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| 2 | 2 | | SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1242 FILED ON: 1/15/2025 |
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| 3 | 3 | | SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1156 |
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| 4 | 4 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 5 | 5 | | _________________ |
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| 6 | 6 | | PRESENTED BY: |
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| 7 | 7 | | Jason M. Lewis |
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| 8 | 8 | | _________________ |
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| 9 | 9 | | To the Honorable Senate and House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General |
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| 10 | 10 | | Court assembled: |
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| 11 | 11 | | The undersigned legislators and/or citizens respectfully petition for the adoption of the accompanying bill: |
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| 12 | 12 | | An Act to protect the privacy of 911 callers. |
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| 13 | 13 | | _______________ |
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| 14 | 14 | | PETITION OF: |
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| 15 | 15 | | NAME:DISTRICT/ADDRESS :Jason M. LewisFifth MiddlesexBrian W. Murray10th Worcester1/27/2025James K. Hawkins2nd Bristol1/27/2025Erika Uyterhoeven27th Middlesex1/29/2025William J. Driscoll, Jr.Norfolk, Plymouth and Bristol3/10/2025 1 of 2 |
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| 16 | 16 | | SENATE DOCKET, NO. 1242 FILED ON: 1/15/2025 |
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| 17 | 17 | | SENATE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . No. 1156 |
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| 18 | 18 | | By Mr. Lewis, a petition (accompanied by bill, Senate, No. 1156) of Jason M. Lewis, Brian W. |
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| 19 | 19 | | Murray, James K. Hawkins, Erika Uyterhoeven and others for legislation to protect the privacy |
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| 20 | 20 | | of 911 callers. The Judiciary. |
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| 21 | 21 | | [SIMILAR MATTER FILED IN PREVIOUS SESSION |
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| 22 | 22 | | SEE SENATE, NO. 1022 OF 2023-2024.] |
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| 23 | 23 | | The Commonwealth of Massachusetts |
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| 24 | 24 | | _______________ |
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| 25 | 25 | | In the One Hundred and Ninety-Fourth General Court |
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| 26 | 26 | | (2025-2026) |
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| 27 | 27 | | _______________ |
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| 28 | 28 | | An Act to protect the privacy of 911 callers. |
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| 29 | 29 | | Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court assembled, and by the authority |
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| 30 | 30 | | of the same, as follows: |
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| 31 | 31 | | 1 Chapter 6A of the General Laws is hereby amended by adding the following section:- |
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| 32 | 32 | | 2 Section 18BB. The audio recording of a call placed to a 911 system for the purpose of |
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| 33 | 33 | | 3requesting service from a law enforcement, fire, or medical agency is private data on individuals |
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| 34 | 34 | | 4with respect to the individual making the call, except that a written transcript of the audio |
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| 35 | 35 | | 5recording is public. A transcript shall be prepared upon request. The person requesting the |
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| 36 | 36 | | 6transcript shall pay the actual cost of transcribing the call, in addition to any other applicable |
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| 37 | 37 | | 7costs for transcript preparation. The audio recording may be disseminated to law enforcement |
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| 38 | 38 | | 8agencies for investigative purposes. The audio recording may be used for public safety and |
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| 39 | 39 | | 9emergency medical services training purposes. 2 of 2 |
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| 40 | 40 | | 10 The release of the audio recording of a 911 telephone call without the express written |
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| 41 | 41 | | 11consent of the caller or the caller’s legal representative shall be prohibited, except pursuant to a |
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| 42 | 42 | | 12court order finding that the right of the public to the release of the recording outweighs the |
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| 43 | 43 | | 13privacy interests of the individual who made the 911 call or any person involved in the facts or |
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| 44 | 44 | | 14circumstances relating to the 911 call. This section shall not apply to law enforcement personnel |
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| 45 | 45 | | 15conducting an investigation where the 911 telephone call is or may be relevant to the |
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| 46 | 46 | | 16investigation. |
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