AL
Alabama Senate Bill SB329

Alabama 2023 Regular Session

Alabama Senate Bill SB329 Compare Versions

The same version is selected twice. Please select two different versions to compare.
OldNewDifferences
11 SB329INTRODUCED
22 Page 0
33 LPH7AW-1
44 By Senator Barfoot
55 RFD: Judiciary
66 First Read: 16-May-23
77 2023 Regular Session
88 1
99 2
1010 3
1111 4
1212 5 LPH7AW-1 05/16/2023 CNB (L)bm 2023-1979
1313 Page 1
1414 SYNOPSIS:
1515 This bill creates the Judicial Privacy Act.
1616 This bill would prohibit government agencies,
1717 individuals, businesses, and associations from publicly
1818 posting or displaying judge's or justice's personally
1919 identifiable information on the Internet, provided they
2020 have received a written request from the judge or
2121 justice to refrain from doing so.
2222 This bill would prohibit commercial data
2323 collectors from knowingly selling, trading, licensing,
2424 transferring, or purchasing judges' personally
2525 identifiable information.
2626 This bill would provide for a process for judges
2727 and justices to request their personal information not
2828 be made public.
2929 This bill would also provide for penalties for
3030 violations.
3131 Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of
3232 2022, prohibits a general law whose purpose or effect
3333 would be to require a new or increased expenditure of
3434 local funds from becoming effective with regard to a
3535 local governmental entity without enactment by a 2/3
3636 vote unless: it comes within one of a number of
3737 specified exceptions; it is approved by the affected
3838 entity; or the Legislature appropriates funds, or
3939 1
4040 2
4141 3
4242 4
4343 5
4444 6
4545 7
4646 8
4747 9
4848 10
4949 11
5050 12
5151 13
5252 14
5353 15
5454 16
5555 17
5656 18
5757 19
5858 20
5959 21
6060 22
6161 23
6262 24
6363 25
6464 26
6565 27
6666 28 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
6767 Page 2
6868 provides a local source of revenue, to the entity for
6969 the purpose.
7070 The purpose or effect of this bill would be to
7171 require a new or increased expenditure of local funds
7272 within the meaning of the amendment. However, the bill
7373 does not require approval of a local governmental
7474 entity or enactment by a 2/3 vote to become effective
7575 because it comes within one of the specified exceptions
7676 contained in the amendment.
7777 A BILL
7878 TO BE ENTITLED
7979 AN ACT
8080 Relating to judges and justices; to prohibit government
8181 agencies, individuals, businesses, and associations from
8282 publicly posting or displaying judge's or justice's personally
8383 identifiable information on the Internet, provided they have
8484 received a written request from the judge or justice to
8585 refrain from doing so; to prohibit commercial data collectors
8686 from knowingly selling, trading, licensing, transferring, or
8787 purchasing judges' personally identifiable information; to
8888 provide for a process for a judge or justice to request their
8989 personal information not be made public; to provide for
9090 penalties for violations; and in connection therewith would
9191 have as its purpose or effect the requirement of a new or
9292 increased expenditure of local funds within the meaning of
9393 29
9494 30
9595 31
9696 32
9797 33
9898 34
9999 35
100100 36
101101 37
102102 38
103103 39
104104 40
105105 41
106106 42
107107 43
108108 44
109109 45
110110 46
111111 47
112112 48
113113 49
114114 50
115115 51
116116 52
117117 53
118118 54
119119 55
120120 56 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
121121 Page 3
122122 Section 111.05 of the Constitution of Alabama of 2022.
123123 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF ALABAMA:
124124 Section 1. This act shall be known as and may be cited
125125 as the Judicial Privacy Act.
126126 Section 2. As used in this section, the following terms
127127 have the following meanings:
128128 (1) DATA BROKER.
129129 a. A commercial entity engaged in collecting,
130130 assembling, or maintaining personal information concerning an
131131 individual who is not a customer, client, or an employee of
132132 that entity in order to sell the information or otherwise
133133 profit from providing third-party access to the information.
134134 b. The term does not include a commercial entity
135135 engaged in any of the following activities:
136136 1. Reporting, news-gathering, speaking, or other
137137 activities intended to inform the public on matters of public
138138 interest or concern.
