A new law makes changes to the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act — Chapter 13 of Minnesota Statute.
Sponsored by Rep. Steve Simon (DFL-St. Louis Park) and Sen. Mary Olson (DFL-Bemidji), the law affects different areas of local and state government data management.
Some of the changes effective Aug. 1, 2008, include:
• willful violation of the Data Practices Act by a government entity carries a penalty between $1,000 and $15,000, an increase from $100 to $10,000;
• government entities are prohibited from mailing any items with Social Security numbers displayed, and are prohibited from requiring Social Security numbers be written on the outside of submitted correspondence;
• the Department of Employment and Economic Development may share inmate employment information with the Department of Corrections for pre- and post-confinement planning;
• use of data from customers using parking facilities at the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is restricted; and
• marriage dissolution documents dealing with child support or spousal maintenance must include Social Security numbers on a separate non-public document.
Effective July 1, 2009, data collected on the storage and use of explosives or blasting agents will be non-public.
HF3553/SF3235*/CH315