Assembly Bill A9247

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   9247
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             November 7, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. DiPIETRO -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Codes
 
 AN ACT to amend the penal law, in relation to prohibiting the release of
   personal  medical  records or information without a warrant or express
   written authorization of the individual

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Subdivision  4  of  section  400.00  of the penal law, as
 amended by chapter 371 of the laws  of  2022,  is  amended  to  read  as
 follows:
   4.  Investigation.  Before a license is issued or renewed, there shall
 be an investigation of all statements required in the application by the
 duly constituted police authorities of the locality where such  applica-
 tion is made, including but not limited to such records as may be acces-
 sible  to  the  division of state police or division of criminal justice
 services pursuant to section 400.02 of this article. For  that  purpose,
 the  records  of  the  appropriate  office  of  the department of mental
 hygiene concerning previous or present mental illness of  the  applicant
 shall  be  available  for inspection by the investigating officer of the
 police authority. Where the applicant is domiciled in a  foreign  state,
 the investigation shall include inquiry of the foreign state for records
 concerning the previous or present mental illness of the applicant, and,
 to the extent necessary for inspection by the investigating officer, the
 applicant  shall  execute  a waiver of confidentiality of such record in
 such form as may be required by the foreign state. In order to ascertain
 any previous criminal record, the investigating officer shall  take  the
 fingerprints  and  physical  descriptive  data  in quadruplicate of each
 individual by whom the application is signed and verified. Two copies of
 such fingerprints shall be taken on  standard  fingerprint  cards  eight
 inches  square,  and  one  copy may be taken on a card supplied for that
 purpose by the federal bureau of investigation; provided, however,  that
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13462-01-5
              

 A. 9247                             2
 
 in  the  case  of  a  corporate applicant that has already been issued a
 dealer in firearms license and seeks to operate a firearm dealership  at
 a  second  or subsequent location, the original fingerprints on file may
 be  used  to  ascertain  any criminal record in the second or subsequent
 application unless any of the corporate officers have changed since  the
 prior  application, in which case the new corporate officer shall comply
 with procedures governing an initial application for such license.  When
 completed,  one  standard card shall be forwarded to and retained by the
 division of criminal justice services in the  executive  department,  at
 Albany.  A search of the files of such division and written notification
 of the results of the search shall be  forwarded  to  the  investigating
 officer  and  shall  be made without unnecessary delay. Thereafter, such
 division shall notify the licensing officer and  the  executive  depart-
 ment,  division  of  state police, Albany, of any criminal record of the
 applicant filed therein subsequent to the search of its files. A  second
 standard  card,  or  the  one supplied by the federal bureau of investi-
 gation, as the case may be, shall be forwarded to that bureau  at  Wash-
 ington  with  a  request  that  the  files of the bureau be searched and
 notification of the results of the search be made to  the  investigating
 police  authority.  Of the remaining two fingerprint cards, one shall be
 filed with the executive department, division of state  police,  Albany,
 within  ten  days  after  issuance  of  the license, and the other shall
 remain on file with the investigating police authority. No such  finger-
 prints may be inspected by any person other than a peace officer, who is
 acting  pursuant to [his or her] THEIR special duties, or a police offi-
 cer, except on order of a judge or justice of a court of  record  either
 upon  notice  to the licensee or without notice, as the judge or justice
 may deem appropriate. Upon completion of the investigation,  the  police
 authority  shall  report  the  results  to the licensing officer without
 unnecessary delay.  NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF  LAW  TO  THE
 CONTRARY  NEITHER  THE  STATE  POLICE,  THE DIVISION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE
 SERVICES, NOR ANY OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OR EMPLOYEE THEREOF SHALL
 BE PERMITTED TO ACCESS PERSONAL MEDICAL RECORDS AND OTHER MEDICAL INFOR-
 MATION OTHER THAN RECORDS REQUIRED TO BE PROVIDED BY THE  DEPARTMENT  OF
 MENTAL  HYGIENE  WITHOUT A PROPERLY ISSUED WARRANT, OR THE EXPRESS WRIT-
 TEN, NOTARIZED PERMISSION OF THE INDIVIDUAL WHOSE INFORMATION IS SOUGHT.
   § 2. Section 400.02 of the penal law is amended by adding a new subdi-
 vision 3 to read as follows:
   3.  NOTWITHSTANDING ANY OTHER PROVISION OF LAW TO THE CONTRARY NEITHER
 THE STATE POLICE, THE DIVISION OF CRIMINAL  JUSTICE  SERVICES,  NOR  ANY
 OTHER  LAW  ENFORCEMENT AGENCY OR EMPLOYEE THEREOF SHALL BE PERMITTED TO
 ACCESS PERSONAL MEDICAL RECORDS AND OTHER MEDICAL INFORMATION OTHER THAN
 RECORDS REQUIRED TO BE PROVIDED BY  THE  DEPARTMENT  OF  MENTAL  HYGIENE
 WITHOUT  A  PROPERLY  ISSUED  WARRANT, OR THE EXPRESS WRITTEN, NOTARIZED
 PERMISSION OF THE INDIVIDUAL WHOSE INFORMATION IS SOUGHT.
   § 3. Subdivision 3 of section 400.00 of the penal law  is  amended  by
 adding a new paragraph (c) to read as follows:
   (C)  (I)  THE  APPLICATION  FOR A LICENSE TO CARRY, POSSESS, REPAIR OR
 DISPOSE OF FIREARMS, OR THE RENEWAL THEREOF, PURSUANT  TO  THIS  SECTION
 SHALL  NOT  REQUIRE  THE  APPLICANT  TO  CONSENT TO THE RELEASE OF THEIR
 PERSONAL MEDICAL RECORDS  AND  OTHER  MEDICAL  INFORMATION,  OTHER  THAN
 RECORDS  REQUIRED TO BE PROVIDED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF MENTAL HYGIENE, AS
 A CONDITION OF RECEIVING OR RETAINING SUCH LICENSE UNLESS  THE  INVESTI-
 GATING  AGENCY HAS A REASONABLE BELIEF THAT A MEDICAL ISSUE EXISTS WHICH
 WOULD JUSTIFY THE DENIAL OF A LICENSE PURSUANT TO THIS SECTION.
 A. 9247                             3
 
   (II) THE STATE POLICE, THE DIVISION OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE SERVICES,  AND
 ANY  OTHER  LAW  ENFORCEMENT  AGENCY  OR  EMPLOYEE THEREOF MAY REQUEST A
 CONSENT FROM INDIVIDUALS FOR  THE  RELEASE  OF  THEIR  PERSONAL  MEDICAL
 RECORDS  OR  OTHER MEDICAL INFORMATION WHERE SUCH LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY
 HAS  A REASONABLE BELIEF THAT A MEDICAL ISSUE EXISTS WHICH WOULD JUSTIFY
 THE SUSPENSION OR REVOCATION  OF  A  LICENSE  ISSUED  PURSUANT  TO  THIS
 SECTION.
   § 4. This act shall take effect immediately.