NY State Senate Bill 2019-S3529

Senate Bill S3529

2019-2020 Legislative Session

Authorizes the fiduciary of a decedent to take control of certain web site accounts of the decedent

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Judiciary Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

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Actions

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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to judiciary
Feb 08, 2019	referred to judiciary

2019-S3529 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A3136
Current Committee:: Senate Judiciary
Law Section:: Estates, Powers and Trusts Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §11-1.1, EPT L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: S6629, A9317
2013-2014: S2429, S6532, A6034
2015-2016: S1741, A8355
2017-2018: S702, A3308
2021-2022: S5961

2019-S3529 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Authorizes the fiduciary of a decedent to take control of certain web site accounts of the decedent.

2019-S3529 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S3529

SPONSOR: CARLUCCI
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the estates, powers and trusts law, in
relation to authorizing the fiduciary of a decedent to take control of
certain web site accounts of the decedent

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1. Adds a new subparagraph 23 to paragraph (b) of section 11-1.1
of the estates, powers and trusts law to read as follow:  "unless
expressly prohibited by the will or court order, to take control of,
conduct, continue or terminate any account of the decedent on any social
networking web site, microblogging or short message service web site or
email service website."

Section 2. Effective date.

 
PURPOSE AND JUSTIFICATION:

This legislation will allow an individual to designate a loved one or a

family member the authority to terminate a social media account and
other messaging accounts after an individual's death. Many advocates
believe that continuing to preserve the online presence of the deceased
individual could be painful for loved ones. Additionally, it is likely
that individuals who are close to the deceased will feel grief and pain
when being reminded of their loss.

This legislation allows for an individual to assign a representative to
control or terminate their online accounts. Critics suggest that many
online users may not feel comfortable disclosing their personal informa-
tion. However, this legislation does not make it mandatory to designate
a person if they choose not to. It is equally important to be able to
protect the privacy of the deceased. It is crucial to acknowledge the
implications if someone were to abuse the account.  For example, after
the death of two young girls in Australia, thousands of people visited
their face-book accounts leaving many negative comments and images. This
could further contribute to the emotional damage of the friends and
family. Additionally, emails and blogs are prone to hackers who may be
able to obtain personal information from a deceased individuals account.
This new legislation allows for these current issues to be addressed.

 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

2017-18: S702/A3308 - JUDICIARY/judiciary
2015-16: S1741/A8355 - Judiciary Committee/Judiciary Committee
2013-14: 36532/A6034- Judiciary Committee/Judiciary Committee

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.

2019-S3529 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3529
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 8, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. CARLUCCI -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary
 
 AN ACT to amend the estates, powers  and  trusts  law,  in  relation  to
   authorizing the fiduciary of a decedent to take control of certain web
   site accounts of the decedent

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. Paragraph (b) of section 11-1.1 of the estates, powers  and
 trusts  law  is  amended  by  adding  a  new  subparagraph 23 to read as
 follows:
   (23) UNLESS EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED BY THE WILL OR COURT ORDER,  TO  TAKE
 CONTROL  OF,  CONDUCT, CONTINUE OR TERMINATE ANY ACCOUNT OF THE DECEDENT
 ON ANY SOCIAL  NETWORKING  WEB  SITE,  MICROBLOGGING  OR  SHORT  MESSAGE
 SERVICE WEB SITE OR EMAIL SERVICE WEB SITE.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
 
 
 
 
 
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD06255-01-9

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