2023 -- H 6236
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LC002702
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S T A T E O F R H O D E I S L A N D
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2023
____________
A N A C T
RELATING TO COMMERCI AL LAW -- GENERAL REGULATORY PROVISION S --
RHODE ISLAND DATA TRANSPARENCY AND PRIVA CY PROTECTION ACT
Introduced By: Representatives Shanley, Edwards, Solomon, Baginski, and
Marszalkowski
Date Introduced: March 30, 2023
Referred To: House Innovation, Internet, & Technology
It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:
SECTION 1. Title 6 of the General Laws entitled "COMMERCIAL LAW — GENERAL 1
REGULATORY PROVISIONS" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter: 2
CHAPTER 48.1 3
RHODE ISLAND DATA TRANSPARENCY AND PRIVACY PROTECTION ACT 4
6-48.1-1. Short title. 5
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Rhode Island Data Transparency and 6
Privacy Protection Act." 7
6-48.1-2. Legislative findings. 8
The general assembly hereby finds and declares that: 9
(1) The right to privacy is a personal and fundamental right protected by the United States 10
Constitution. As such, all individuals have a right to privacy in information pertaining to them. This 11
state recognizes the importance of providing customers with transparency about how their 12
personally identifiable information, especially information relating to their children, is shared by 13
businesses. This transparency is crucial for Rhode Island citizens to protect themselves and their 14
families from cyber-crimes and identity thieves. 15
(2) Furthermore, for free market forces to have a role in shaping the privacy practices and 16
for "opt-in" and "opt-out" remedies to be effective, customers must be more than vaguely informed 17
that a business might share personally identifiable information with third parties (as that term is 18
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hereinafter defined). Customers must be better informed about what kinds of personally identifiable 1
information is shared with other businesses. With these specifics, customers can knowledgeably 2
choose to opt in, opt out, or choose among businesses that disclose (as that term is hereinafter 3
defined) personally identifiable information to third parties on the basis of how protective the 4
business is of customers' privacy. 5
(3) Businesses are now collecting personally identifiable information and disclosing it in 6
ways not contemplated or properly covered by the current law. Some websites are installing 7
tracking tools that record when customers visit webpages, and sending personally identifiable 8
information, such as age, gender, race, income, health concerns, religion, and recent purchases to 9
third-party marketers and data brokers. Third-party data broker companies are buying and 10
disclosing personally identifiable information obtained from mobile phones, financial institutions, 11
social media sites, and other online and brick and mortar companies. Some mobile applications are 12
sharing personally identifiable information, such as location information, unique phone 13
identification numbers, age, gender, and other personal details with third-party companies. 14
(4) As such, customers need to know the ways that their personally identifiable information 15
is being collected by companies and then shared or sold to third parties in order to properly protect 16
their privacy, personal safety, and financial security. 17
6-48.1-3. Definitions. 18
As used in this chapter: 19
(1) "Affiliate" means any entity that, directly or indirectly, controls, is controlled by, or is 20
under common control with, the entity that has disclosed personally identifiable information to it. 21
For this purpose, “control” or “controlled” means ownership of, or the power to vote, more than 22
fifty percent (50%) of the outstanding shares of any class of voting security of a company, control 23
in any manner over the election of a majority of the directors or of individuals exercising similar 24
functions, or the power to exercise controlling influence over the management of a company. 25
(2) "Authenticate" means to use reasonable means to determine that request to exercise any 26
of the rights afforded under this chapter is being made by, or on behalf of, the customer who is 27
entitled to exercise such customer rights with respect to the personal data at issue. 28
(3) "Biometric data" means data generated by automatic measurements of an individual's 29
biological characteristics, such as a fingerprint, a voiceprint, eye retinas, irises or other unique 30
biological patterns or characteristics that are used to identify a specific individual. "Biometric data" 31
does not include a digital or physical photograph, an audio or video recording, or any data generated 32
from a digital or physical photograph, or an audio or video recording, unless such data is generated 33
to identify a specific individual. 34
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(4) “Business associate” has the same meaning as provided in HIPAA. 1
(5) “Child” has the same meaning as provided in COPPA. 2
(6) "Consent" means a clear affirmative act signifying a customer freely given, specific, 3
informed and unambiguous agreement to allow the processing of personal data relating to the 4
customer. "Consent" may include a written statement, including by electronic means, or any other 5
unambiguous affirmative action. "Consent" does not include acceptance of a general or broad term 6
of use or similar document that contains descriptions of personal data processing along with other, 7
unrelated information, hovering over, muting, pausing or closing a given piece of content, or 8
agreement obtained through the use of dark patterns. 9
(7) "Controller" means an individual who, or legal entity that, alone or jointly with others 10
determines the purpose and means of processing personal data. 11
