This Act will create the Biometric Privacy Protection Act and Geolocation Privacy Protection Act in Title 6 of the Delaware Code to give Delaware’s citizens important protections with respect to the collection, storage, use, and disclosure of their unique biometric information (such as fingerprints, voiceprints, and retinal and facial scans) and, with respect to their use of mobile devices, geolocation information that can identify Biometrics are biological and behavioral characteristics, such as fingerprints, voiceprints, and retinal and facial scans, that uniquely identify a person, and they are increasingly being collected from Delaware’s citizens and used for a variety of purposes, including marketing, employment, and security. Biometrics are among our most sensitive personal information, potentially more valuable to identity thieves, hackers, and marketers than even Social Security numbers, and need to be protected as such. Currently under Delaware law, biometric information can be collected without an individual’s knowledge or consent, and a person capturing or collecting biometric information is not required to identify what biometric information is being collected, why it’s being collected, or how long it will be kept. Delaware law also contains no protections for individuals to prevent their biometric information from being sold or transferred to third parties. The use of biometrics offers great promise for improving the lives of Delaware’s citizens in a variety of ways, but the sensitivity and importance of biometric information requires that there be protections for Delawareans with regard to the collection and use of their biometric information. The Biometric Privacy Protection Act will expand the legal protections available under Delaware law to individuals relating to the collection and use of their biometric identifiers and biometric information. Among its provisions, the Biometric Information Privacy Protection Act: (1) Requires persons in possession of biometric data to develop and make publicly available written retention schedules and guidelines for keeping biometric information; (2) Requires persons to provide timely, reasonable notice and obtain informed, affirmative consent before acquiring, collecting, storing, or capturing biometric data; (3) Prohibits persons from selling or profiting from an individual’s biometric data; (4) Prohibits persons from disclosing or disseminating an individual’s biometric data except under specified circumstances, which include an individual’s informed, affirmative consent to the disclosure; and (5) Requires persons in possession of biometric data to implement and maintain reasonable procedures and practices to protect the biometric data and prevent its unauthorized disclosure. Geolocation information is data that can be used to determine the precise location of smartphones and other mobile devices and, by extension, the individuals carrying them. Such information can be used to track the users carrying those devices wherever they go. Location-based applications currently can make use of geolocation information on an individual’s mobile device without explicitly informing the individual that the geolocation information is being collected, used, stored, or disclosed, why it is being collected, used, stored, or disclosed, or to whom it is being disclosed, and without obtaining the individual’s consent to the collection, use, storage, or disclosure of the geolocation information. The Geolocation Privacy Protection Act will create legal protections for Delaware’s citizens relating to the collection, use, storage, or disclosure of the geolocation information on their mobile devices, by prohibiting persons from collecting, using, storing, or disclosing such information unless they first obtain an individual’s affirmative express consent after providing the individual with clear, prominent, and accurate notice that: (1) Tells the individual that the individual’s geolocation information is being collected, used, stored, or disclosed; (2) Informs the individual of the specific purposes for which the geolocation information is being collected, used, stored, or disclosed; (3) Informs the individual of the identity of any third parties to whom the geolocation information is being disclosed; and (4) Provides the individual with a hyperlink or other easy access to the geolocation information collected, used, stored, or disclosed. Both the Biometric Information Privacy Protection Act and the Geolocation Privacy Protection Act give the Consumer Protection Unit of the Department of Justice the authority to investigate and prosecute violations. There is no private right of action under the Biometric Information Privacy Protection Act or the Geolocation Privacy Protection Act. Both the Biometric Information Privacy Protection Act or the Geolocation Privacy Protection Act provide that their provisions do not apply to certain specified persons or entities or in certain specific situations. This Act provides that it will become effective January 1 following its enactment into law.
Sponsored bills
This bill allows ground-based and hand-held sparklers and certain other nonexplosive, nonairborne novelty items regulated by the federal government to be sold and used in the State. The bill does not legalize firecrackers, bottle rockets, aerials, or any other device that explodes or shoots into the air. The use of those items that may be sold only to persons 18 years of age and older is limited to July 4th and December 31st of each year and sales are limited to the 30 days prior to the allowable use day. This bill allows paper caps used in toy guns contain 16 milligrams or less of pyrotechnic mixture. The sale of sparklers and most other items permitted under this bill is limited to persons 18 and older. The penalty section of 16 Del. C. §6905 applies to this bill. At least forty-three states allow the sale and use of sparklers and other nonexplosive, nonairborne novelty items that are regulated by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
This bill would allow for a student to participate in the Inspire Scholarship Program for eight continuous semesters instead of the current six. This would allow a student to use Inspire Scholarships for each of the semesters during a traditional college program.
This Act allows the various at-large members of the Domestic Violence Coordinating Council to be appointed for 3-year terms and be eligible for reappointment. This change is requested by the Council.
The Act amends Section 916 of Title 11 of the Code so that the statutory penalties for the crime of home improvement fraud increase as the amount of the loss to the victim increases, using the same scale applicable to Theft under Section 841 of Title 11 and New Home Construction Fraud under Section 917 of Title 11. Like Theft under Section 841 of Title 11, the amendment also provides for an increase in the level of the offense for amounts under $50,000 where the victim is 62 years of age or older or an "adult who is impaired" or a "person with a disability" as defined in the Code. The Act also amends the definition of "home improvement contract" to provide that a victim's payment can be in any form, not just money, and to clarify that a "home improvement contract" includes all agreements for labor, services and materials to be furnished and performed under the home improvement contract.
This bill removes the expiration date and designates Maypole dancing as the official dance of Delaware.
The language set forth in this statute would remove barriers for inmates who are students with disabilities and who have an Individualized Education Program (IEP) under state and federal law, when being considered for parole or a sentence modification. Requiring an inmate with an IEP to complete a GED or State of Delaware High School Diploma is counter-productive to the treatment and programming of this segment of the prison population and prohibits them from seeking the same benefits of parole or sentence modification afforded to those inmates who do not have an IEP. This amendment to the law allows an inmate the opportunity to earn a State of Delaware Diploma of Alternate Achievement Standards upon successful completion of the inmate's IEP.
This Act provides for a clear and established procedure and time frame during which public employees may revoke their membership in an employee organization. This Act allows public employers and employee organizations to manage membership status and authorizations in a manner that will meet public employee’s desires while not disrupting the public employer’s or employee organization’s operations. This Act also makes technical corrections to conform existing law to the standards of the Delaware Legislative Drafting Manual.
This Senate Concurrent Resolution commends the Delaware State Dental Society on the success of its 15th annual Give Kids a Smile Program and recognizes its continuing efforts to improve the dental health of Delaware’s children.
This Act removes § 617 Criminal Youth Gangs from the list of felonies designated as violent felonies and adds § 616 Gang Participation so that age is less of a factor in determining whether a violent felony was committed. In addition, this Act makes § 1103A Child Abuse in the Second Degree a violent felony. Further, this Act makes technical corrections by updating the violent felonies list to reflect § 1103B Child Abuse in the First Degree, which was formerly known as § 615 Assault by Abuse.