139139 2. Providing 411 directory assistance or directory
140140 information services, including name, address, and telephone
141141 number, on behalf of or as a function of a telecommunications
142142 carrier.
143143 3. Providing publicly available content via real-time
144144 or near-real-time alert services for health or safety
145145 purposes.
146146 (2) GOVERNMENT AGENCY. An executive, legislative, or
147147 judicial agency, department, board, commission, authority,
148148 institution, or instrumentality of the federal government or
149149 of a state or of a county, municipality, or other political
150150 57
151151 58
152152 59
153153 60
154154 61
155155 62
156156 63
157157 64
158158 65
159159 66
160160 67
161161 68
162162 69
163163 70
164164 71
165165 72
166166 73
167167 74
168168 75
169169 76
170170 77
171171 78
172172 79
173173 80
174174 81
175175 82
176176 83
177177 84 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
178178 Page 4
179179 subdivision of a state.
180180 (3) IMMEDIATE FAMILY. A judicial officer's spouse,
181181 child, parent, or any other relative of the judicial officer
182182 or the judicial officer's spouse who lives in the same
183183 residence.
184184 (4) JUDICIAL OFFICER. Any individual who is currently
185185 serving as, or has previously served as, any of the following:
186186 a. Justice the Alabama Supreme Court.
187187 b. Judge of the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals.
188188 c. Judge of the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals.
189189 d. Judge of an Alabama Circuit Court.
190190 e. Judge of an Alabama District Court.
191191 f. Judge of an Alabama Probate Court.
192192 g. Judge of an Alabama Municipal Court.
193193 (5) PERSON. Includes an individual, business, or
194194 association.
195195 (6) PERSONAL INFORMATION. Includes, but is not limited
196196 to, all of the following:
197197 a. Home address, including primary residence, secondary
198198 residences, or an investment property.
199199 b. Phone number, including a home number, a personal
200200 cell number, a state-issued cell phone number, or a private
201201 extension in the chambers of a judicial officer.
202202 c. Personal email address.
203203 d. Social Security number.
204204 e. Date of birth.
205205 f. Driver license number.
206206 g. Bank account information.
207207 85
208208 86
209209 87
210210 88
211211 89
212212 90
213213 91
214214 92
215215 93
216216 94
217217 95
218218 96
219219 97
220220 98
221221 99
222222 100
223223 101
224224 102
225225 103
226226 104
227227 105
228228 106
229229 107
230230 108
231231 109
232232 110
233233 111
234234 112 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
235235 Page 5
236236 h. Credit or debit card information.
237237 i. License plate number.
238238 j. Name or address of a school or day care facility
239239 attended by the judicial officer's immediate family.
240240 k. A photograph of any vehicle that legibly displays
241241 the license plate of the judicial officer.
242242 l. A photograph of a residence of the judicial officer
243243 that legibly displays the address of the residence.
244244 m. Name or address of an employer of the judicial
245245 officer's immediate family.
246246 (7) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE CONTENT. Any written, printed,
247247 or electronic document or record that is maintained,
248248 controlled, or in possession of a government agency that may
249249 be obtained by any individual or entity from the Internet,
250250 from the government agency upon request either free of charge
251251 or for a fee, or in response to a request under the Freedom of
252252 Information Act.
253253 (8) PUBLICLY POST OR DISPLAY. To communicate to another
254254 or otherwise make available to the public.
255255 Section 3. (a) Government agencies shall not publicly
256256 post or display publicly available content that includes the
257257 personal information of a judicial officer or his or her
258258 immediate family, provided that the government agency has
259259 received a written request in accordance with Section 6.
260260 (b)(1) After a government agency has received a
261261 written request, the government agency shall remove the
262262 judicial officer's and his or her immediate family's personal
263263 information from publicly available content within five
264264 113
265265 114
266266 115
267267 116
268268 117
269269 118
270270 119
271271 120
272272 121
273273 122
274274 123
275275 124
276276 125
277277 126
278278 127
279279 128
280280 129
281281 130
282282 131
283283 132
284284 133
285285 134
286286 135
287287 136
288288 137
289289 138
290290 139
291291 140 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
292292 Page 6
293293 business days of such receipt.
