NY State Senate Bill 2017-S3140

Senate Bill S3140

2017-2018 Legislative Session

Excludes video camera recordings from cameras worn or used by police from being included as personnel records

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Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Codes Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 19, 2017	referred to codes

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2017-S3140 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A4268
Current Committee:: Senate Codes
Law Section:: Civil Rights Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§50-a & 1-a, Civ Rts L; amd §89, Pub Off L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2015-2016: S6030, A8368
2019-2020: S3398, A1685
2021-2022: A72

2017-S3140 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Excludes video camera recordings and raw data generated from such recordings generated from cameras worn or used by police from being included as personnel records.

2017-S3140 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S3140

 TITLE OF BILL :  An act to amend the civil rights law and the public
officers law, in relation to excluding video camera recordings from
cameras worn or used by police from being included as personnel
records

 PURPOSE :

Clarifies that recordings made by body cameras worn by police
officers, among other recordings made by public safety officials, are
not considered personnel records pursuant to section 50-a of the Civil
Rights Law, and are thus subject to the Freedom of Information Law
(FOIL).

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :

Section 1: Section 50-a of the civil rights law is amended by adding a
new subdivision 5 that:

*Excludes recordings made of police officers, firefighters and other
public safety officials in the course of duty, including, but not
limited to recordings made by body cameras worn by an officer, as well
as the metadata from those recordings, from protection as personnel
records under section 50-a of New York's Civil Rights Law.

*Redacts all identifying details of all persons in a publicly released
recording, including but not limited to facial features and voices.

*Maintains all existing rights litigants in a civil or criminal action
to access recordings or the metadata from those recordings.

*Maintains all existing rights to use recordings or the metadata from
those recordings for personnel decisions.

*Permits anyone who requests a recording, as specified in this
subdivision, under FOIL to also request any agency records necessary
to identify any officer in the recording.

Section 2: Section 50-a of the civil rights law is amended by adding a
new subdivision 2 that:

*Specifically defines the term "recording," as used in this chapter.

Section 3: Paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 of section 89 of the public
officers law is amended by:

*Stating that disclosure shall not be construed to constitute an
unwarranted invasion of personal privacy when identifying details
redacted.

Section 4: Establishes that this act shall take effect immediately.

 JUSTIFICATION :

Police body cameras, as well as other recording devices used by
on-duty public safety officials, provide protection for officers and
citizens alike. As the implementation of such recording devices
continues, it is important that current law keep pace with such
technology.

Section 50-a of the Civil Rights Law effectively excludes personnel
records from FOIL requests. According to the Committee on Open
Government, a broad interpretation of the term personnel records could
include body camera footage, therefore preventing public disclosure of
such recordings.
This bill clarifies that body camera recordings, among other
recordings made by public safety officials, are not considered
personnel records under section 50-a. Thus, this legislation ensures
that body camera recordings, as well as the metadata from such
recordings, should be subject to FOIL. By placing body camera
recordings within the standard FOIL process while also mandating the
redaction of all identifying details present in a given video, the
bill balances the need for greater transparency in the everyday
encounters between police officers and members of the public with a
necessary commitment to privacy protections.

 PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
2016: S6030A/A8368 - REFERRED TO RULES/ordered to third reading
2015: S6030A/A8368 - REFERRED TO RULES/referred to governmental
operations

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
Immediately.

2017-S3140 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3140
 
                        2017-2018 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 19, 2017
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. SQUADRON, PERKINS -- read twice and ordered printed,
   and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Codes
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend  the civil rights law and the public officers law, in
   relation to excluding video camera recordings  from  cameras  worn  or
   used by police from being included as personnel records