(8) "COPPA" means the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998, 15 USC 6501 12
et seq., and the regulations, rules, guidance and exemptions adopted, pursuant to said act, as said 13
act and such regulations, rules, guidance and exemptions may be amended from time to time. 14
(9) "Covered entity" has the same meaning as provided in HIPAA. 15
(10) "Customer" means an individual residing in this state who provides, either knowingly 16
or unknowingly, personally identifiable information to any entity, with or without an exchange of 17
consideration, in the course of purchasing, viewing, accessing, renting, leasing, or otherwise using 18
real or personal property, or any interest therein, or obtaining a product or service, including 19
advertising or any other content. "Customer" does not include an individual acting in a commercial 20
or employment context or as an employee, owner, director, officer or contractor of a company, 21
partnership, sole proprietorship, nonprofit or government agency whose communications or 22
transactions with the controller occur solely within the context of that individual's role with the 23
company, partnership, sole proprietorship, nonprofit or government agency. 24
(11) “Dark pattern" means a user interface designed or manipulated with the substantial 25
effect of subverting or impairing user autonomy, decision-making or choice, and includes, but is 26
not limited to, any practice the Federal Trade Commission refers to as a "dark pattern". 27
(12) "Decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects concerning the customer" 28
means decisions made by the controller that result in the provision or denial by the controller of 29
financial or lending services, housing, insurance, education enrollment or opportunity, criminal 30
justice, employment opportunities, health care services or access to essential goods or services. 31
(13) "De-identified data" means data that cannot reasonably be used to infer information 32
about, or otherwise be linked to, an identified or identifiable individual, or a device linked to such 33
individual, if the controller that possesses such data takes reasonable measures to ensure that such 34
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data cannot be associated with an individual, publicly commits to process such data only in a de-1
identified fashion and not attempt to re-identify such data, and contractually obligates any 2
recipients of such data. 3
(14) "Disclose" means to sell, release, transfer, share, disseminate, make available, or 4
otherwise communicate orally, in writing, or by electronic means or any other means to any 5
individual or third party in exchange for anything of value. "Disclose" does not include the 6
following: 7
(i) Disclosure to an affiliate; provided that, the affiliate does not disclose the personally 8
identifiable information to any third party; 9
(ii) Disclosure of personally identifiable information by any entity to a third party under a 10
written contract authorizing the third party to utilize the personally identifiable information to 11
perform services on behalf of such entity, including maintaining or servicing accounts, providing 12
customer service, processing or fulfilling orders and transactions, verifying customer information, 13
processing payments, providing financing, or similar services, but only if: 14
(A) The contract prohibits the third party from using the personally identifiable information 15
for any reason other than performing the specified service or services on behalf of such entity and 16
from disclosing any such personally identifiable information to additional third parties; and 17
(B) The entity effectively enforces these prohibitions; 18
(iii) Disclosure of personally identifiable information by a business to a third party based 19
on a good-faith belief that disclosure is required to comply with applicable law, regulation, legal 20
process, or court order; or 21
(iv) Disclosure of personally identifiable information by any entity to a third party that is 22
reasonably necessary to address fraud, security, or technical issues; to protect the disclosing entity's 23
rights or property; or to protect customers or the public from illegal activities as required or 24
permitted by law. 25
(15) "HIPAA" means the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, 42 26
USC 1320d et seq., as amended from time to time. 27
(16) "Identified or identifiable individual" means an individual who can be readily 28
identified, directly or indirectly. 29
(17) "Institution of higher education" means any individual who, or school, board, 30
association, limited liability company or corporation that, is licensed or accredited to offer one or 31
more programs of higher learning leading to one or more degrees. 32
(18) "Nonprofit organization" means any organization that is exempt from taxation under 33
Section 501(c)(3), 501(c)(4), 501(c)(6) or 501(c)(12) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, or any 34
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subsequent corresponding internal revenue code of the United States, as amended from time to 1
time. 2
(19) "Operator" means any person or entity that owns a website located on the Internet or 3
an online service that collects and maintains personally identifiable information from a customer 4
residing in this state who uses or visits the website or online service, if the website or online service 5
is operated for commercial purposes. It does not include any third party that operates, hosts, or 6
manages, but does not own, a website or online service on the owner's behalf or by processing 7
information on behalf of the owner. "Operator" does not include businesses having ten (10) or fewer 8
employees, or any third party that operates, hosts, or manages, but does not own, a website or online 9
service on the owner’s behalf or by processing information on behalf of the owner. 10
