NY State Senate Bill 2019-S5687

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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Date of Action	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 08, 2020	referred to judiciary
May 13, 2019	referred to judiciary

co-Sponsors

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A7790
Current Committee:: Senate Judiciary
Law Section:: Real Property Law
Laws Affected:: Add §235-h, RP L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2021-2022: S73, A4352
2023-2024: S2478, A322
2025-2026: S8223, A6363

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Prohibits the use of a facial recognition system by a landlord on any residential premises.

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                
 
BILL NUMBER: S5687

SPONSOR: HOYLMAN
 
TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the real property law, in relation to
prohibiting the use of a facial recognition system by a landlord on any
residential premises

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 of this bill adds a new Section 235-H to the Real Property Law
to define the terms "facial recognition" and "facial recognition system"
and provide that it shall be unlawful for any landlord to obtain,
retain, access, or use, on any residential premises, any facial recogni-
tion system or - information obtained from or by the use of a facial
recognition system.

The new Section 235-H would give the Attorney General the authority to
seek an injunction for violations of this section, and authorize a court
to impose a civil penalty of not more than ten thousand dollars for such
violations.

The new Section 235-H would also authorize a private right of action for

those unlawfully subjected to facial recognition, and requires courts to
award costs and reasonable attorney's fees to prevailing plaintiffs.

Section 2 of this bill establishes the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

As the use of facial recognition technology becomes increasingly common,
concerns have been raised by advocates for privacy and civil liberties
relating to the effectiveness and ethical implications of such technolo-
gy.

Significant evidence exists to suggest that facial recognition technolo-
gy is less accurate when analyzing faces of color than when an alyzing
white faces. A 2018 study from MIT and Stanford University examining
commercially available facial analysis programs created by three major
companies found that the three programs' rates of error in determining
the gender of light-skinned men were never worse than 0.8%, but the
rates of error for dark-skinned women were significantly higher, with
two of the programs showing an error rate of more than 34%.

We have seen several recent examples in New York of landlords seeking to
install facial recognition technology in residential buildings as an
alternative to a traditional key or passcode system.  Residents of the
Atlantic Plaza Towers in Brownsville, Brooklyn recently filed their
opposition with New York State Homes and Community Renewal (HCR) against
the owner's plan to install a facial recognition system in the develop-
ment.

In addition, the proliferation of such technology for residential use
raises troubling concerns about mass surveillance and tracking capabili-
ty, in an era where there are already cameras on every block, especially
in urban areas. Facial recognition systems would give landlords the
ability to track, at the very least, every entry and exit of their
tenants and guests. The potential for misuse of this information by
landlords is high, particularly those looking to intimidate or drive out
longtime tenants of rent-regulated housing.
Landlords already wield significant power over tenants by controlling
their access to stable housing. Installing a facial recognition system
on a residential premises and then requiring tenants to consent to the
use of such system to remain in the building is tantamount to evicting
those who object to having their sensitive personal data stored and used
by a landlord.

We already have an affordable housing crisis in New York State. We
should not be further restricting access to housing for tenants who are
concerned about the security of their personal data. Given the substan-
tive issues raised about the ethics and security of facial recognition
technology, New York should prohibit its use on residential premises.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:

None to the State.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after it
shall have become a law.

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5687
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               May 13, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sens. HOYLMAN, MONTGOMERY -- read twice and ordered print-
   ed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Judiciary
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend the real property law, in relation to prohibiting the
   use of a facial recognition system by a landlord  on  any  residential
   premises

