Bill Text: DE HB294 | 2013-2014 | 147th General Assembly | Draft

Delaware House Bill 294 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: An Act To Amend Title 19 Of The Delaware Code Relating To Employment Practices.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 9-0)

Status: (Passed) 2014-09-02 - Signed by Governor [HB294 Detail]

Download: Delaware-2013-HB294-Draft.html

SPONSOR:	Rep. Bolden & Sen. Henry
	Reps. Keeley, Longhurst, Potter, B. Short, D.E. Williams; Sens. Bushweller, Marshall

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

147th GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HOUSE BILL NO. 294

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 19 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO EMPLOYMENT PRACTICES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:

Section 1.Amend Chapter 7, Title 19 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:

§736.Safe destruction of documents containing personal identifying information.

(a) Definitions.

(1) "Personal identifying information" means an employee's first name or first initial and last name in combination with any 1 of the following data elements that relate to the employee, when either the name or the data elements are not encrypted:his or her signature, full date of birth, social security number, passport number, driver's license or state identification card number, insurance policy number, financial services account number, bank account number, credit card number, debit card number, any other financial information or confidential health care information.

(2) "Record" means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium, or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form on which personal information is recorded or preserved."Record" does not include publicly available directories containing information an employee has voluntarily consented to have publicly disseminated or listed, such as name, address, or telephone number, or other directories as are derived solely from such directories.

(b) An employer shall take all reasonable steps to destroy or arrange for the destruction of an employee's personal identifying information within its custody and control that is no longer to be retained by the employer by shredding, erasing, or otherwise destroying or modifying the personal identifying information in those records to make it entirely unreadable or indecipherable through any means.

(c) An employee who incurs actual damages due to a reckless or intentional violation of this section may bring a civil action against the employer, and the court may award treble damages.

Section 2.This Act shall take effect January 1, 2015.

SYNOPSIS

This legislation requires an employer to shred or destroy employee records with personal identifying information when the employer no longer retains the records.An employee harmed by the employer's failure to comply with this section can sue for triple damages.