What's happening
This bill repeals a section of law relating to public access to records of calls made to a municipality's E911 emergency system.
Why it matters
Reduces public transparency. By repealing public access to E911 call records, the bill could limit the ability for journalists, watchdog groups, and the general public to scrutinize emergency response practices or incidents involving law enforcement and first responders.
Impacts accountability for emergency services. With less access to E911 records, it may become more difficult to investigate complaints or identify systemic issues in how emergency calls are handled by municipalities.
Affects privacy and sensitive information. The repeal might be seen as a protective measure for caller privacy, but it could also hinder efforts to verify government actions or to conduct independent reviews of major events or emergencies.
Changes precedent for open records law. This move could signal a broader shift in how New York State approaches public access to government-held information, potentially influencing future legislation about transparency and public records.
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Who cares
Headline styles
End E911 Call Record Access
Plain English, a few words. Used as the page title.
Sponsors
No co-sponsors yet.
History
- Referred to local government
- Referred to local government
Companion bill
The same bill in the other chamber. A bill becomes law when one version passes both houses and the governor signs it, so either number can carry it.
End E911 Call Record Access
In Assembly Committee · Local Governments · Sponsor Thomas Abinanti
Full text
1 pageUnderlined is new[Struck] is removedOfficial text on nysenate.gov ↗
STATE OF NEW YORK
1097
2019-2020 Regular Sessions
IN SENATE
January 10, 2019
Introduced by Sen. HOYLMAN -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
AN ACT to repeal subdivision 4 of section 308 of the county law, relating to access to records of calls made to a municipality's E911 system
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assembly, do enact as follows:
Section 1. Subdivision 4 of section 308 of the county law is REPEALED.
§ 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[ ] is old law to be omitted.
LBD05075-01-9
Reflowed for reading: line numbers and page breaks removed. Cite the official text.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to repeal subdivision 4 of section 308 of the county law, relating to access to records of calls made to a munici- pality's E911 system
Purpose
Subdivision 4 of section308ofthe County Law prohibits the disclosure of records from enhanced911(or"E911") emergency systems. This bill repeals that prohibitiontomakesuch records subject to the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).
Summary of provisions
Section 1 repeals subdivision 4 of section 308 of the county law.
Section 2 is the effective date.
Justification
E911 systems allow the recipients of emergency calls to see the phone number used to make the call, as well as the location from which the call was made. Subdivision 4 of section 308 of the County Law prohibits the disclosure of such records.
Repealing the disclosure prohibition would allow the records to be made available by law enforcement officials, the individuals who made the calls, and/or the public in instances where there is no valid basis for denying access.
The protections these records would be provided under FOIL would prevent unwarranted invasions of privacy, protect victims of or witnesses to crimes, and preclude interference with a law enforcement investigation. This law would not pertain to New York City, which for years has granted or denied access to 911 records as appropriate under the provisions of FOIL.
This legislation is consistent with a recommendation made by the New York State Committee on Open Government in its 2014 annual report.
Legislative history
S.0074 of 2017-2018 (Hoylman): Died in Local Government A.3023 of 2017-2018 (Abinati): Died in Local Governments S.1175 of 2015-2016 (Hoylman): Died in Local Government
Fiscal implications
None.
Effective date
This act shall take effect immediately.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.