Bill Text: NJ A1941 | 2010-2011 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Establishes a financial or personal information "do not sell" list for residents of this State.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2010-02-08 - Introduced, Referred to Assembly Consumer Affairs Committee [A1941 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2010-A1941-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblyman JACK CONNERS
District 7 (Burlington and Camden)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes a financial or personal information "do not sell" list for residents of this State.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning the sale of certain consumer information and supplementing P.L.1960, c.39 (C.56:8-1 et seq.).
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. As used in this act:
"Director" means the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.
"Division" means the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.
"Financial or personal information" includes, but is not limited to, information that describes, locates or indexes anything about an individual's real or personal property, holdings, employment, salary, education, financial transactions, purchases of goods and services, medical history, ancestry, religion, political ideology, or criminal or employment record, or that affords a basis for inferring personal characteristics such as finger and voice prints, photographs or things done by or to such individual; and the record of an individual's presence, registration, or membership in an organization or activity, or admission to any institution.
"Resident" means an individual who is legally domiciled in this State.
2. The division shall establish and maintain a "do not sell" list and may utilize a national "do not sell" list, if applicable. The division may contract with a private vendor to establish and maintain the "do not sell" list, provided that:
a. the private vendor meets standards established by the division pursuant to section 7 of this act; and
b. the contract requires the private vendor to provide the "do not sell" list in a printed hard copy format, and in any other format, as may be prescribed by the division.
3. Consistent with federal law, a person shall not sell or cause to be sold any financial or personal information about any resident of this State whose name and address are included on the "do not sell" list established by the division pursuant to section 2 of this act, except when such a sale occurs within three months of the date that the resident's name and address were first included on the "do not sell" list but only if the person selling such information had not, at the time of the sale of the information, obtained a "do not sell" list which included the resident's name and address and the "do not sell" list used by the person selling the information was issued less than three months prior to the time the sale was made.
4. A resident who desires to be included on the "do not sell" list shall notify the division by calling a toll-free number provided or designated by the division, or in any other manner and at a time prescribed by the division. A resident who is included on the "do not sell" list shall be removed from the "do not sell" list upon the resident's written request. The "do not sell" list shall be updated not less often than quarterly and the division shall, if the "do not sell" list is not readily accessible through other means, make the "do not sell" list available to persons doing business with residents of this State for a fee that the division shall prescribe.
5. Consistent with federal law, a violation of the provisions of section 3 of this act shall be an unlawful practice subject to the penalties applicable pursuant to section 1 of P.L.1966, c.39 (C.56:8-13) and section 2 of P.L.1999, c.129 (C.56:8-14.3), except that a person may not be held liable for violating this act if the person has obtained a resident's prior express written permission to sell the resident's personal or financial information.
6. a. There is hereby established in the General Fund a special dedicated, non-lapsing fund to be known as the "Consumer Information Protection Fund," which shall be administered by the State Treasurer. The State Treasurer shall deposit into the "Consumer Information Protection Fund" all fees and penalties collected pursuant to this act.
b. The Legislature shall annually appropriate from the "Consumer Information Protection Fund" monies to the division for the payment of costs of producing and distributing educational materials and conducting educational activities informing the public about the "do not sell" list and all related costs and expenditures incurred in the administration of this act.
7. The division, pursuant to the provisions of the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), shall promulgate rules and regulations necessary to implement this act, which shall include:
a. provisions governing the availability and distribution of the "do not sell" list established pursuant to section 2 of this act;
b. such procedures as may be most effective to ensure that the "do not sell" list is up-to-date and accurately reflects the names and addresses of those residents within this State who wish to be on the "do not sell" list;
c. standards governing private vendors authorized pursuant to section 2 of this act to establish and maintain the "do not sell" list, that shall require the vendors to:
(1) be financially sound;
(2) have the capacity to perform the service required;
(3) have a record of past performance; and
(4) have no conflict of interest with any vendor of financial or personal information or an association of such vendors; and
c. any other matters relating to the "do not sell" list established pursuant to section 2 of this act that the division deems necessary.
8. Information submitted to the division by a resident pursuant to the provisions of this act shall not be a government record under P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.) or the common law concerning access to government records except as provided in this act.
9. This act shall take effect immediately but sections 1 through 8 shall remain inoperative until the Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety certifies to the Attorney General that the division is prepared to establish and maintain a "do not sell" list, or until the 365th day following enactment, whichever occurs first, except that the division may take such anticipatory action as shall be necessary to implement the provisions of the act in advance of the operative date.
STATEMENT
This bill provides that, consistent with federal law, the sale of financial or personal information about the residents of this State is prohibited if the names and addresses of the residents have been placed on the "do not sell" list established by the Division of Consumer Affairs (the "division").
The bill provides that the "do not sell" list established by the division shall contain a list of the names and addresses of residents within this State who do not wish to have their financial or personal information sold.
The bill further provides that the division shall work to notify residents about the availability of "do not sell" list and procedures for requesting to be placed on the "do not sell" list.
The bill provides that, consistent with federal law, a violation of the prohibition on selling financial or personal information shall be an unlawful practice subject to penalties in section 1 of P.L.1966, c.39 (C.56:8-13) and section 2 of P.L.1999, c.129 (C.56:8-14.3) unless the exception set forth in section 5 of the bill is applicable.
The bill provides that the costs of producing and distributing educational materials and conducting educational activities relating to the promotion of the "do not sell" list and all related costs and expenditures incurred in the administration of the bill shall be paid for from a fund consisting of fees and penalties collected pursuant to the provisions of the bill.
