2017 -- H 5989

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LC002194

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2017

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT - SURVEILLANCE DEVICES

     

     Introduced By: Representatives Edwards, Filippi, Tanzi, Shekarchi, and Canario

     Date Introduced: March 23, 2017

     Referred To: House Judiciary

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

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     SECTION 1. Title 42 of the General Laws entitled "STATE AFFAIRS AND

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GOVERNMENT" is hereby amended by adding thereto the following chapter:

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CHAPTER 153.1

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ROADWAY VIDEO SURVEILLANCE

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     42-153.1-1. Roadway surveillance prohibited.

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     (a) For the purpose of this section, "surveillance'' means the act of determining the

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ownership of a motor vehicle or the identity of a motor vehicle's occupants on the public

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roadways of the state or its political subdivisions through the use of a camera or other imaging

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device, or any other device, including, but not limited to, a transponder, cellular telephone, global

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positioning satellite, EZ-Pass, automated license plate recognition systems or radio frequency

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identification device, that by itself or in conjunction with other devices or information can be

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used to determine the ownership of a motor vehicle, the identity of a motor vehicle's occupants or

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the mileage, locations, speed of travel and routes traveled by the motor vehicle.

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     (b) For the purposes of this section "data" means the GPS coordinates, date, time,

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photograph, license plate number, and any other information captured by or derived from any

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surveillance system.

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     (c) "Government entity" shall have the same meaning as in §37-2-7.

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     (d) Neither the state of Rhode Island, nor its political subdivisions, shall:

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     (1) Engage in surveillance of any public roadways of the state or its political

 

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subdivisions; or

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     (2) Purchase, receive, or review data from a private entity that has engaged in

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surveillance in a manner that would violate this chapter if undertaken by the state or its political

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subdivisions.

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     (e) The prohibition set forth in §42-153.1-1(d) shall not apply where surveillance:

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(1) Is specifically authorized by statute; 

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     (2) Is undertaken by law enforcement in the investigation of a particular violation,

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misdemeanor, or felony pursuant to a warrant or court order based on probable cause;

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     (3) Is a result of exigent circumstances that justify use without first obtaining a warrant;

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(4) Is undertaken for the purposes of identifying a vehicle associated with a missing

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person; and

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     (5) Is undertaken to produce images or data that:

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     (i) Are viewed only at the transportation management center of the department of

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transportation in connection with a particular incident occurring on a public roadway; and

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     (ii) Are not recorded.

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     42-153.1-2. Confidentiality of information.

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     (a) Any information collected or stored in any database under the provisions of §42-

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153.1-1(e) shall be deemed private and shall not be subject to freedom of information or access to

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public records requirements except by court order, provided that aggregate data not containing

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personal identifying information may be released. Entities contracted by the state to provide

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surveillance pursuant to §42-153.1-1(e) shall not sell, trade, or exchange captured plate data for

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any other purpose.

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     (b) Information obtained pursuant to subsection (a) of this section may be accessed by

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employees of the state for the purpose of providing customer service or for statistical,

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administrative or legal activities necessary to perform their duties.

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     (c) All data that does not identify a violation of law shall be destroyed within seventy-two

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(72) hours of the time the image was recorded, unless otherwise ordered by a court of competent

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jurisdiction.

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     (d) All data that identifies a violation of the law shall be destroyed within one year after

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the citation is resolved by administrative payment, trial, or other final disposition, unless ordered

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by a court of competent jurisdiction.

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     (e) Any entity that uses a surveillance device associated with an external database shall

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update the systems from the databases every twenty-four (24) hours if such updates are available,

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or as soon as practicable thereafter.

 

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     (f) No roadway surveillance operated pursuant to this section shall engage, in any

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manner, in the enforcement or assistance in the enforcement of any traffic laws in effect except as

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specifically authorized in §§42-13.1-11 and 42-13.1-12.

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     42-153.1-3. Reporting.

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     Any governmental entity that uses surveillance pursuant to this chapter shall report

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annually its surveillance practices and usage to the state or local agency that governs the entity.

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The report shall also be conspicuously posted on the entity's Internet website and shall include:

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     (1) The names of databases, if any, against which data was checked, and the number of

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confirmed matches; and

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     (2) The number of matches that resulted in citation, arrest or prosecution.

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     42-153.1-4. Use of evidence in civil cases.

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     Any evidence obtained as a result of surveillance use prohibited by this chapter shall be

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inadmissible in any civil action, except as evidence of a violation of this section. Nothing

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contained herein shall be construed to preclude any investigation otherwise based upon any

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legally sufficient cause.

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     42-153.1-5. Penalties.

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     In any civil action alleging a violation of this chapter, the court may:

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     (1) Award to a prevailing plaintiff punitive damages in addition to any award of actual

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damages, and reasonable attorneys' fees; and

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     (2) Award injunctive relief against any individual or entity who commits or proposes to

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commit a violation of this chapter.

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     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT - SURVEILLANCE DEVICES

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     This act would prohibit surveillance on any public roadway in the state unless

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specifically authorized by statute or court order. This act would also provide for the

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confidentiality of information collected or stored.

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     This act would take effect upon passage.

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