BILL NUMBER:S2951

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the environmental conservation law, in
relation to protecting information on hunting, fishing and trapping
license and permit applications from disclosure outside of the
department of environmental conservation

PURPOSE:

This bill would clarify that personal information submitted on
applications for hunting, fishing and trapping licenses and permits
shall not be disclosed outside of the Department of Environmental
Conservation.

SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of the bill would amend subdivision 2 of section 11-0305 of
the Environmental Conservation Law (ECL) to clarify that the
Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) shall not disclose or
release outside of DEC any information provided to licensing agents or
to DEC by persons applying for hunting, fishing or trapping licenses,
permits, stamps, buttons or tags.

Section 2 would add a new subdivision 6 to ECL § 11-0713 to provide
that all information disclosed to a licensing agent or DEC by a person
in furtherance of obtaining a license, permit, stamp, button or tag,
              

shall not be disclosed or released outside of DEC, except for law
enforcement purposes, or as authorized and required by federal or
state law for child support enforcement purposes. Also, the bill would
require DEC to establish procedures to ensure that such information is
protected from disclosure.

Section 3 provides that the bill would take effect immediately.

EXISTING LAW:

Article II of the ECL governs the taking of wildlife and provides for
the issuance of licenses and permits for hunting, trapping and
fishing, but it contains no express restrictions on the release of
information pertaining to holders of licenses, permits, stamps,
buttons or tags.

JUSTIFICATION:

The right of hunters, trappers and anglers to maintain their personal
privacy and security entails an obligation of government to protect
personal information submitted to an agency for the limited purpose of
obtaining a license, permit, stamp, button or tag from unwarranted
disclosures. At a time of growing private and governmental recognition
and concern about identify theft and its serious impact on the
personal and financial lives of individuals across the country,
releasing an individual's personal information poses a substantial
risk that such person's identity may be appropriated for illegal
purposes and illicit financial gain.

DEC recently installed a new database system, the DEC Automated
Licensing System (known as "DECALS") which maintains information on


sporting licenses and permits. The personal details entered into the
database include the following:

- individual's first name;

- individual's last name;

-individual's middle name or initials;

- suffix;

-gender;

-height;

-eye color;

- date of birth;

- driver's license number;

- customer identification number;

-whether the licensee is a New York resident;

- whether the licensee is legally blind;

- residency proof type;

- whether the licensee served in the military;

- whether the licensee is permanent 40% military disabled;

- fulfillment information;

- preference points;

- e-mail address;

- residential and mailing address information; and

-telephone number.

Clearly, this database contains sensitive personal information,
including the intimate details relating to personal matters (such as
medical conditions and physical attributes), the release of which
would be an unwarranted intrusion into an individual's personal
privacy. Moreover, the computerized nature of this database and the
release in that format provides for ease of dissemination and exchange
of such information, heightening the danger or invasion of personal
privacy and the potential for identity theft.

Based upon these considerations, DEC has determined that the contents
of this database should not be disclosed outside of the agency because
it is protected by the personal privacy provisions in the State
Freedom of Information Law. DEC's position that such information is
protected from disclosure "is supported by case law, and was


vindicated by the recent decision of the State Supreme Court in the
case of GOVER V. DEC, No. 2869-05 (Sup. Ct. Albany County 2005).

Enactment of this bill would codify these holdings and reaffirm the
protection of personal information for sportsmen and women. This bill
would further clarify in the ECL that information submitted in the
process of obtaining a hunting, fishing or trapping license or permit
shall not be disclosed outside the agency, except for law enforcement
purposes, or as required by federal or state law or regulation for
child support enforcement purposes. The information in the DECALS
database relates to and arises from a voluntary recreational activity,
and not from the permitting or operation of a regulated business or
commercial activity. Sporting license and permit applicants do not
anticipate that the information they provide to a licensing agent or
DEC for recreational sport activities will be distributed or otherwise
shared with outside sources.

This bill, by making it explicit in the ECL that such information is
protected from disclosure outside of DEC, will ensure that DEC may
continue to protect sporting license applicants' just expectation that
personal information will be kept private.

PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

S.8130 of 2006; Passed Senate
S.2759 of 2007/08; Passed Senate in 2007
S.855 of 2009/10; Referred to Environmental Conservation
S.2648 of 2011/2012; Passed Senate
S.292/A.1705 of 2013-14 - PASSED SENATE/En Con

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

EFFECTIVE DATE:

Immediately.