   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section 1. The real property law is amended by adding  a  new  section
 235-h to read as follows:
   § 235-H. UNLAWFUL USE OF FACIAL RECOGNITION SYSTEM. 1. AS USED IN THIS
 SECTION:
   (A) "FACIAL RECOGNITION" MEANS BOTH:
   (1) THE AUTOMATED OR SEMI-AUTOMATED PROCESS BY WHICH A PERSON IS IDEN-
 TIFIED  OR  ATTEMPTED  TO  BE IDENTIFIED BASED ON THE CHARACTERISTICS OF
 THEIR FACE, INCLUDING IDENTIFICATION OF KNOWN OR UNKNOWN INDIVIDUALS  OR
 GROUPS; AND
   (2)  THE  AUTOMATED  OR SEMI-AUTOMATED PROCESS BY WHICH THE CHARACTER-
 ISTICS OF AN INDIVIDUAL'S FACE ARE ANALYZED TO  DETERMINE  THE  INDIVID-
 UAL'S  SENTIMENT, STATE OF MIND, OR OTHER PROPENSITIES INCLUDING BUT NOT
 LIMITED TO LEVEL OF DANGEROUSNESS.
   (B) "FACIAL RECOGNITION SYSTEM" MEANS ANY COMPUTER SOFTWARE OR  APPLI-
 CATION THAT PERFORMS FACIAL RECOGNITION.
   2.  NOTWITHSTANDING ANY LAW, RULE OR REGULATION TO THE CONTRARY, IT IS
 UNLAWFUL FOR ANY LANDLORD TO OBTAIN, RETAIN,  ACCESS,  OR  USE,  ON  ANY
 RESIDENTIAL PREMISES:
   (A) ANY FACIAL RECOGNITION SYSTEM; OR
   (B)  ANY  INFORMATION  OBTAINED FROM OR BY USE OF A FACIAL RECOGNITION
 SYSTEM.
   3. (A) WHEREVER THERE SHALL BE A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION, AN  APPLI-
 CATION  MAY BE MADE BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL IN THE NAME OF THE PEOPLE OF
 THE STATE OF NEW YORK TO A COURT OR JUSTICE HAVING JURISDICTION TO ISSUE
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.

                                                            LBD11558-01-9

 S. 5687                             2
 
 AN INJUNCTION, AND UPON NOTICE TO THE DEFENDANT OF NOT  LESS  THAN  FIVE
 DAYS,  TO ENJOIN AND RESTRAIN THE CONTINUANCE OF SUCH VIOLATIONS; AND IF
 IT SHALL APPEAR TO THE SATISFACTION OF THE COURT OR  JUSTICE,  THAT  THE
 DEFENDANT  HAS,  IN  FACT,  VIOLATED  THIS  SECTION AN INJUNCTION MAY BE
 ISSUED BY SUCH COURT OR JUSTICE ENJOINING AND  RESTRAINING  ANY  FURTHER
 VIOLATION,  WITHOUT  REQUIRING  PROOF THAT ANY PERSON HAS, IN FACT, BEEN
 INJURED OR DAMAGED THEREBY. IN ANY SUCH PROCEEDING, THE COURT  MAY  MAKE
 ALLOWANCES  TO  THE  ATTORNEY  GENERAL  AS  PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH SIX OF
 SUBDIVISION (A) OF SECTION EIGHTY-THREE HUNDRED THREE OF THE CIVIL PRAC-
 TICE LAW AND RULES, AND DIRECT RESTITUTION.   WHENEVER THE  COURT  SHALL
 DETERMINE  THAT  A VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION HAS OCCURRED, THE COURT MAY
 IMPOSE A CIVIL PENALTY  OF  NOT  MORE  THAN  TEN  THOUSAND  DOLLARS.  IN
 CONNECTION  WITH  ANY SUCH PROPOSED APPLICATION, THE ATTORNEY GENERAL IS
 AUTHORIZED TO TAKE PROOF AND MAKE A DETERMINATION OF THE RELEVANT  FACTS
 AND  TO  ISSUE  SUBPOENAS  IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CIVIL PRACTICE LAW AND
 RULES.
   (B) IN ADDITION TO THE RIGHT OF ACTION GRANTED TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
 PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION, ANY PERSON WHO HAS BEEN  SUBJECTED  TO  FACIAL
 RECOGNITION  IN VIOLATION OF THIS SECTION, OR ABOUT WHOM INFORMATION HAS
 BEEN OBTAINED, RETAINED, ACCESSED, OR USED IN VIOLATION OF THIS CHAPTER,
 MAY BRING AN ACTION IN ANY COURT OF COMPETENT JURISDICTION:
   (1) TO ENJOIN SUCH VIOLATION; AND
   (2) TO RECOVER ACTUAL DAMAGES, OR TO RECEIVE ONE THOUSAND  DOLLARS  IN
 DAMAGES FOR SUCH VIOLATION, WHICHEVER IS GREATER.
   (C)  A  COURT  SHALL  AWARD  COSTS AND REASONABLE ATTORNEYS' FEES TO A
 PLAINTIFF WHO IS THE PREVAILING PARTY IN AN ACTION BROUGHT  UNDER  PARA-
 GRAPH (B) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
   § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred twentieth day after
 it shall have become a law.

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Senate Bill S5687

Sponsored By

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Judiciary Committee

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co-Sponsors

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

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Sponsored By

Brad Hoylman-Sigal

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Judiciary Committee

Actions

co-Sponsors

Velmanette Montgomery

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Details

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Summary

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2019-S5687 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments