Rep. Norm Thurston — Voting Record

Bill

Number

S.B. 31 First Substitute (2017GS)

Sponsor

Sen. Ipson, D.

Final action

Governor Signed 3/22/2017

Outcome

Became law — signed by Gov. Gary R. Herbert

Summary

What it does

• This bill:
• provides criminal penalties for posting on the Internet a law enforcement officer's address and phone numbers, or posting the same information regarding an officer's immediate family member;
• prohibits the solicitation or sale of the officer's private information and provides for civil damages and the cost of attorney fees; and
• provides definitions, including a definition of "personal information."

Every vote on this bill

Bill text

PROTECTION OF LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS'
PERSONAL INFORMATION
GENERAL SESSION
STATE OF UTAH
Chief Sponsor: Don L. Ipson
House Sponsor: 
Paul Ray
LONG TITLE
General Description:
This bill amends the Public Safety Code regarding protection of personal information of
law enforcement officers.
Highlighted Provisions:
This bill:
▸ provides criminal penalties for posting on the Internet a law enforcement officer's
address and phone numbers, or posting the same information regarding an officer's
immediate family member;
▸ prohibits the solicitation or sale of the officer's private information and provides for
civil damages and the cost of attorney fees; and
▸ provides definitions, including a definition of "personal information."
Money Appropriated in this Bill:
None
Other Special Clauses:
None
Utah Code Sections Affected:
ENACTS:
53-18-101
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
53-18-102
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
53-18-103
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
53-18-104
, Utah Code Annotated 1953
Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
Section 1. Section 
53-18-101
 is enacted to read:
CHAPTER 18. PROTECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION OF LAW
ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
 53-18-101.
Title.
This chapter is known as "Protection of Personal Information of Law Enforcement
Officers."
Section 2. Section 
53-18-102
 is enacted to read:
 53-18-102.
Definitions.
As used in this chapter:
(1) "Access software provider" means a provider of software, including client or server
software, or enabling tools that do any one or more of the following:
(a) filter, screen, allow, or disallow content;
(b) pick, choose, analyze, or digest content; or
(c) transmit, receive, display, forward, cache, search, subset, organize, reorganize, or
translate content.
(2) "Immediate family member" means a law enforcement officer's spouse, child or
spouse of a child, sibling or spouse of a sibling, or parent.
(3) "Interactive computer service" means the same as that term is defined in Subsection
U.S.C. 230(f).
(4) "Law enforcement officer" or "officer":
(a) means the same as that term is defined in Section 
53-13-103
;
(b) includes "correctional officers" as defined in Section 
53-13-104
; and
(c) refers only to officers who are currently employed by, retired from, or were killed in
the line of duty while in the employ of a state or local governmental law enforcement agency.
(5) "Personal information" means a law enforcement officer's or law enforcement
officer's immediate family member's address, telephone number, personal mobile telephone
number, pager number, personal email address, personal photograph, directions to locate the
law enforcement officer's home, or photographs of the law enforcement officer's or the officer's
immediate family member's home or vehicle.
(6) "Publicly post" or "publicly display" means to intentionally communicate or
otherwise make available to the general public.
Section 3. Section 
53-18-103
 is enacted to read:
 53-18-103.
Internet posting of personal information of law enforcement officers --
Prohibitions.
(1) A state or local governmental agency may not post the personal information of any
law enforcement officer employed by the state or any political subdivision on the Internet
unless the agency has obtained written permission from the officer and has the written
permission in the agency's possession.
(2) An individual may not knowingly post on the Internet the personal information of
any law enforcement officer or of the officer's immediate family members knowing the person
is a law enforcement officer or that the person is the immediate family member of a law
enforcement officer.
(a) A violation of this Subsection (2) is a class B misdemeanor.
(b) A violation of this Subsection (2) that results in bodily injury to the officer, or a
member of the officer's immediate family, is a class A misdemeanor.
(c) Each act against a separate individual in violation of this Subsection (2) is a
separate offense. The defendant may also be charged separately with the commission of any
other criminal conduct related to the commission of an offense under this Subsection (2).
(3) (a) A business or association may not publicly post or publicly display on the
Internet the personal information of any law enforcement officer if that officer has, either
directly or through an agent designated under Subsection (3)(c), provided to that business or
association a written demand to not disclose the officer's personal information.
(b) A written demand made under this Subsection (3) by a law enforcement officer is
effective for four years beginning on the day the demand is delivered, regardless of whether or
not the law enforcement officer's employment as an officer has terminated during the four
years.
(c) A law enforcement officer may designate in writing the officer's employer or a
representative of any voluntary professional association of law enforcement officers to act on
behalf of the officer and as the officer's agent to make a written demand pursuant to this
chapter.
(d) (i) A business or association that receives a written demand from a law enforcement
officer under Subsection (3)(a) shall remove the officer's personal information from public
display on the Internet, including the removal of information provided to cellular telephone
applications, within 24 hours of the delivery of the written demand, and shall ensure that the
information is not posted again on the same Internet website or any other Internet website the
recipient of the written demand maintains or exercises control over.
(ii) After receiving the law enforcement officer's written demand, the person, business,
or association may not publicly post or publicly display on the Internet, the personal
information of the law enforcement officer.
(iii) This Subsection (3)(d) does not prohibit a telephone corporation, as defined in
Section 
54-2-1
, or its affiliate or other voice service provider, including providers of
interconnected voice over Internet protocol service as defined in 47 C.F.R. 9.3, from
transferring the law enforcement officer's personal information to any person, business, or
association, if the transfer is authorized by federal or state law, regulation, order, terms of
service, or tariff, or is necessary in the event of an emergency, or to collect a debt owed by the
officer to the telephone corporation or its affiliate.
(iv) This Subsection (3)(d) does not apply to a telephone corporation or other voice
service provider, including providers of interconnected voice over Internet protocol service,
with respect to directories or directories listings to the extend the entity offers a nonpublished
listing option.
(4) (a) A law enforcement officer whose personal information is made public as a
result of a violation of Subsection (3) may bring an action seeking injunctive or declarative
relief in any court of competent jurisdiction.
(b) If a court finds that a violation has occurred, it may grant injunctive or declarative
relief and shall award the law enforcement officer court costs and reasonable attorney fees.
(c) If the defendant fails to comply with an order of the court issued under this
Subsection (4), the court may impose a civil penalty of not more than $1,000 for the
defendant's failure to comply with the court's order.
(5) (a) A person, business, or association may not solicit, sell, or trade on the Internet
the personal information of a law enforcement officer, if the dissemination of the personal
information poses an imminent and serious threat to the law enforcement officer's safety or the
safety of the law enforcement officer's immediate family and the person making the
information available on the Internet knows or reasonably should know of the imminent and
serious threat.
(b) A law enforcement officer whose personal information is knowingly publicly
posted or publicly displayed on the Internet may bring an action in any court of competent
jurisdiction. If a jury or court finds that a defendant has committed a violation of Subsection
(5)(a), the jury or court shall award damages to the officer in the amount of triple the cost of
actual damages or $4,000, whichever is greater.
(6) An interactive computer service or access software is not liable under Subsections
(3)(d)(i) and (5) for information or content provided by another information content provider.
(7) Unless a law enforcement officer requests that certain information be removed or
protected from disclosure in accordance with Section 
63G-2-302
, a county recorder who makes
information available for public inspection in accordance with Section 
17-21-19
 is not in
violation of this chapter.
Section 4. Section 
53-18-104
 is enacted to read:
 53-18-104.
 Protection of constitutional rights .
This chapter does not affect, limit, or apply to, any conduct or activities that are
protected by the constitution or laws of the state or by the constitution or laws of the United
States.