Relates to the furnishing of registration information by the commissioner of the department of motor vehicles

Title of bill

An act to amend the vehicle and traffic law, in relation to registration information

Purpose

*Amends New York State's Vehicle and Traffic Law to ensure conformance with Federal requirements that limit access to personal information contained in motor vehicle records.

*Clarifies the law so that the release of vehicle records permitted in

Section 202 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law conforms to other statutes that address the release of vehicle records.

*Permits motor vehicle records to be used by legitimate business entities to assist government agencies and courts, and to combat vehicle fraud within the insurance and automotive industries.

Summary of provisions

This bill amends paragraph 4(b) of section 202 of the Vehicle and Traffic Law. Specifically it allows the commissioner, through a competitive bidding process, to release motor vehicles records to legitimate businesses for permissible uses under federal law. Currently, buyers of individual records have access to all federally approved uses of motor vehicle records while those who have gone through the bid process do not.

Justification

The Vehicle and Traffic Law provides protection for data being released by the New York Department of Motor Vehicles. However, the current statute unintentionally impairs a number of valid federally approved uses of motor vehicle records which are available in most states. This legislation would clarify the statute and conform it to the permissible uses of personal information outlined in the Federal Driver's Privacy Protection Act.

Federal law requires all state departments of motor vehicles to protect personal information contained in motor vehicle records. It prohibits the release of personal information except in those instances where the release meets the requirements of a limited number of specific exemptions. Under those specific exemptions the only personal information released is the registrant and title owner's name and address.

The current statute as written unintentionally impairs a number of valid legitimate uses of the information which facilitate business and consumer transactions. With the continued increase in fraud related to vehicle purchases and automobile insurance the data is used to validate vehicle ownership and vehicle attributes. This bill is necessary to prevent fraud and to protect the citizens of New York.

This legislation also establishes standards for permissible use of data which includes: safety recall, emissions recalls, assisting government and law enforcement agencies, research, statistics, and class action lawsuit settlement information.

This bill only applies to legitimate businesses that qualify to receive bulk data from the department of motor vehicles via a bi-annual bid contract and must meet security standards and bonding and insurance requirements of the DMV. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :

None.

Fiscal implications

The adoption of this bill ensures that the revenue generated through the bidding process continues to be received by the state.

Effective date

Immediately.