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| SPONSOR: | Jennings | DATE TYPED: | 01/31/99 | HB | |||
| SHORT TITLE: | Privacy Rights Violations | SB | 219 | ||||
| ANALYST: | Trujillo | ||||||
| Recurring
or Non-Rec |
Fund
Affected | ||||
| FY99 | FY2000 | FY99 | FY2000 | ||
| Indeterminate | Recurring | GF | |||
(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
Duplicates/Conflicts with/Companion to/Relates to
SOURCES OF INFORMATION
LFC files
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
SB 219 makes it unlawful for a person to ask for or require a fingerprint for identification purposes except law enforcement personnel for background checks for applicants and employees as required by state or federal law. The criminal penalty is a fourth degree felony and the civil remedy provides for injunctive relief, punitive and compensatory damages and costs and attorneys fees. A person who has been fingerprinted in violation of this law can bring civil action against the violator for punitive damages up to $10,000.
Significant Issues
The Attorney General reports law enforcement investigation of "identity theft", check forgery, fraud and other white collar crimes may be enhanced by collection of fingerprint data.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
The Administrative Office of the Court's report any fiscal impact on the judiciary would be proportional to the enforcement of this law and commenced prosecutions. There may be an increase in the amount of work that needs to be done by the courts, thus requiring additional resources to handle the increase. It will cost the judicial information division $400 for statutory changes statewide update, distribution and documentation.
ADMINISTRATIVE IMPLICATIONS
The Administrative Office of the Court's reports there may be an increase in prosecutions of this offense, resulting in increased caseload in the courts.
OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES
The Attorney General reports the bill, if enacted, would criminalize the collection of fingerprint data and create a tort for violation of privacy rights. Presumably, the motivation for collecting the data is to preserve physical evidence that will assist in the investigation and the prosecution of white collar crimes.
LAT/gm