83R2960 RWG-D
By: Williams S.B. No. 1289
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to certain business entities engaged in the publication or
other dissemination of mug shots and other information regarding
the involvement of an individual in the criminal justice system;
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 109 to read as follows:
CHAPTER 109. BUSINESS ENTITIES ENGAGED IN PUBLICATION OR OTHER
DISSEMINATION OF CRIMINAL RECORD INFORMATION
Sec. 109.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
(1) "Criminal justice agency" has the meaning assigned
by Section 411.082, Government Code.
(2) "Criminal record information" means information
about a person's involvement in the criminal justice system. The
term includes:
(A) a description or notation of any arrests, any
formal criminal charges, and the dispositions of those criminal
charges;
(B) a photograph of the person taken pursuant to
an arrest or other involvement in the criminal justice system; and
(C) personal identifying information of a person
displayed in conjunction with any other record of the person's
involvement in the criminal justice system.
(3) "Personal identifying information" means
information that alone or in conjunction with other information
identifies a person, including a person's name, address, date of
birth, photograph, and social security number or other
government-issued identification number.
Sec. 109.002. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. This chapter
applies to a business entity that:
(1) publishes or otherwise disseminates, including
through a print or electronic medium, criminal record information,
including information:
(A) originally obtained pursuant to a request for
public information under Chapter 552, Government Code; or
(B) purchased or otherwise obtained by the entity
or an affiliated business entity from the Department of Public
Safety under Subchapter F, Chapter 411, Government Code; and
(2) requires the payment of a fee or other
consideration to remove, correct, or modify criminal record
information.
Sec. 109.003. DUTY TO DISSEMINATE COMPLETE AND ACCURATE
CRIMINAL RECORD INFORMATION. (a) A business entity must ensure
that criminal record information the entity publishes or otherwise
disseminates is complete and accurate.
(b) For purposes of this chapter, criminal record
information published or otherwise disseminated by a business
entity is considered:
(1) complete if the information reflects the notations
of arrest and the filing and disposition of criminal charges, if
applicable; and
(2) accurate if the information:
(A) reflects the most recent information
received by the entity from the Department of Public Safety in
accordance with Section 411.0851(b)(1)(B), Government Code; or
(B) was obtained by the entity from a law
enforcement agency or criminal justice agency, including the
Department of Public Safety, or any other governmental agency or
entity within the 90-day period preceding the date of publication
or other dissemination.
Sec. 109.004. DISPUTING COMPLETENESS OR ACCURACY OF
INFORMATION. (a) A business entity shall clearly and
conspicuously publish an e-mail address, fax number, or mailing
address to enable a person who is the subject of criminal record
information published or otherwise disseminated by the entity to
dispute the completeness or accuracy of the information.
(b) If a business entity receives a dispute regarding the
completeness or accuracy of criminal record information from a
person who is the subject of the information, the business entity
shall:
(1) promptly investigate free of charge the disputed
information; and
(2) complete the investigation described by
Subdivision (1) not later than the 45th business day after the date
on which the entity receives notice of the dispute.
(c) If a business entity finds incomplete or inaccurate
criminal record information after conducting an investigation
prescribed by this section, the entity shall promptly remove the
inaccurate information from the website, publication, or other mode
of dissemination or shall promptly correct the information, as
applicable. The entity may not:
(1) charge a fee to remove, correct, or modify
incomplete or inaccurate information; or
(2) continue to publish or otherwise disseminate
incomplete or inaccurate information.
(d) A business entity shall provide written notice to the
person who disputed the completeness or accuracy of information of
the results of an investigation conducted under this section not
later than the fifth business day after the date on which the
investigation is completed.
Sec. 109.005. PUBLICATION OR OTHER DISSEMINATION OF CERTAIN
CRIMINAL RECORD INFORMATION PROHIBITED; CIVIL LIABILITY. (a) A
person may not publish or otherwise disseminate any criminal record
information in the person's possession with respect to which the
person has knowledge or has received notice that:
(1) an order of expunction has been issued under
Article 55.02, Code of Criminal Procedure; or
(2) an order of nondisclosure has been issued under
Section 411.081(d), Government Code.
(b) A person who disseminates information in violation of
Subsection (a) is liable to the individual who is the subject of the
information in an amount not to exceed $1,000 for each separate
violation and, in the case of a continuing violation, $500 for each
subsequent day on which the violation occurs.
(c) In an action brought under this section, the court may
grant injunctive relief to prevent or restrain a violation of this
section.
(d) An individual who prevails in an action brought under
this section is also entitled to recover court costs and reasonable
attorney's fees.
Sec. 109.006. CIVIL PENALTY; INJUNCTION. (a) A business
entity that publishes or otherwise disseminates criminal record
information in violation of this chapter is liable to the state for
a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed $1,000 for each
violation. For purposes of this subsection, each criminal record
published or disseminated in violation of this chapter constitutes
a separate violation.
(b) The attorney general or an appropriate prosecuting
attorney may sue to collect a civil penalty under this section.
(c) A civil penalty collected under this section shall be
deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the general revenue
fund.
(d) The attorney general may bring an action in the name of
the state to restrain or enjoin a violation or threatened violation
of this chapter.
SECTION 2. Chapter 109, Business & Commerce Code, as added
by this Act, applies to any publication or other dissemination of
criminal record information that occurs on or after the effective
date of this Act, regardless of whether:
(1) the information relates to events or activities
that occurred before, on, or after that date; or
(2) the information was initially published or
otherwise disseminated before that date.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.