(20) "Personally identifiable information" or "personal information" means any 11
information that is linked or reasonably linkable to an identified or identifiable individual. 12
"Personal data" does not include de-identified data or publicly available information, means an 13
individual's first name or first initial and last name in combination with any one or more of the 14
following data elements, when the name and the data elements are not either encrypted or utilizing 15
a protocol that provides a higher degree of security or are in hard copy, paper format: 16
(i) Social security number; 17
(ii) Driver's license number, passport number, Rhode Island identification card number, or 18
tribal identification number; 19
(iii) Account number, credit or debit card number, in combination with any required 20
security code, access code, password, or personal identification number, that would permit access 21
to an individual's financial account; 22
(iv) Medical or health insurance information; 23
(v) Email address with any required security code, access code, or password that would 24
permit access to an individual's personal, medical, insurance, or financial account; or 25
(vi) Biometric data. 26
(21) "Precise geolocation data" means information derived from technology, including, but 27
not limited to, global positioning system level latitude and longitude coordinates or other 28
mechanisms, that directly identifies the specific location of an individual with precision and 29
accuracy within a radius of one thousand seven hundred fifty feet (1,750'). "Precise geolocation 30
data" does not include the content of communications or any data generated by or connected to 31
advanced utility metering infrastructure systems or equipment for use by a utility. 32
(22) "Process" or "processing" means any operation or set of operations performed, 33
whether by manual or automated means, on personal data or on sets of personal data, such as the 34
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collection, use, storage, disclosure, analysis, deletion or modification of personal data. "Processor" 1
means an individual who, or legal entity that, processes personal data on behalf of a controller. 2
(23) "Profiling" means any form of automated processing performed on personal data to 3
evaluate, analyze or predict personal aspects related to an identified or identifiable individual's 4
economic situation, health, personal preferences, interests, reliability, behavior, location or 5
movements. 6
(24) "Protected health information" has the same meaning as provided in HIPAA. 7
(25) "Pseudonymous data" means personal data that cannot be attributed to a specific 8
individual without the use of additional information; provided such additional information is kept 9
separately and is subject to appropriate technical and organizational measures to ensure that the 10
personal data is not attributed to an identified or identifiable individual. 11
(26) "Publicly available information" means information that is lawfully made available 12
through federal, state or municipal government records or widely distributed media, and a controller 13
has a reasonable basis to believe a customer has lawfully made available to the general public. 14
(27) "Sale of personal data" means the exchange of personal data for monetary or other 15
valuable consideration by the controller to a third party. "Sale of personal data" does not include 16
the disclosure of personal data to a processor that processes the personal data on behalf of the 17
controller, the disclosure of personal data to a third party for purposes of providing a product or 18
service requested by the customer, the disclosure or transfer of personal data to an affiliate of the 19
controller, the disclosure of personal data where the customer directs the controller to disclose the 20
personal data or intentionally us the controller to interact with a third party, the disclosure of 21
personal data that the customer: 22
(i) Intentionally made available to the general public via a channel of mass media; and 23
(ii) Did not restrict to a specific audience, or the disclosure or transfer of personal data to 24
a third party as an asset that is part of a merger, acquisition, bankruptcy or other transaction, or a 25
proposed merger, acquisition, bankruptcy or other transaction, in which the third party assumes 26
control of all or part of the controller's assets. 27
(28) "Sensitive data" means personal data that includes data revealing racial or ethnic 28
origin, religious beliefs, mental or physical health condition or diagnosis, sex life, sexual orientation 29
or citizenship or immigration status, the processing of genetic or biometric data for the purpose of 30
uniquely identifying an individual, personal data collected from a known child, or precise 31
geolocation data. 32
(29) "Targeted advertising" means displaying advertisements to a customer where the 33
advertisement is selected based on personal data obtained or inferred from that customer's activities 34
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over time and across nonaffiliated Internet websites or online applications to predict such 1
customer's preferences or interests. "Targeted advertising" does not include advertisements based 2
on activities within a controller's own Internet websites or online applications, advertisements 3
based on the context of a customer's current search query, visit to an Internet website or online 4
application, advertisements directed to a customer in response to the customer's request for 5
information or feedback, or processing personal data solely to measure or report advertising 6
frequency, performance or reach. 7
(30) "Third party" means an individual or legal entity, such as a public authority, agency 8
or body, other than the customer, controller or processor or an affiliate of the processor or the 9
