The Privacy Protection Act is designed to enhance the safeguarding of personal information collected by government entities and health care facilities in New Jersey. The bill prohibits these entities from requesting or collecting sensitive information, such as an individual's immigration status, citizenship, place of birth, social security number, and taxpayer identification number, unless it is necessary for administering public services or benefits. It also specifies that records related to these assessments will not be classified as governmental records under the Open Public Records Act and can only be disclosed under certain conditions, such as legal requirements or with the individual's written consent. Additionally, the bill restricts the sale or sharing of automated license plate recognition information without proper legal justification.

Moreover, the act mandates that health care facilities follow similar guidelines regarding the collection of sensitive personal information, ensuring that such data is only gathered when essential for health care services or eligibility assessments for public programs. The bill emphasizes the need for informed consent before disclosing personal information and requires the creation of standardized consent forms in multiple languages. It also mandates government entities to review and update their confidentiality policies and notify individuals when their information is disclosed under legal orders. Violations of these provisions could result in civil liability for both government entities and health care facilities, with the act taking effect immediately, except for certain provisions related to the Department of Health, which will take effect one year after enactment.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: 39:2-3.4