal conviction records described by | ||
Subsections (a)(1)-(3) that in the aggregate provide substantially | ||
national coverage of those records; or | ||
(2) regularly updated databases that contain at least | ||
the same or substantially similar coverage as would be accessible | ||
through searching databases described by Subdivision (1). | ||
Sec. 106.004. DISCLOSURE BY PROVIDER THAT DOES NOT CONDUCT | ||
CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECK. (a) An online dating service provider | ||
that offers services to residents of this state and does not conduct | ||
a criminal background check on each member before permitting a | ||
Texas member to communicate through the provider with another | ||
member shall clearly and conspicuously disclose to all Texas | ||
members that the provider does not conduct criminal background | ||
checks, as described by Section 106.003. | ||
(b) The disclosure required by this section must be stated | ||
in bold, capital letters, in at least 12-point type on the online | ||
dating service provider's Internet website. | ||
Sec. 106.005. DISCLOSURES BY PROVIDER THAT CONDUCTS | ||
CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECKS. (a) An online dating service provider | ||
that offers services to residents of this state and conducts a | ||
criminal background check on each member before permitting a Texas | ||
member to communicate through the provider with another member | ||
shall clearly and conspicuously disclose to all Texas members that | ||
the provider conducts a criminal background check, as described by | ||
Section 106.003, on each member before permitting a Texas member to | ||
communicate through the provider with another member. | ||
(b) An online dating service provider that offers services | ||
to residents of this state and conducts a criminal background check | ||
on each member shall include on the provider's Internet website: | ||
(1) a statement of whether the provider excludes from | ||
its online dating service all persons identified as having been | ||
convicted of: | ||
(A) a felony offense; | ||
(B) an offense the conviction or adjudication of | ||
which requires registration as a sex offender under Chapter 62, | ||
Code of Criminal Procedure; or | ||
(C) an offense for which an affirmative finding | ||
of family violence was made under Article 42.013, Code of Criminal | ||
Procedure; | ||
(2) a statement of the number of years of a member's | ||
criminal history that is included in a criminal background check; | ||
and | ||
(3) a statement that: | ||
(A) criminal background checks are not | ||
foolproof; | ||
(B) criminal background checks may give members a | ||
false sense of security; | ||
(C) criminal background checks are not a perfect | ||
safety solution; | ||
(D) criminals may circumvent even the most | ||
sophisticated search technology; | ||
(E) not all criminal records are public in all | ||
states and not all databases are up to date; | ||
(F) only publicly available convictions are | ||
included in the criminal background check; and | ||
(G) the criminal background check does not cover | ||
other types of convictions than convictions for offenses described | ||
by Section 106.003(a) or any convictions from foreign countries. | ||
(c) A disclosure required by Subsection (a) must be stated | ||
in bold, capital letters in at least 12-point type on the online | ||
dating service provider's Internet website. | ||
Sec. 106.006. SAFETY AWARENESS DISCLOSURE BY ALL PROVIDERS. | ||
An online dating service provider that offers services to residents | ||
of this state shall clearly and conspicuously provide a safety | ||
awareness notification on the provider's Internet website that | ||
includes a list and description of safety measures reasonably | ||
designed to increase awareness of safer online dating practices. | ||
Examples of the safety awareness notification include the following | ||
statements or substantially similar statements: | ||
(1) "Anyone who is able to commit identity theft can | ||
also falsify a dating profile."; | ||
(2) "There is no substitute for acting with caution | ||
when communicating with any stranger who wants to meet you."; | ||
(3) "Never include your last name, e-mail address, | ||
home address, phone number, place of work, or any other identifying | ||
information in your Internet profile or initial e-mail messages. | ||
Stop communicating with anyone who pressures you for personal or | ||
financial information or attempts in any way to trick you into | ||
revealing it."; and | ||
(4) "If you choose to have a face-to-face meeting with | ||
another member, always tell someone in your family or a friend where | ||
you are going and when you will return. Never agree to be picked up | ||
at your home. Always provide your own transportation to and from | ||
your date and meet in a public place with many people around." | ||
Sec. 106.007. CIVIL PENALTY; INJUNCTION. (a) An online | ||
dating service provider who violates this chapter is liable to the | ||
state for a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $250 for each | ||
Texas member registered with the online dating service provider | ||
during the time of the violation. | ||
(b) The attorney general may: | ||
(1) seek an injunction to prevent or restrain a | ||
violation of this chapter; or | ||
(2) bring suit to recover the civil penalty imposed | ||
under Subsection (a). | ||
(c) The attorney general may recover reasonable expenses | ||
incurred in obtaining an injunction or civil penalty under this | ||
section, including court costs and reasonable attorney's fees. | ||
Sec. 106.008. NO PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION. This chapter does | ||
not create a private right of action. | ||
SECTION 2. Not later than September 1, 2011, an online | ||
dating service provider must comply with Chapter 106, Business & | ||
Commerce Code, as added by this Act, with respect to each person who | ||
is using the provider's service on that date. | ||
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. | ||
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