controller. "Third party" also means any entity that is a separate legal entity from the entity that has 10
disclosed the personally identifiable information; provided, however, that an affiliate of the entity 11
that has disclosed the personally identifiable information shall not be considered a third party. 12
(31) "Trade secret" mean information that has either actual or potential independent 13
economic value by virtue of not being generally known, has value to others who cannot legitimately 14
obtain the information, and subject to reasonable efforts to maintain its secrecy. 15
6-48.1-4. Information sharing practices. 16
(a) An operator of a commercial website or online service that collects, stores and sells 17
categories of personally identifiable information through the Internet about individual customers 18
residing in this state who use or visit its commercial website or online service shall, in its customer 19
agreement or incorporated addendum or in another conspicuous location on its website or online 20
service platform where similar notices are customarily posted: 21
(1) Identify all categories of personally identifiable information that the operator collects 22
through the website or online service about individual customers who use or visit its commercial 23
website or online service; and 24
(2) Identify all third-party persons or entities with whom the operator may disclose that 25
personally identifiable information. 26
(b) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to authorize the collection, storage or 27
disclosure of information or data that is otherwise prohibited, restricted or regulated by state or 28
federal law. 29
(c) An operator shall limit the collection of personal data to what is adequate, relevant and 30
reasonably necessary in relation to the purposes for which data is processed, as disclosed to the 31
customer. The operator shall not process personal data for purposes that are not reasonably 32
necessary to, nor compatible with, the disclosed purposes for which such personal data is processed, 33
as disclosed to the customer, unless the controller obtains the customer’s consent. 34
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(d) Collection of data for bona fide loyalty, rewards, premium features, discount or club 1
card programs that customers voluntarily participate and consent to using identifiable information 2
shall be exempt. 3
(e) This chapter does not apply to any body, authority, board, bureau, commission, district 4
or agency of this state or any political subdivision of this state; nonprofit organization; institution 5
of higher education; national securities association that is registered under 15 USC 78o-3 of the 6
Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended from time to time; financial institution or data subject 7
to Title V of the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, 15 USC 6801 et seq.; or covered entity or business 8
associate, as defined in 45 CFR 160.103. 9
(f) The following information and data are exempt from the provisions of this chapter: 10
(1) Protected health information under HIPAA; 11
(2) Patient-identifying information for purposes of 42 USC 290dd-2; 12
(3) Identifiable private information for purposes of the federal policy for the protection of 13
human subjects under 45 CFR 46; 14
(4) Identifiable private information that is otherwise information collected as part of human 15
subjects research pursuant to the good clinical practice guidelines issued by the International 16
Council for Harmonization of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use; 17
(5) The protection of human subjects under 21 CFR Parts 6, 50 and 56, or personal data 18
used or shared in research, as defined in 45 CFR 164.501 or other research conducted in accordance 19
with applicable law; 20
(6) Information and documents created for purposes of the Health Care Quality 21
Improvement Act of 1986, 42 USC 11101 et seq.; 22
(7) Patient safety work product for purposes of section 19a-127o of the general statutes and 23
the Patient Safety and Quality Improvement Act, 42 USC 299b-21 et seq., as amended from time 24
to time; 25
(8) Information derived from any of the health care related information listed in this 26
subsection that is de-identified in accordance with the requirements for de-identification pursuant 27
to HIPAA; 28
(9) Information originating from and intermingled to be indistinguishable with, or 29
information treated in the same manner as, information exempt under this subsection that is 30
maintained by a covered entity or business associate, program or qualified service organization, as 31
specified in 42 USC 290dd-2, as amended from time to time; 32
(10) Information used for public health activities and purposes as authorized by HIPAA, 33
community health activities and population health activities; 34
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(11) The collection, maintenance, disclosure, sale, communication or use of any personal 1
information bearing on a customer's credit worthiness, credit standing, credit capacity, character, 2
general reputation, personal characteristics or mode of living by a customer reporting agency, 3
furnisher or user that provides information for use in a customer report, and by a user of a customer 4
report, but only to the extent that such activity is regulated by and authorized under the Fair Credit 5
Reporting Act, 15 USC 1681 et seq., as amended from time to time; 6
(12) Personal data collected, processed, sold or disclosed in compliance with the Driver's 7
Privacy Protection Act of 1994, 18 USC 2721 et seq., as amended from time to time; 8
(13) Personal data regulated by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 USC 9
1232g et seq., as amended from time to time; 10
(14) Personal data collected, processed, sold or disclosed in compliance with the Farm 11
Credit Act, 12 USC 2001 et seq., as amended from time to time; 12
