Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB2459 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R11202 BCH-F
2	2	By: Creighton S.B. No. 2459
3	3
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6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the protection of personal identifying information of
10	10	certain persons in the judicial system; creating a criminal
11	11	offense.
12	12	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
13	13	SECTION 1. The heading to Subtitle H, Title 2, Government
14	14	Code, is amended to read as follows:
15	15	SUBTITLE H. INFORMATION RESOURCES AND PRIVACY
16	16	SECTION 2. Subtitle H, Title 2, Government Code, is amended
17	17	by adding Chapter 92 to read as follows:
18	18	CHAPTER 92. PROTECTION OF PERSONAL IDENTIFYING INFORMATION OF
19	19	AT-RISK INDIVIDUALS COLLECTED AND STORED BY DATA BROKERS AND OTHER
20	20	PERSONS
21	21	Sec. 92.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
22	22	(1) "At-risk individual" means:
23	23	(A) a judge, as defined by Section 33.001;
24	24	(B) a court clerk; and
25	25	(C) an employee of a state court, a court clerk,
26	26	the office, or another agency in the judicial branch of state
27	27	government.
28	28	(2) "Court clerk" means the clerk of the supreme
29	29	court, the court of criminal appeals, a court of appeals, a district
30	30	court, a county court, a statutory county court, a statutory
31	31	probate court, a justice court, or a municipal court.
32	32	(3) "Covered information":
33	33	(A) means:
34	34	(i) a home address, including primary and
35	35	secondary residences;
36	36	(ii) a home or personal telephone number,
37	37	including a mobile telephone number;
38	38	(iii) an e-mail address;
39	39	(iv) a social security number or driver's
40	40	license number;
41	41	(v) bank account, credit card, or debit
42	42	card information;
43	43	(vi) a license plate number or other unique
44	44	identifier of a vehicle owned, leased, or regularly used;
45	45	(vii) the identity of a child younger than
46	46	18 years of age;
47	47	(viii) a person's date of birth;
48	48	(ix) information regarding current or
49	49	future school or day care attendance, including the name or address
50	50	of the school or day care, schedules of attendance, or routes taken
51	51	to or from the school or day care;
52	52	(x) employment information, including the
53	53	name or address of the employer, employment schedules, or routes
54	54	taken to or from the employer's location; and
55	55	(xi) photographs or videos that reveal
56	56	information listed in Subparagraphs (i)-(x); and
57	57	(B) does not include information regarding
58	58	employment with a state agency.
59	59	(4) "Data broker" has the meaning assigned by Section
60	60	509.001, Business & Commerce Code, as added by Chapter 963 (S.B. No.
61	61	2105), Acts of the 88th Legislature, Regular Session, 2023. The
62	62	term does not include a commercial entity that:
63	63	(A) is engaged in the business of:
64	64	(i) reporting, news-gathering, speaking,
65	65	or engaging in other activities intended to inform the public on
66	66	matters of public interest or public concern;
67	67	(ii) providing 411 directory assistance or
68	68	directory information services, including name, address, and
69	69	telephone number, on behalf of or as a function of a
70	70	telecommunications carrier;
71	71	(iii) using personal information
72	72	internally, by providing access to businesses under common
73	73	ownership or affiliated by corporate control, or selling or
74	74	providing data for a transaction or service requested by or
75	75	concerning the individual whose personal information is being
76	76	transferred;
77	77	(iv) providing publicly available
78	78	information using real-time or near real-time alert services for
79	79	health or safety purposes; or
80	80	(v) collecting and selling or licensing
81	81	covered information incidental to conducting the activities
82	82	described by this subdivision; or
83	83	(B) is engaged in business as:
84	84	(i) a consumer reporting agency subject to
85	85	Chapter 20, Business & Commerce Code, and the Fair Credit Reporting
86	86	Act (15 U.S.C. Section 1681 et seq.);
87	87	(ii) a financial institution subject to the
88	88	Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (Pub. L. No. 106-102) and regulations
89	89	implementing that Act; or
90	90	(iii) a covered entity for purposes of the
91	91	privacy regulations promulgated under Section 264(c), Health
92	92	Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (42 U.S.C.
93	93	Section 1320d-2 note).
94	94	(5) "Immediate family member" means a person related
95	95	to another person within the first degree by consanguinity or
96	96	affinity, as described by Subchapter B, Chapter 573. The term
97	97	includes a foster child, ward, legal dependent, or individual
98	98	residing in the same household.
99	99	(6) "Office" means the Office of Court Administration
100	100	of the Texas Judicial System.
101	101	(7) "State agency" means a public entity in the
102	102	executive, judicial, or legislative branch of state government.
103	103	(8) "State court" means:
104	104	(A) the supreme court or the court of criminal
105	105	appeals;
106	106	(B) an appellate court, district court, or
107	107	division of the business court;
108	108	(C) a county court, constitutional county court,
109	109	statutory county court, or statutory probate court;
110	110	(D) a justice court; or
111	111	(E) a municipal court.
112	112	Sec. 92.002. DATA BROKER PROHIBITIONS. Notwithstanding any
113	113	other law, a data broker may not knowingly sell, license, trade for
114	114	consideration, transfer, or purchase covered information of an
115	115	at-risk individual or an immediate family member of the individual.
116	116	Sec. 92.003. PROHIBITION ON BUSINESSES AND OTHER PERSONS.
