The New York State Senate

                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  5323

                       2017-2018 Regular Sessions

                          I N  A S S E M B L Y

                            February 8, 2017
                               ___________

Introduced by M. of A. WEPRIN -- read once and referred to the Committee
  on Governmental Operations

AN  ACT  to  amend  the  civil rights law and the civil practice law and
  rules, in relation to creating the right to be forgotten act

  THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section  1.  The  civil  rights law is amended by adding a new section
50-f to read as follows:
  § 50-F. RIGHT TO BE FORGOTTEN ACT. 1. UPON THE REQUEST FROM  AN  INDI-
VIDUAL,  ALL  SEARCH ENGINES, INDEXERS, PUBLISHERS AND ANY OTHER PERSONS
OR ENTITIES THAT MAKE AVAILABLE, ON OR THROUGH  THE  INTERNET  OR  OTHER
WIDELY  USED  COMPUTER-BASED  NETWORK,  PROGRAM  OR SERVICE, INFORMATION
ABOUT THE REQUESTER, SHALL  REMOVE  INFORMATION,  ARTICLES,  IDENTIFYING
INFORMATION  AND  OTHER  CONTENT  ABOUT  SUCH  INDIVIDUAL,  AND LINKS OR
INDEXES TO ANY OF THE SAME, THAT IS "INACCURATE", "IRRELEVANT",  "INADE-
QUATE"  OR  "EXCESSIVE"  WITHIN THIRTY DAYS OF SUCH REQUEST, AND WITHOUT
REPLACING  SUCH  REMOVED  INFORMATION,  ARTICLE  OR  CONTENT  WITH   ANY
DISCLAIMER,  TAKEDOWN  NOTICE,  HYPERLINK,  OR OTHER REPLACEMENT NOTICE,
INFORMATION OR CONTENT, OR COOPERATING WITH ANY OTHER PERSON  OR  ENTITY
WHO  DOES  ANY  OF THE FOREGOING. FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, "INACCU-
RATE", "IRRELEVANT", "INADEQUATE", OR "EXCESSIVE"  SHALL  MEAN  CONTENT,
WHICH  AFTER  A SIGNIFICANT LAPSE IN TIME FROM ITS FIRST PUBLICATION, IS
NO LONGER MATERIAL TO CURRENT PUBLIC  DEBATE  OR  DISCOURSE,  ESPECIALLY
WHEN  CONSIDERED  IN  LIGHT OF THE FINANCIAL, REPUTATIONAL AND/OR DEMON-
STRABLE OTHER HARM THAT THE INFORMATION, ARTICLE  OR  OTHER  CONTENT  IS
CAUSING  TO  THE  REQUESTER'S  PROFESSIONAL,  FINANCIAL, REPUTATIONAL OR
OTHER INTEREST, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF CONTENT RELATED TO CONVICTED FELO-
NIES, LEGAL MATTERS RELATING TO VIOLENCE, OR A MATTER THAT IS OF SIGNIF-
ICANT CURRENT PUBLIC INTEREST, AND AS TO WHICH THE REQUESTER'S ROLE WITH
REGARD TO THE MATTER IS CENTRAL AND SUBSTANTIAL.

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD09707-01-7

A. 5323                             2

  2. SEARCH ENGINES, INDEXERS, PUBLISHERS AND ANY OTHER PERSONS OR ENTI-
TIES THAT MAKE AVAILABLE, ON THE INTERNET OR OTHER  WIDELY  USED  COMPU-
TER-BASED  NETWORK,  PROGRAM  OR  SERVICE,  CONTENT  ABOUT AN INDIVIDUAL
WHICH, WITHIN THIRTY DAYS AFTER RECEIVING A REMOVAL  REQUEST,  HAVE  NOT
REMOVED ALL REQUESTED INFORMATION AND CONTENT THAT IS INACCURATE, IRREL-
EVANT,  INADEQUATE  OR  EXCESSIVE,  AND  WITHOUT  REPLACING SUCH REMOVED
INFORMATION OR CONTENT WITH ANY DISCLAIMER, TAKEDOWN NOTICE,  HYPERLINK,
OR OTHER REPLACEMENT NOTICE, INFORMATION OR CONTENT, OR COOPERATING WITH
ANY  OTHER  PERSON  OR  ENTITY  WHO  DOES ANY OF THE FOREGOING, SHALL BE
SUBJECT TO, AS ADMINISTERED BY THE SECRETARY OF STATE, EITHER AN  ACTION
FOR  ACTUAL  MONETARY LOSS FOR EACH SUCH VIOLATION, OR STATUTORY DAMAGES
IN THE AMOUNT OF TWO HUNDRED FIFTY DOLLARS AFTER  SUCH  REMOVAL  REQUEST
FOR  EACH  DAY  OF  SUCH VIOLATION, WHICHEVER IS GREATER. IN ADDITION TO
SUCH PENALTY, ANY SUCH PARTY WHO DOES NOT TIMELY REMOVE ANY SUCH  INFOR-
MATION,  ARTICLE,  CONTENT, LINKS OR INDEXES ALSO SHALL BE LIABLE TO AND
SHALL PAY TO THE  REQUESTER  ANY  AND  ALL  COSTS  AND  ATTORNEY'S  FEES
INCURRED WHILE ENFORCING HIS OR HER RIGHTS UNDER THIS ACT.
  3.  THE  SECRETARY  OF  STATE  SHALL OVERSEE ALL RIGHT TO BE FORGOTTEN
REQUESTS, FILINGS, TAKEDOWNS AND IF  APPLICABLE,  ANY  PENALTIES,  JUDG-
MENTS, COSTS AND/OR ATTORNEY'S FEES.
  §  2. Subdivision 3 of section 215 of the civil practice law and rules
is amended and a new subdivision 9 is added to read as follows:
  3. an action to recover damages for assault, battery, false  imprison-
ment, malicious prosecution, libel, EXCEPT LIBEL AS DEFINED UNDER SUBDI-
VISION  NINE  OF  THIS  SECTION,  slander,  false  words causing special
damages, or a violation of the right of privacy under section  fifty-one
of the civil rights law;
  9. AN ACTION FOR LIBEL FOR PUBLICATIONS ON THE INTERNET OR OTHER WIDE-
LY USED COMPUTER-BASED NETWORK, PROGRAM OR SERVICE. THE STATUTE OF LIMI-
TATIONS  SHALL  BEGIN  TO  ACCRUE WHEN THE INFORMATION, ARTICLE OR OTHER
CONTENT IS COMPLETELY REMOVED FROM THE INTERNET  OR  OTHER  WIDELY  USED
COMPUTER-BASED  NETWORK,  PROGRAM OR SERVICE, REGARDLESS OF WHETHER SUCH
CONTENT ALSO WAS OR IS PUBLISHED ELSEWHERE, AND REGARDLESS OF WHEN  SUCH
CONTENT WAS FIRST PUBLISHED ON THE INTERNET OR OTHERWISE.
  §  3.  Each  and all of the sections and provisions of this act, shall
apply to all articles and other content that either is  presently  being
made  available  on  the  internet,  or other widely used computer-based
network, program or service, regardless of when such articles and  other
content  was  first  so or otherwise posted, published or otherwise made
available, or is so made available at a future date, and  regardless  of
whether the respondent search engine, indexer, publisher or other person
or  entity  is  located  within  or without the state of New York or the
United States of America, to the fullest extent permitted by the  United
States Constitution.
  § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.