A1107 2R

Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman ANNETTE CHAPARRO

District 33 (Hudson)

Assemblywoman CAROL A. MURPHY

District 7 (Burlington)

Assemblyman RAJ MUKHERJI

District 33 (Hudson)

Senator NELLIE POU

District 35 (Bergen and Passaic)

Senator JAMES BEACH

District 6 (Burlington and Camden)

Co-Sponsored by:

Assemblywoman McKnight, Assemblyman Rooney, Senators Madden and Singleton

SYNOPSIS

Directs Chief Technology Officer to conduct study on impacts of redacting handwritten signatures published on State websites; allows for protocols for such redactions to be established by rules and regulations.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

As amended by the Senate on December 21, 2023.

An Act concerning State agencies and redaction of certain signatures and supplementing P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.).

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

¹[1. a. Notwithstanding any law, rule, regulation, or order to the contrary, a State agency shall redact a person’s handwritten signature on any document published on the State agency’s Internet website, pursuant to the provisions of the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), on or after the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill).

b. A State agency shall archive any document published on a State agency’s Internet website prior to the effective date of P.L. , c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) that displays a person’s handwritten signature and the document may be republished on the State agency’s Internet website if the State agency redacts the person’s handwritten signature.

c. Nothing contained herein shall be construed to limit public access, pursuant to P.L.1963, c.73 (C.47:1A-1 et seq.), commonly known as the open public records act, to any document archived pursuant to subsection b. of this section.]¹

²1. a. The Chief Technology Officer, in consultation with the Office of Information Privacy in the Department of Community Affairs, shall conduct a study on the impact of redacting a person’s handwritten signature on any document published on the Internet websites of State agencies, and shall prepare and submit a written report, within one year of the effective date of this act, P.L. ,
c. (C. ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill), to the Governor and, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164
(C.52:14-19.1), to the Legislature, the chairperson of the Assembly Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, and the chairperson of the Senate Commerce Committee, or their successor committees, which shall include, but not be limited to, the following:

(1) the number of documents across State agency internet websites containing handwritten signatures;

(2) the resources necessary for State agencies to archive any document published on the agency’s internet website prior to the effective date of this act that display a person’s handwritten signature;

(3) the resources necessary to republish documents containing a handwritten signature on State agencies’ Internet websites if the State agencies redact the person’s handwritten signature;

(4) the implications of these findings on long-term plans for document retention and data security; and

(5) whether further legislation or regulation is necessary to establish protocols by which State agencies may redact a person’s handwritten signature on any documents published on the State agencies’ Internet websites.

b. Upon concluding a study and issuing a report to the Governor and the Legislature pursuant to this act, the Office of Information Privacy may, through regulation adopted pursuant to the “Administrative Procedure Act”, P.L. 1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), establish protocols by which a required State agency shall redact a person’s handwritten signature on any documents published on the State agency’s Internet website.²

2. This act shall take effect ¹[immediately] on the ²[180th] 90th² day following the date of enactment¹.