(15) Data processed or maintained in the course of an individual applying to, employed by 13
or acting as an agent or independent contractor of a controller, processor or third party, to the extent 14
that the data is collected and used within the context of that role, as the emergency contact 15
information of an individual or that is necessary to retain to administer benefits for another 16
individual relating to the individual who is the subject of the information under this subsection and 17
used for the purposes of administering such benefits; and 18
(16) Personal data collected, processed, sold or disclosed in relation to price, route or 19
service, as such terms are used in the Airline Deregulation Act, 49 USC 40101 et seq., as amended 20
from time to time, by an air carrier subject to said act, to the extent sections 1 to 11, inclusive, of 21
this chapter are preempted by the Airline Deregulation Act, 49 USC 41713, as amended from time 22
to time. 23
6-48.1-5. Processing of information. 24
(a) The operator shall establish, implement, and maintain reasonable administrative, 25
technical and physical data security practices to protect the confidentiality, integrity and 26
accessibility of personal data. 27
(b) The operator shall not process sensitive data concerning a customer without obtaining 28
customer consent and shall not process sensitive data of a child unless consent is obtained and the 29
information is processed in accordance with COPPA. 30
(c) The operator shall not process personal data in violation of the laws of this state and 31
federal laws that prohibit unlawful discrimination against customers. 32
(d) The operator shall provide the customer with a mechanism to grant and revoke consent. 33
Upon revocation of the consent the operator shall not process the data as soon as practicable, but 34
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no later than ten (10) days after the receipt of the request. 1
(e) The operator shall not process the personal data of a customer for targeted advertising, 2
or sell the customer’s personal data without the customer’s consent. No operator shall process or 3
sell the personal data of a customer that is a minor. 4
6-48.1-6. Customer rights. 5
(a) No operator shall discriminate against a customer for exercising their customer rights. 6
(b) No operator shall deny goods or services, charge different prices or rates for goods or 7
services or provide a different level of quality of goods or services to the customer if the customer 8
does not consent to use of their data. 9
(c) Operators may provide different prices and levels for goods and services if it is for a 10
bona fide loyalty, rewards, premium features, discount or club card programs that customers 11
voluntarily participate. 12
(d) Customers exercising their customers rights under this section shall not be denied goods 13
or services or provided a different level of quality of goods or services. 14
(e) A customer shall have the right to: 15
(1) Confirm whether or not a controller is processing the customer's personal data and 16
access such personal data, unless such confirmation or access would require the controller to reveal 17
a trade secret; 18
(2) Correct inaccuracies in the customer's personal data and delete personal data provided 19
by, or obtained about, the customer; 20
(3) Obtain a copy of the customer's personal data processed by the controller, in a portable 21
and, to the extent technically feasible, readily usable format that allows the customer to transmit 22
the data to another controller; and 23
(4) Opt out of the processing of the personal data for purposes of targeted advertising, the 24
sale of personal data, or profiling in furtherance of solely automated decisions that produce legal 25
or similarly significant effects concerning the customer. 26
(f) A customer may exercise rights under this section by a secure and reliable means 27
established by the controller and described to the customer in the controller's privacy notice. A 28
customer may designate an authorized agent to exercise the rights of such customer to opt out of 29
the processing of such customer's personal data. In the case of processing personal data of a known 30
child, the parent or legal guardian may exercise such customer rights on the child's behalf. In the 31
case of processing personal data concerning a customer subject to a guardianship, conservatorship 32
or other protective arrangement, the guardian or the conservator of the customer may exercise such 33
rights on the customer's behalf. 34
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6-48.1-7. Exercising customer rights. 1
A controller shall comply with a request by a customer to exercise the customer rights 2
authorized as follows: 3
(1) A controller shall respond to the customer without undue delay, but not later than forty-4
five (45) days after receipt of the request. The controller may extend the response period by forty-5
five (45) additional days when reasonably necessary, considering the complexity and number of 6
the customer's requests; provided the controller informs the customer of any such extension within 7
the initial forty-five (45)-day response period and of the reason for the extension. 8
(2) If a controller declines to act regarding the customer's request, the controller shall 9
inform the customer without undue delay, but not later than forty-five (45) days after receipt of the 10
request, of the justification for declining to act and instructions for how to appeal the decision. 11
(3) Information provided in response to a customer request shall be provided by a 12
controller, free of charge, once per customer during any twelve (12) month period. If requests from 13
a customer are manifestly unfounded, excessive or repetitive, the controller may charge the 14
customer a reasonable fee to cover the administrative costs of complying with the request or decline 15
