1s 1s 7 18 a9 o3r0/as a 5655-01-35, AY ACT to amend the public officers law, the arts and cuitural affairs lav, the executive law and the legislative law, ia relation to the retention of state electronic records) and cers lav, relating to rules and regulations governing access to state Legislative records; to repeal section 7 of the executive lav, relating to executive records; and £9 repeal section 70-0113 of the environmental conserva tion law, relating to information confidest ially disclosed by applicants ‘the People of the State of New York, cepresented in Senate and Asses: biz, 9 enact a follows Section 1. Legislative intent. che legislature finds that procedures fang practice that promote transpacency and accountability in the execu tive and legislative branches sezve the public interest and encourage Public faith in government. Cusrent policies vhich allow for the destruction of enaiis and other electronic governmental records and gxompt the legisiature fron the Freedom of Information taw (FOIL) con counter to these principles of transparency and accountability. Computers and other electronic devices create many of the new records we use today, most comonly via emails, these records, although e2ec- tronic in format, are the ase as records in other formats. ziectronic records show how you conduct business, aake decisions, and carry out your work. They are evidence of decisions and actions. Fundanental Fecords managesent principles should apply to electronic records, as they apply £0 other secord fornat: ‘The executive branch has adopted a policy allowing automatic deletion of emails after 90 days, vhich has the potential to severely tinit the Public availability of vital information regarding the operations of agencies. The consequences of such a policy are illustrated in a 20:5 court case where the former Deputy Secretary for Gaming and Racing ind!-2 a ue 1s 2 4 as 26 osnons 2 65655-D1-5 cated he was "aghast £0 find that emails dating from 2013 relevant to. the case had heen deleted. Te deletion of these emails underaines the abllity of the plaintif# in the cage to seek redress. An administration spokesman defended deletion of the emails on the grounds they nad not been the subject of a FOIL request. This legislation would ensues that under the guidance of the state Archivist, agencies and legislative bodies vould need to take a prose ‘tive approach to the preservation of electronic records. Zt youlé estab~ Lish strict standards for permanent preservation of the records of poli- cyrakers, and pronibit deletion of emails from othec government officials for at teast seven years. rt is modeled on federal policies adopted after extensive study of appropriate practices for handling electronic records. the state already uses emil aanagenent software nit would enable implementation of such a policy at minimal cost. ‘The exemption of the legislature from the Freedom of Information Law alto undermines transparency and accoustability. the public should have access to the same types of Information from the legislature that it can atceady access from the Hecutive Branch through the FOIL process. Recent scandals involving individual legisiators only highlight the need records. This bill would estabiieh the sane standards for teeatiag the Brecutive and Legislative ranches under FOIL. the bill would also exend to the legislature the various exemptions from dlsclosuce in the FOUL law, including records that vould comproaise personal privacy Fights or that are related to internal deliberations of the body or agency.u“ 1s 16 ” a 20 a n 2 4 26 osioas 3 ssess-o1-s 5 2. Subdivision 3 of section 6 of the public officers lav, as addee by chapter 933 of the laws of 1977, La amended ané a nev subdivision 6 1s added to read as follows: "Agency" means any state or sunicipal department, boacd, buceau, @iviston, comission, committee, public authority, publie corporation, councit, office or other governmental entity performing # governmental oF proprietary function for the state or any one ox sore municipalities thereof, except the Judiciary (or the state legisiatuce). thrchives" means any institution that archives records for the state, and provides s eans for public access and review of such nor for record cetention § 2, Subdivision 1 of section B& of the public officers lav se REPEALED. 54, the public officers iaw is amended by adding a now tection gaa to read as follows {_S8-a, Blectronic records retention. 1, zach agency, ir contunetion with the state archives, shall preserve electronic records in accordance with the provisions of this section, 2. Bach agency shall identify the accounts of public officers, state officials and policy sakers vho, by virtue of their work, office, of position, are likely to create or receive permanently valuable records Bor_the 52_of this section, ‘policy maker" means any indivi subject to section seventy-tnsee-a of the public officers lev, 3. a) The provisions of this section and of article 1x of this chay fer shall apply to all agency-ecninistered email accounts of any public Sicer, state official or policy maker, including accounts managed by20 a 2 2 u as 26 osioas 4 65655-01-5 other state, including, but not Limited to personal assistants, conti dential assistants, or edninistrative agsistants. b]_he provisions of this section and of article six of this chapter shall apply to all agency-administered email accounts of any public officer, state officiel or policy saker, resardless of the address names used by the public official for agency business. 