294294 (2) After the government agency has removed the
295295 judicial officer's and his or her immediate family's personal
296296 information from publicly available content, the governmental
297297 agency shall not publicly post or display the personal
298298 information. Additionally, the judicial officer's and his or
299299 her immediate family's personal information shall confidential
300300 and not be considered a public record for purposes of Article
301301 3 of Chapter 11 of Title 40, Code of Alabama 1975, unless the
302302 government agency has received consent from the judicial
303303 officer to make the personal information a public record.
304304 (c) If a government agency fails to comply with a
305305 written request to refrain from disclosing personal
306306 information, the judicial officer may bring an action seeking
307307 injunctive or declaratory relief in any court of competent
308308 jurisdiction.
309309 Section 4. (a) A person shall not publicly post or
310310 display on the Internet the personal information of a judicial
311311 officer or his or her immediate family, provided the judicial
312312 officer has made a written request to the individual,
313313 business, or association that it refrain from disclosing the
314314 judicial officer's or his or her immediate family's personal
315315 information in accordance with Section 6.
316316 (b) Subsection (a) shall not apply to any of the
317317 following:
318318 (1) The display on the Internet of personal information
319319 of a judicial officer or the immediate family if the
320320 information is relevant to and displayed as part of a news
321321 141
322322 142
323323 143
324324 144
325325 145
326326 146
327327 147
328328 148
329329 149
330330 150
331331 151
332332 152
333333 153
334334 154
335335 155
336336 156
337337 157
338338 158
339339 159
340340 160
341341 161
342342 162
343343 163
344344 164
345345 165
346346 166
347347 167
348348 168 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
349349 Page 7
350350 story, commentary, editorial, or other speech on a matter of
351351 public concern.
352352 (2) Personal information that a judicial officer
353353 voluntarily publishes on the Internet.
354354 (3) Personal information received from a federal or
355355 state government source, or from an employee or agent of the
356356 state or federal government.
357357 (c) After a person has received a written request from
358358 a judicial officer to protect the privacy of the personal
359359 information of the judicial officer and his or her immediate
360360 family, the person shall have 72 hours after the receipt of
361361 such request to remove the personal information from the
362362 Internet.
363363 (d) After a person has received a written request from
364364 a judicial officer, that person shall ensure that the judicial
365365 officer's and his or her immediate family member's personal
366366 information is not made available on any website or subsidiary
367367 website controlled by that person.
368368 (e) After receiving a written request from a judicial
369369 officer, no person shall transfer the judicial officer's or
370370 his or her immediate family's personal information to any
371371 other person.
372372 (f)(1) If a person fails to comply with a written
373373 request to refrain from disclosing personal information, the
374374 judicial officer may bring an action seeking injunctive or
375375 declaratory relief in any court of competent jurisdiction.
376376 (2) If the court grants injunctive or declaratory
377377 relief, the person responsible for the violation shall be
378378 169
379379 170
380380 171
381381 172
382382 173
383383 174
384384 175
385385 176
386386 177
387387 178
388388 179
389389 180
390390 181
391391 182
392392 183
393393 184
394394 185
395395 186
396396 187
397397 188
398398 189
399399 190
400400 191
401401 192
402402 193
403403 194
404404 195
405405 196 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
406406 Page 8
407407 required to pay the judicial officer's court costs and
408408 reasonable attorney's fees.
409409 Section 5. (a) It shall be unlawful for a data broker
410410 to knowingly sell, license, trade for consideration, or
411411 purchase the personal information of a judicial officer or his
412412 or her immediate family.
413413 (b)(1) If a data broker violates this section, the
414414 judicial officer may bring an action seeking injunctive or
415415 declaratory relief in any court of competent jurisdiction.
416416 (2) If the court grants injunctive or declaratory
417417 relief, the data broker responsible for the violation shall be
418418 required to pay the judicial officer's court costs and
419419 reasonable attorney's fees.
420420 Section 6. (a) No government agency or person shall be
421421 found to have violated any provision of this act if the
422422 judicial officer fails to submit a written request calling for
423423 the protection of his or her personal information.
424424 (b) A written request shall be valid if the judicial
425425 officer satisfies either of the following:
426426 (1) Sends a written request directly to a government
427427 agency or person.