to act on the request. The controller bears the burden of demonstrating the manifestly unfounded, 16
excessive or repetitive nature of the request. 17
(4) If a controller is unable to authenticate a request to exercise any of the rights afforded, 18
the controller shall not be required to comply with a request to initiate an action pursuant to this 19
section and shall provide notice to the customer that the controller is unable to authenticate the 20
request to exercise such right or rights until such customer provides additional information 21
reasonably necessary to authenticate such customer and such customer's request to exercise such 22
right or rights. A controller shall not be required to authenticate an opt-out request, but may deny 23
an opt-out request if the controller has, reasonable and documented belief that such request is 24
fraudulent. If a controller denies an opt-out request because the controller believes such request is 25
fraudulent, the controller shall send a notice to the person who made such request disclosing that 26
such controller believes such request is fraudulent, why such controller believes such request is 27
fraudulent and that such controller shall not comply with such request. 28
(5) A controller that has obtained personal data about a customer from a source other than 29
the customer shall be deemed in compliance with a customer's request to delete such data. 30
(6) A controller shall establish a process for a customer to appeal the controller's refusal to 31
take action on a request within a reasonable period of time after the customer's receipt of the 32
decision. The appeal process shall be conspicuously available. Not later than sixty (60) days after 33
receipt of an appeal, a controller shall inform the customer in writing of any action taken or not 34
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taken in response to the appeal, including a written explanation of the reasons for the decisions. If 1
the appeal is denied, the controller shall also provide the customer with a method to submit a 2
complaint to the attorney general. 3
(7) A customer may designate another person to serve as the customer's authorized agent, 4
and act on such customer's behalf, to opt out of the processing of such customer's personal data. A 5
controller shall comply with an opt-out request received from an authorized agent if the controller 6
is able to verify the identity of the customer and the authorized agent's authority to act on the 7
customer’s behalf. 8
6-48.1-8. Controller and processor responsibilities. 9
(a) A controller shall establish, and shall describe in a privacy notice, one or more secure 10
and reliable means for customers to submit a request to exercise their customer rights and shall 11
provide customers with a reasonably accessible, clear and meaningful privacy notice that includes: 12
(1) The categories of personal data processed by the controller; 13
(2) The purpose for processing personal data; 14
(3) How customers may exercise their customer rights, including how a customer may 15
appeal a controller's decision with regard to the customer's request; 16
(4) The categories of personal data that the controller shares with third parties, if any; 17
(5) The categories of third parties, if any, with which the controller shares personal data; 18
and 19
(6) An active electronic mail address or other online mechanism that the customer may use 20
to contact the controller. 21
(b) If a controller sells personal data to third parties or processes personal data for targeted 22
advertising, the controller shall clearly and conspicuously disclose such processing, as well as the 23
manner in which a customer may exercise the right to opt out of such processing. 24
(c) A processor shall adhere to the instructions of a controller and shall assist the controller 25
in meeting the controller's obligations of this chapter. 26
(d) A contract between a controller and a processor shall govern the processor's data 27
processing procedures with respect to processing performed on behalf of the controller. The 28
contract shall be binding and clearly set forth instructions for processing data, the nature and 29
purpose of processing, the type of data subject to processing, the duration of processing and the 30
rights and obligations of both parties. The contract shall also require that the processor: 31
(1) Ensure that each person processing personal data is subject to a duty of confidentiality 32
with respect to the data; 33
(2) At the controller's direction, delete or return all personal data to the controller as 34
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requested at the end of the provision of services, unless retention of the personal data is required 1
by law; 2
(3) Upon the reasonable request of the controller, make available to the controller all 3
information in its possession necessary to demonstrate the processor's compliance with the 4
obligations of this chapter; 5
(4) After providing the controller an opportunity to object, engage any subcontractor 6
pursuant to a written contract that requires the subcontractor to meet the obligations of the processor 7
with respect to the personal data; and 8
(5) Allow, and cooperate with, reasonable assessments by the controller or the controller's 9
designated assessor, or the processor may arrange for a qualified and independent assessor to assess 10
the processor's policies and technical and organizational measures in support of the obligations of 11
this chapter, using an appropriate and accepted control standard of framework and assessment 12
procedure for such assessments. The processor shall provide a report of such assessment to the 13
controller upon request. 14
(e) Nothing in this section shall be construed to relieve a controller or processor from the 15
liabilities imposed on the controller or processor by virtue of such controller’s or processor’s role 16