117	117	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a person may not publicly
118	118	post or display on a publicly accessible Internet website covered
119	119	information of an at-risk individual or an immediate family member
120	120	of the individual if the at-risk individual, or the office, acting
121	121	on the individual's behalf, submits a written request to that
122	122	person not to disclose or acquire the covered information that is
123	123	the subject of the request.
124	124	(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to:
125	125	(1) covered information of an at-risk individual or an
126	126	immediate family member of the individual displayed on a publicly
127	127	accessible Internet website if the information is relevant to and
128	128	displayed as part of a news story, commentary, editorial, or other
129	129	speech on a matter of public concern;
130	130	(2) covered information that an at-risk individual
131	131	voluntarily posts on the Internet; or
132	132	(3) covered information received from a governmental
133	133	entity or an employee or agent of a governmental entity.
134	134	Sec. 92.004. REQUIRED CONDUCT. After receiving a written
135	135	request under Section 92.003, a person, including a data broker,
136	136	shall:
137	137	(1) not later than 72 hours after receipt of the
138	138	request:
139	139	(A) remove from the Internet website the covered
140	140	information identified in the request;
141	141	(B) ensure the information is not made available
142	142	on any other publicly accessible Internet website or subsidiary
143	143	website the person controls; and
144	144	(C) identify any other instances of the
145	145	information that should be removed; and
146	146	(2) assist the sender in locating the covered
147	147	information that may be posted on any publicly accessible Internet
148	148	website or subsidiary website controlled by the person.
149	149	Sec. 92.005. OFFICE PROCEDURES. The judicial security
150	150	division of the office shall develop a process by which an at-risk
151	151	individual can file a written request with the director of the
152	152	office to notify a data broker or other person, on the at-risk
153	153	individual's behalf, of a written request submitted by the
154	154	individual to remove covered information posted or displayed by the
155	155	person on a publicly accessible Internet website.
156	156	Sec. 92.006. TRANSFER. (a) Except as provided by
157	157	Subsection (b), after receiving a written request under Section
158	158	92.003, the person may not transfer the covered information to any
159	159	other person through any medium.
160	160	(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to:
161	161	(1) the transfer of the covered information that is
162	162	relevant to and displayed as part of a news story, commentary,
163	163	editorial, or other speech on a matter of public concern;
164	164	(2) covered information the at-risk individual or the
165	165	immediate family member of the individual voluntarily posts on the
166	166	Internet; or
167	167	(3) a transfer of the covered information:
168	168	(A) at the request of the at-risk individual; or
169	169	(B) as necessary to produce a request to the
170	170	person from the at-risk individual.
171	171	Sec. 92.007. CIVIL REMEDIES. (a) If the covered
172	172	information of an at-risk individual or an immediate family member
173	173	of the individual is made public as a result of a violation of this
174	174	chapter, the at-risk individual or the individual's designee may
175	175	bring an action in a court seeking injunctive or declaratory
176	176	relief.
177	177	(b) If the plaintiff prevails in an action brought under
178	178	Subsection (a), the court, in addition to issuing an order for
179	179	injunctive or declaratory relief, may:
180	180	(1) impose a fine of $500 for each day the covered
181	181	information remains public after the date on which the order for
182	182	injunctive or declaratory relief is issued; and
183	183	(2) if the defendant is not a state agency, award to
184	184	the at-risk individual, or the individual's immediate family,
185	185	exemplary damages, court costs, and reasonable attorney's fees.
186	186	Sec. 92.008. CRIMINAL OFFENSE. (a) A person commits an
187	187	offense if the person intentionally posts covered information of an
188	188	at-risk individual or an immediate family member of the individual
189	189	on a publicly accessible Internet website without first obtaining
190	190	the consent of the individual whose information was posted and:
191	191	(1) the information is posted with intent to cause or
192	192	threaten to cause harm to or harassment of an at-risk individual or
193	193	a member of the individual's immediate family; and
194	194	(2) under the circumstances, harm to or harassment of
195	195	the at-risk individual or immediate family member is a probable
196	196	consequence of the posting of the information.
197	197	(b) For purposes of Subsection (a), it is prima facie
198	198	evidence of the intent to cause or threaten to cause harm to or
199	199	harassment of an at-risk individual or a member of the individual's
200	200	immediate family if the person:
201	201	(1) receives a written request not to disclose the
202	202	covered information for safety reasons; and
203	203	(2) either:
204	204	(A) fails to remove the covered information from
205	205	the Internet website not later than 48 hours after receiving the
206	206	request; or
207	207	(B) before the fourth anniversary of the date the
208	208	business receives the request, the person reposts the covered
209	209	information on the same Internet website or another publicly
210	210	accessible Internet website or makes the information publicly
211	211	available through another medium.
212	212	(c) An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor,
213	213	except that the offense is a Class A misdemeanor if the offense
214	214	results in the bodily injury of:
215	215	(1) the at-risk individual whose covered information
216	216	was posted on the Internet website; or
217	217	(2) an immediate family member of the individual.
218	218	SECTION 3. Chapter 92, Government Code, as added by this
219	219	Act, applies only to information posted on an Internet website on or
220	220	after the effective date of this Act.
221	221	SECTION 4. It is the intent of the 89th Legislature, Regular
222	222	Session, 2025, that the amendments made by this Act to Section
223	223	92.001(4), Government Code, be harmonized with another Act of the
224	224	89th Legislature, Regular Session, 2025, relating to
225	225	nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted codes.
226	226	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.