428428 (2) Sends a request to the Administrative Office of
429429 Courts on a form developed and maintained by the Alabama
430430 Administrative Office of Courts. The Alabama Administrative
431431 Office of Courts shall use that form to notify government
432432 agencies of a judicial officer's request to remove his or her
433433 personal information and his or her immediate family. Every
434434 three months, the Alabama Administrative Office of Courts
435435 197
436436 198
437437 199
438438 200
439439 201
440440 202
441441 203
442442 204
443443 205
444444 206
445445 207
446446 208
447447 209
448448 210
449449 211
450450 212
451451 213
452452 214
453453 215
454454 216
455455 217
456456 218
457457 219
458458 220
459459 221
460460 222
461461 223
462462 224 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
463463 Page 9
464464 shall provide a list to the appropriate officer with
465465 supervisory authority for a government agency of all judicial
466466 officers who have submitted a written request to it. The
467467 officer shall promptly provide a copy of the list to all
468468 government agencies under his or her supervision. Receipt of
469469 the written request list compiled by the Alabama
470470 Administrative Office of Courts by a government agency shall
471471 constitute a written request to that agency for the purposes
472472 of this act.
473473 (c) A representative from the judicial officer's
474474 employer may submit a written request on the judicial
475475 officer's behalf if the judicial officer gives written consent
476476 to the representative and the representative agrees to furnish
477477 a copy of that consent when a written request is made. The
478478 representative shall submit the written request as provided in
479479 subsection (b).
480480 (d) A judicial officer's written request shall specify
481481 all of the following:
482482 (1) What personal information shall be kept private.
483483 (2) The identity of the officer's immediate family and
484484 indicate that the personal information of these family members
485485 shall also be excluded to the extent that it could reasonably
486486 be expected to reveal the personal information of the judicial
487487 officer.
488488 (3) If a judicial officer wishes to identify a
489489 secondary residence or an investment property as a home
490490 address, the designation shall be made in the written request.
491491 (e) A judicial officer's written request is valid until
492492 225
493493 226
494494 227
495495 228
496496 229
497497 230
498498 231
499499 232
500500 233
501501 234
502502 235
503503 236
504504 237
505505 238
506506 239
507507 240
508508 241
509509 242
510510 243
511511 244
512512 245
513513 246
514514 247
515515 248
516516 249
517517 250
518518 251
519519 252 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
520520 Page 10
521521 the judicial officer provides the government agency,
522522 individual, business, or association with written permission
523523 to release private information. A judicial officer's written
524524 request expires on his or her death.
525525 Section 7. (a) It is unlawful for a person to knowingly
526526 publicly post on the Internet the personal information of a
527527 judicial officer or the judicial officer's immediate family if
528528 the individual knows or should have known that publicly
529529 posting the personal information poses an imminent and serious
530530 threat to the health and safety of the judicial officer or the
531531 judicial officer's immediate family, and the violation is a
532532 proximate cause of bodily injury or death of the judicial
533533 officer or a member of the judicial officer's immediate
534534 family.
535535 (b) A violation of this section is a Class C felony.
536536 Section 8.Provided that the employee of a government
537537 agency has complied with the conditions set forth in Sections
538538 3 through 6, it is not a violation of this section if an
539539 employee of a government agency publishes personal
540540 information, in good faith, on the website of the government
541541 agency in the ordinary course of carrying out public
542542 functions.
543543 Section 9. Although this bill would have as its purpose
544544 or effect the requirement of a new or increased expenditure of
545545 local funds, the bill is excluded from further requirements
546546 and application under Section 111.05 of the Constitution of
547547 Alabama of 2022, because the bill defines a new crime or
548548 amends the definition of an existing crime.
549549 253
550550 254
551551 255
552552 256
553553 257
554554 258
555555 259
556556 260
557557 261
558558 262
559559 263
560560 264
561561 265
562562 266
563563 267
564564 268
565565 269
566566 270
567567 271
568568 272
569569 273
570570 274
571571 275
572572 276
573573 277
574574 278
575575 279
576576 280 SB329 INTRODUCEDSB329 INTRODUCED
577577 Page 11
578578 Section 10. This act shall become effective on the
579579 first day of the third month following its passage and
580580 approval by the Governor, or its otherwise becoming law.
581581 281
582582 282
583583 283