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Section 50-a of the civil rights law is amended by adding a
 new subdivision 5 to read as follows:
   5. A. THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION SHALL  NOT  APPLY  TO  RECORDINGS
 MADE   OF   POLICE   OFFICERS,   FIREFIGHTERS,   FIREFIGHTER/PARAMEDICS,
 CORRECTION OFFICERS OR PEACE OFFICERS IN THE COURSE OF  DUTY,  INCLUDING
 RECORDINGS  MADE  BY  BODY CAMERAS WORN BY AN OFFICER, DASHBOARD CAMERAS
 PLACED ON ANY PART OF AN OFFICER'S  MOTOR  VEHICLE,  TRUCK,  BICYCLE  OR
 OTHER  VEHICLE, CAMERAS MOUNTED ON A TASER OR OTHER WEAPON, OR ANY OTHER
 GOVERNMENT-OPERATED  RECORDING  DEVICE,  OR  THE  METADATA  FROM   THOSE
 RECORDINGS.
   B.  ANY RECORDING, AS SPECIFIED IN PARAGRAPH A OF THIS SUBDIVISION AND
 RELEASED PURSUANT TO SECTION EIGHTY-SEVEN OF THE  PUBLIC  OFFICERS  LAW,
 SHALL HAVE ALL IDENTIFYING DETAILS OF ALL PERSONS IN THE VIDEO REDACTED,
 INCLUDING  BUT  NOT  LIMITED  TO,  FACIAL  FEATURES AND VOICES AND OTHER
 PERSONAL INFORMATION AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISION SEVEN OF SECTION  NINETY-
 TWO OF THE PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW.
   C.  NOTHING  IN THIS SECTION SHALL MODIFY THE RIGHTS OF LITIGANTS IN A
 CIVIL OR CRIMINAL ACTION TO ACCESS RECORDINGS OR METADATA.
   D. NOTHING IN THIS SECTION SHALL BE CONSTRUED TO  DISALLOW  RECORDINGS
 OR  METADATA FROM BEING USED FOR DISCIPLINARY, HIRING OR OTHER PERSONNEL
 DECISIONS.
   E. ANYONE WHO REQUESTS A RECORDING OR METADATA, AS SPECIFIED IN  PARA-
 GRAPH A OF THIS SUBDIVISION AND RELEASED PURSUANT TO SECTION EIGHTY-SEV-
 EN  OF  THE  PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW, MAY ALSO REQUEST ANY OR ALL RECORDS OF
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD08386-01-7

 S. 3140                             2
 
 AGENCIES AS DEFINED IN SUBDIVISIONS THREE AND FOUR OF SECTION EIGHTY-SIX
 OF THE PUBLIC OFFICERS LAW, NECESSARY ONLY TO IDENTIFY  ANY  OFFICER  IN
 THE RECORDING OR METADATA.
   §  2.  The opening paragraph of section 1-a of the civil rights law is
 designated subdivision 1 and a new subdivision 2 is  added  to  read  as
 follows:
   2.  THE  TERM  "RECORDING",  AS  USED  IN  THIS CHAPTER, SHALL MEAN AN
 ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHIC RECORD, DISC, TAPE, AUDIO OR VIDEO CASSETTE, WIRE,
 FILM, HARD DRIVE, FLASH DRIVE, MEMORY CARD OR OTHER DATA STORAGE  DEVICE
 OR  ANY  OTHER  MEDIUM  ON WHICH SUCH SOUNDS, IMAGES, OR BOTH SOUNDS AND
 IMAGES ARE OR CAN BE RECORDED OR OTHERWISE STORED, OR A COPY OR  REPROD-
 UCTION THAT DUPLICATES IN WHOLE OR IN PART THE ORIGINAL.
   §  3. Paragraph (c) of subdivision 2 of section 89 of the public offi-
 cers law, as amended by section 11 of part U of chapter 61 of  the  laws
 of 2011, is amended to read as follows:
   (c) Unless otherwise provided by this article, disclosure shall not be
 construed  to  constitute  an  unwarranted  invasion of personal privacy
 pursuant to paragraphs (a) and (b) of this subdivision:
   i. when identifying details are deleted OR REDACTED;
   ii. when the person to whom a record pertains consents in  writing  to
 disclosure;
   iii. when upon presenting reasonable proof of identity, a person seeks
 access to records pertaining to him or her; or
   iv.  when  a record or group of records relates to the right, title or
 interest in real property, or relates to the inventory, status or  char-
 acteristics  of  real  property,  in which case disclosure and providing
 copies of such record or group of records shall not be deemed an  unwar-
 ranted  invasion of personal privacy, provided that nothing herein shall
 be construed to authorize the disclosure of electronic contact  informa-
 tion,  such  as an e-mail address or a social network username, that has
 been collected from a taxpayer under section one  hundred  four  of  the
 real property tax law.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.

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Senate Bill S3140

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Sponsored By

Daniel L. Squadron