in the processing relationship. If a processor begins, alone or jointly with others, determining the 17
purposes and means of the processing of personal data, the processor is a controller with respect to 18
such processing and may be subject to an enforcement action under. 19
(f) A controller shall conduct and document a data protection assessment for each of the 20
controller's processing activities that presents a heightened risk of harm to a customer. For the 21
purposes of this section, processing that presents a heightened risk of harm to a customer includes: 22
(1) The processing of personal data for the purposes of targeted advertising; 23
(2) The sale of personal data; 24
(3) The processing of personal data for the purposes of profiling, where such profiling 25
presents a reasonably foreseeable risk of unfair or deceptive treatment of, or unlawful disparate 26
impact on, customers, financial, physical or reputational injury to customers, a physical or other 27
intrusion upon the solitude or seclusion, or the private affairs or concerns, of customers, where such 28
intrusion would be offensive to a reasonable person, or other substantial injury to customers; and 29
(4) The processing of sensitive data. 30
(g) Any controller in possession of de-identified data shall: 31
(1) Take reasonable measures to ensure that the data cannot be associated with an 32
individual; 33
(2) Publicly commit to maintaining and using de-identified data without attempting to re-34
LC002702 - Page 14 of 18
identify the data; and 1
(3) Contractually obligate any recipients of the de-identified data to comply with all 2
provisions of this chapter. 3
(h) This chapter shall not be construed to restrict a controller's or processor's ability to: 4
(1) Comply with federal, state or municipal ordinances or regulations; 5
(2) Comply with a civil, criminal or regulatory inquiry, investigation, subpoena or 6
summons by federal, state, municipal or other governmental authorities; 7
(3) Cooperate with law enforcement agencies concerning conduct or activity that the 8
controller or processor reasonably and in good faith believes may violate federal, state or municipal 9
ordinances or regulations; 10
(4) Investigate, establish, exercise, prepare for or defend legal claims; 11
(5) Provide a product or service specifically requested by a customer; 12
(6) Perform under a contract to which a customer is a party, including fulfilling the terms 13
of a written warranty; 14
(7) Take steps at the request of a customer prior to entering into a contract; 15
(8) Take immediate steps to protect an interest that is essential for the life or physical safety 16
of the customer or another individual, and where the processing cannot be manifestly based on 17
another legal basis; 18
(9) Prevent, detect, protect against or respond to security incidents, identity theft, fraud, 19
harassment, malicious or deceptive activities or any illegal activity, preserve the integrity or 20
security of systems or investigate, report or prosecute those responsible for any such action; 21
(10) Engage in public or peer-reviewed scientific or statistical research in the public interest 22
that adheres to all other applicable ethics and privacy laws and is approved, monitored and governed 23
by an institutional review board that determines, or similar independent oversight entities that 24
determine, whether the deletion of the information is likely to provide substantial benefits that do 25
not exclusively accrue to the controller, the expected benefits of the research outweigh the privacy 26
risks, and whether the controller has implemented reasonable safeguards to mitigate privacy risks 27
associated with research, including any risks associated with re-identification; 28
(11) Assist another controller, processor or third party with any of the obligations of this 29
chapter; or 30
(12) Process personal data for reasons of public interest in the area of public health, 31
community health or population health, but solely to the extent that such processing is: 32
(i) Subject to suitable and specific measures to safeguard the rights of the customer whose 33
personal data is being processed, and 34
LC002702 - Page 15 of 18
(ii) Under the responsibility of a professional subject to confidentiality obligations under 1
federal, state or local law. 2
(i) The obligations imposed on controllers or processors shall not restrict a controller's or 3
processor's ability to collect, use or retain data for internal use to: 4
(1) Conduct internal research to develop, improve or repair products, services or 5
technology; 6
(2) Effectuate a product recall; 7
(3) Identify and repair technical errors that impair existing or intended functionality; or 8
(4) Perform internal operations that are reasonably aligned with the expectations of the 9
customer or reasonably anticipated based on the customer's existing relationship with the controller, 10
or are otherwise compatible with processing data in furtherance of the provision of a product or 11
service specifically requested by a customer or the performance of a contract to which the customer 12
is a party. 13
(j) A controller or processor that discloses personal data to a processor or third party 14
controller shall not be deemed to have violated this act if the processor or third-party controller that 15
receives and processes such personal data violates said sections; provided at the time the disclosing 16
controller or processor disclosed such personal data, the disclosing controller or processor did not 17
have actual knowledge that the receiving processor or third-party controller would violate said 18
sections. A third-party controller or processor receiving personal data from a controller or processor 19
in compliance with this act is likewise not in violation of said sections for the transgressions of the 20
controller or processor from which such third-party controller or processor receives such personal 21
data. 22