4. Blectronic records shall be aaintained in accordance with following general soccrde retention schedule: 4) Boail of policy makers. Agencies shall transfer documentation adequate to identity, service, and interpret the permanent electront EecorGs, which inciuées the position title and begin and end dates for gach enali account captured in this subdivision, the disposition of ‘snail describes in this paragraph is permanent. Such email shalt_be ansferred to the state azchives no sooner than €ifteen years after the gate of the enaii and no later than tuenty-five years after the agency determined cut-off date, b) nail of other officials. Agencies shall transfer docusentation adequate to identify, service, and interpret the permanent electronic records, which includes the position title and begin and end dates for each email account _saptured in this subdivision, the disposition of gmail descsibed in this saragcaph is temporacy. such email _shall_be taansterred to the scate archives no sooner than seven veacs after the daue of the email, provided, however, that longer retention is author= ized 12 coquired for business use by the agency, 5. Production of electronic records by agencies shail comply vith the foliowing provisionsa 20 2s o3ponas 5 65655-01-5 jencies shall transfer to the state erchives documentation adequate to identify, service, and interpret the permanent electronie secords. Documentation for data ¢iles and data bases myst include cecord Layouts, data element definitions, and coge translation tables (code- books) for coded data. Data elenent definitions, codes used to repcesent date values, and interpretations of these codes must satch the actual format and codes as transterces. (c) Digital geospatial data files aust include the documentation spec- stse4 in paragraph (b) of this subdivision. In addition, docusentation for digital seospatial data ¢iles can include metadata that conforms to the Federal Geographic Data Conaittee's Content standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata, as specified in Executive Order 12906 of Apri2 Li 1994 (9 oR, 1995 comp., p. 282: Documentation for electzonic €i19s containing textual _docum with SOME tags must Include ¢ table for interpreting the SoM tags, when appropriate. 8 2) this paras ypen of electronic cecorde: Jet with attachaents: h_applies to the documentation for the followin: ii) scammed inages of textual cecords: records 1a portable document format (PDF): Aigital photographic cecords: and v) web content records, 6. (a) any aggrieved person shall have standing to enforce she provisions of this section against a public body by the commencenent of a proceeding pursuant to article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules, or an action for declaratory judgnent and intunctive relief.20 23 ospiosas . 55655-01-5 In_any_such action ox proceeding, if a court deteraines that an agency failed to comply vith the provisions of this section, the court shall have the power, in its discretion, upon good cause shown, to declare that the agency violated the provisions of this section. If the court determines that an agency has violated the srovisions of this section the court nay requize the neabers of the agency to pacticipate in teaining session concerning the obligations imposed by this section conducted by the staff of the comaittes on open government. b|_in any proceeding brought pursuant to this section, costs and eeasonable attorney's fees say be svarded by the court, ia ite discretion, to the successful party. If a court determines that an elec- fxonic record was not retained in aaterial violation of tnis articie, he court shall avard costs and reasonable attorney's fees to the successful petitioner, uniese there vas a reasonable basis for the sen- ex_to believe that it vee in compliance with the provisions of this (c] The statute of Liaitations én an article seventy-elgnt proceedin: vith respect to an action taken at executive session shalt commence to run ftom the date the electronic cecord at issue has been made available so the public 2. Nothing in this section shall bar an employes of an agency fcom maintaining a record aigted for destruction under the setention aches ules developed pursuant to section $7.06 of the acts and cultural affairs lav, if such record is relevant to an ongoing aatter and such 5. Subpacagraphs vi and vii of paragraph (b) of aubdivision 2 of jction 89 of the public officers lav, as anended by section 11 of parta u 1s 16 we » 20 a 2 2 u as 26 o3o/as 7 65655-01-5 1 of chapter 62 of the avs of 2011, are amended and a new subparagraph vi, information of a personal nature contained in a workers’ compen sation record, except as provided by section one hundred ten-a of the workers" compensation lav; [or] vil, disclosure of electronic contact information, such as an e-nait address or 2 social network username, that has been collected from taxpayer under section one hundred four of the real property tax taw{.1z vill. communications of 2 personal nature between state Legislators ang their oo 56. The arts and cultural affairs law is amended by adding a new section $7.06 to ead az follows: $57.08. slectronic records retention, 1. the state archives shall Gevelop and implenent a protocol for the preservation of electronic records of the state in accordance vith the provisions of this articte. Such protocol shail includ a) 4 process by vhich sanders and recipients of electronic sail can categorize such nail into cecords that will be setained, snd those that vill be subject to procedures for reqular disposition of such records in the ordinary course of busine the delineation of such other standards ox procedures which will assist tn the identification and preservetion of electronic records: c)_the identification of software end cther tactnological aids chat would facilitate records preservation and ceview, and hich aay be parchased within available sesources; and2 a 1s ospionas a 55655-01-5 2) a schedule for records retention for apecific typer of records and ident itication of historically important records developed in concert with the agencies providing the electronic records. 2. Nothing in this section shall bar an emplovee of the state archives from _asintaining a record slated for destruction under tne eetention schedule, or fron providing auch cecord to an agency, if auch record is sslevant to an ongoing natter, end such disclosure vould act violate an privilege or confidentiality interest § 7. Section 5 of the executive law is REPEALED. $5. Subdivision 3 of section 719 of the executive Lav, az amended by section 16 of part 8 of chapter 56 of the lavs of 2010, snended to read as follows: 3. Any reports prepared pursuant to this article shall not be subject to disclosure pursuant to (section eighty-eight) article six of the public officers Law, 59. The Legislative law is amended by adding a new section 2-a to read as follows: Disclosure. All members, officecs ané employees of the senate as. 510, Section 10-0113 of the envizonsental conservation lav is REPEALED. 5 LL, This act shall ‘axe effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it shall have become « Lew