Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1777 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R20510 LED-F
2	2	By: Giddings H.B. No. 1777
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1777:
4	4	By: Oliveira C.S.H.B. No. 1777
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to prohibiting an employer from accessing the personal
10	10	online accounts of employees and job applicants through electronic
11	11	communication devices; establishing an unlawful employment
12	12	practice.
13	13	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
14	14	SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 21, Labor Code, is amended
15	15	by adding Section 21.0605 to read as follows:
16	16	Sec. 21.0605. PERSONAL ONLINE ACCOUNT ACCESS. (a) In this
17	17	section:
18	18	(1) "Electronic communication device" includes a
19	19	computer, telephone, personal digital assistant, or similar device
20	20	that uses electronic signals to create, transmit, and receive
21	21	information.
22	22	(2) "Employer" includes an employer's agent,
23	23	representative, or designee.
24	24	(3) "Personal online account" means an account,
25	25	service, or profile on an Internet website that an individual uses
26	26	for personal communication. The term:
27	27	(A) includes:
28	28	(i) a personal e-mail account;
29	29	(ii) an account or profile on a social
30	30	networking website;
31	31	(iii) an electronic medium or service
32	32	through which a user creates, shares, or views content, including
33	33	e-mail, instant messages, text messages, blogs, podcasts,
34	34	photographs, videos, and user-created profiles;
35	35	(iv) an account containing personal
36	36	financial information; and
37	37	(v) an account containing confidential
38	38	medical information; and
39	39	(B) does not include an account or profile that
40	40	an individual creates, services, maintains, uses, or accesses for:
41	41	(i) business communication; or
42	42	(ii) a business purpose of the employer.
43	43	(b) Except under a written agreement described by
44	44	Subsection (g), an employer commits an unlawful employment practice
45	45	if the employer:
46	46	(1) requires or requests that an employee or applicant
47	47	for employment disclose a user name, password, or other means for
48	48	accessing a personal online account of the employee or applicant
49	49	through an electronic communication device; or
50	50	(2) otherwise uses an employee's or applicant's user
51	51	name, password, or other means to access a personal online account
52	52	of the employee or applicant through an electronic communication
53	53	device.
54	54	(c) This section does not prohibit an employer from:
55	55	(1) maintaining lawful workplace policies governing:
56	56	(A) employee usage of employer-provided
57	57	electronic communication devices, including employee access to
58	58	personal online accounts on those devices; or
59	59	(B) employee usage of personal electronic
60	60	communication devices during working or billable hours;
61	61	(2) monitoring, restricting, or prohibiting employee
62	62	usage of employer-provided electronic communication devices or
63	63	employer-provided e-mail accounts;
64	64	(3) obtaining information about an employee or
65	65	applicant for employment that is in the public domain or that is
66	66	otherwise lawfully obtained; or
67	67	(4) requesting an employee or applicant for employment
68	68	to provide a personal e-mail address for the purpose of
69	69	communicating with the employee or applicant.
70	70	(d) An employer does not commit an unlawful employment
71	71	practice if:
72	72	(1) by monitoring employee usage of employer-provided
73	73	electronic communication devices or employer-provided e-mail
74	74	accounts, the employer inadvertently obtains a user name, password,
75	75	or other means for accessing a personal online account of an
76	76	employee; and
77	77	(2) the employer does not use that means of access to
78	78	access a personal online account of the employee.
79	79	(e) This section does not apply to an employer engaged in
80	80	financial services. For purposes of this subsection, "employer
81	81	engaged in financial services" means:
82	82	(1) a bank, savings and loan association or savings
83	83	bank, credit union, or other depository institution or its
84	84	subsidiaries or affiliates;
85	85	(2) a mortgage banker or residential mortgage loan
86	86	company;
87	87	(3) a securities firm or registered financial advisory
88	88	firm;
89	89	(4) a regulated loan company; or
90	90	(5) an insurance company or insurance agency.
91	91	(f) This section does not apply to a personal social media
92	92	account or an electronic communication device of a financial
93	93	services employee who uses the account or device to conduct
94	94	business of the employer that is subject to the content,
95	95	supervision, and retention requirements imposed by federal
96	96	securities laws and regulations or by a self-regulatory
97	97	organization, as defined by Section 3(a)(26), Securities Exchange
98	98	Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. Section 78c).
99	99	(g) This section does not apply to an employer who enters
100	100	into a written agreement with an employee or applicant for
101	101	employment in which the employee or applicant consents to the
102	102	disclosure of a user name, password, or other means for accessing a
103	103	personal online account of the employee or applicant through an
104	104	electronic communication device. An employer may not require an
105	105	employee or applicant for employment to sign a written agreement
106	106	under this subsection as a condition of employment or of any term of
107	107	employment.
108	108	(h) This section does not apply to the law enforcement
109	109	operations of a state or local agency that is responsible for the
110	110	investigation, prosecution, or enforcement of criminal laws.
111	111	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
112	112	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
113	113	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
114	114	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
115	115	Act takes effect September 1, 2015.