(k) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to: 23
(1) Impose any obligation on a controller or processor that adversely affects the rights or 24
freedoms of any person, including, but not limited to, the rights of any person to freedom of speech 25
or freedom of the press guaranteed in the First Amendment to the United States Constitution; or 26
(2) Apply to any person's processing of personal data in the course of such person's purely 27
personal or household activities. 28
(l) Personal data processed by a controller pursuant to this section may be processed to the 29
extent that such processing is reasonably necessary and proportionate to the purposes in this 30
section; and adequate, relevant and limited to what is necessary in relation to the specific purposes 31
listed in this section. Personal data collected, used or retained shall, where applicable, consider the 32
nature and purpose or purposes of such collection, use or retention. Such data shall be subject to 33
reasonable administrative, technical and physical measures to protect the confidentiality, integrity 34
LC002702 - Page 16 of 18
and accessibility of the personal data and to reduce reasonably foreseeable risks of harm to 1
customers relating to such collection, use or retention of personal data. 2
(m) If a controller processes personal data pursuant to an exemption in this section, the 3
controller bears the burden of demonstrating that such processing qualifies for the exemption. 4
(n) Processing personal data for the purposes expressly identified in this section shall not 5
solely make a legal entity a controller with respect to such processing 6
6-48.1-9. Violations. 7
(a) A violation of this chapter constitutes a violation of the general regulatory provisions 8
of commercial law in title 6 and shall constitute a deceptive trade practice in violation of chapter 9
13.1 of title 6; provided further, that in the event that any individual or entity intentionally discloses 10
personally identifiable information: 11
(1) To a shell company or any entity that has been formed or established solely, or in part, 12
for the purposes of circumventing the intent of this chapter; 13
(2) To any third party that is not exempt pursuant to § 6-48.1-3; or 14
(3) In violation of any provision of this chapter, that individual or entity shall pay a fine of 15
not less than one hundred dollars ($100) and no more than five hundred dollars ($500) for each 16
such disclosure. 17
(b) The office of the attorney general shall have sole enforcement authority of the 18
provisions of this chapter and may enforce a violation of this chapter pursuant to: 19
(1) The provisions of this section; or 20
(2) General regulatory provisions of commercial law in title 6, or both. 21
(c) The attorney general may require a controller to disclose any data protection assessment 22
that is relevant to an investigation conducted by the attorney general, and the controller shall make 23
the data protection assessment available. The attorney general may evaluate the data protection 24
assessment for compliance with the responsibilities of this chapter. 25
(d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to authorize any private right of action to 26
enforce any provision of this chapter, any regulation hereunder, or any other provisions of 27
commercial law in title 6. 28
6-48.1-10. Waivers -- Severability. 29
Any waiver of the provisions of this chapter shall be void and unenforceable. If any 30
provision of this chapter or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid by a court 31
of competent jurisdiction, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions of applications of the 32
chapter that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the 33
provisions of the chapter are severable. 34
LC002702 - Page 17 of 18
6-48.1-11. Construction. 1
(a) Nothing in this chapter shall be deemed to apply in any manner to a financial institution 2
or an affiliate of a financial institution subject to Title V of the Federal Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act 3
U.S.C. § 6801 et seq. and its implementing regulations, or to information or data subject to the 4
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Pub. L. 104-191; provided, 5
however, no entity or individual shall be exempt from the provisions of this chapter. 6
(b) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to apply to a contractor, subcontractor, or 7
agent of a state agency or local unit of government when working for that state agency or local unit 8
of government. 9
(c) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to apply to any entity recognized as a tax 10
exempt organization under the Internal Revenue Code. 11
(d) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to mandate and/or require the retention or 12
disclosure of any specific individual's personally identifiable information. 13
(e) Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit or restrict the dissemination or sale of product 14
sales summaries or statistical information or aggregate customer data which may include 15
personally, identifiable information. 16
(f) Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to apply to any personally identifiable 17
information or any other information collected, used, processed, or disclosed by or for a customer 18
reporting agency as defined by 15 U.S.C. § 1681a(f). 19
SECTION 2. This act shall take effect on January 1, 2024. 20
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EXPLANATION
BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL
OF
A N A C T
RELATING TO COMMERCI AL LAW -- GENERAL REGULATORY P ROVISIONS --
RHODE ISLAND DATA TRANSPARENCY AND PRIVA CY PROTECTION ACT
***
This act would provide data privacy protections for the personal identifiable information 1
of Rhode Islanders. 2
This act would take effect on January 1, 2024. 3
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