S 9975: Prohibits the disclosure of the home address, personal telephone numbers, personal email addresses or personal social media handles of any active or former New York state, New York city or local municipal emergency first responder, a judge of any court of law of this state, or a New York state, county or municipal prosecutor or the spouse or child thereof; relates to criminal penalties; permits civil action.

  
  STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9975  IN SENATE April 20, 2026 ___________ Introduced by Sen. SCARCELLA-SPANTON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Investigations and Government Operations AN ACT to amend the public officers law, the penal law and the civil rights law, in relation to prohibiting the disclosure and publication of the home address, personal telephone numbers, personal email addresses, or social media handles of any active or former New York state, New York city or local municipal emergency first responder, a judge of any court of law of this state, or a New York state, county or municipal prosecutor The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem- bly, do enact as follows: 1 Section 1. Section 89 of the public officers law is amended by adding 2 a new subdivision 7-a to read as follows: 3 7-a. (a) Nothing in this article shall permit the disclosure or publi- 4 cation of the home address, personal telephone numbers, personal email 5 addresses, or personal social media handles of any active or former New 6 York state, New York city or local municipal emergency first responder, 7 a judge of any court of law of this state, or a New York state, county 8 or municipal prosecutor. 9 (b) "First responder" or "New York state, New York city, or local 10 municipal emergency first responder" shall mean a police officer, peace 11 officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, paramedic, or other 12 emergency medical services provider engaged in the lawful performance of 13 their official duties. 14 § 2. The penal law is amended by adding two new sections 250.61 and 15 250.62 to read as follows: 16 § 250.61 Unlawful disclosure of the home address, personal telephone 17 numbers, personal email addresses or personal social media 18 handles of any active or former New York state, New York city 19 or local municipal emergency first responder, a judge of any 20 court of law of this state, or a New York state, county or 21 municipal prosecutor in the second degree. EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [ ] is old law to be omitted. LBD15605-01-6 
 S. 9975 2 1 For the purposes of this section, "first responder" or "New York 2 state, New York city or local municipal emergency first responder" shall 3 mean a police officer, peace officer, firefighter, emergency medical 4 technician, paramedic, or other emergency medical services provider 5 engaged in the lawful performance of their official duties. 6 A person shall not knowingly, with reckless disregard for the proba- 7 bility of exposure of another to harassment or risk of harm to life or 8 property, disclose or post or publish in any way including on the inter- 9 net the home address, personal telephone numbers, personal email 10 addresses or personal social media handles of any active or former New 11 York state, New York city or local municipal emergency first responder, 12 a judge of any court of law of this state, or a state, county or munici- 13 pal prosecutor. 14 Unlawful disclosure of the home address, personal telephone numbers, 15 personal email addresses or personal social media handles of any active 16 or former New York state, New York city or local municipal emergency 17 first responder, a judge of any court of law of this state, or a New 18 York state, county or municipal prosecutor in the second degree is a 19 class A misdemeanor. 20 § 250.62 Unlawful disclosure of the home address, personal telephone 21 numbers, personal email addresses, or personal social media 22 handles of any active or former New York state, New York city 23 or local municipal emergency first responder, a judge of any 24 court of law of this state, or a New York state, county or 25 municipal prosecutor, or the spouse or child thereof in the 26 first degree. 27 For the purposes of this section, "first responder" or "New York 28 state, New York city or local municipal emergency first responder" shall 29 mean a police officer, peace officer, firefighter, emergency medical 30 technician, paramedic, or other emergency medical services provider 31 engaged in the lawful performance of their official duties. 32 A person shall not knowingly, with intent to expose another to harass- 33 ment or risk of harm to life or property, disclose, post or publish in 34 any way including on the internet the home address, personal telephone 35 numbers, personal email addresses, or personal social media handles of 36 any active or former New York state, New York city or local municipal 37 emergency first responder, a judge of any court of law of this state, or 38 a New York state, county or municipal prosecutor, or the spouse or child 39 thereof. 40 Unlawful disclosure of the home address, personal telephone numbers, 41 personal email addresses, or personal social media handles of any active 42 or former New York state, New York city or local municipal emergency 43 first responder, a judge of any court of law of this state, or a New 44 York state, county or municipal prosecutor, or the spouse or child ther- 45 eof in the first degree is a class E felony. 46 § 3. The civil rights law is amended by adding a new section 50-h to 47 read as follows: 48 § 50-h. Disclosure of the home address, personal telephone numbers, 49 personal email addresses, or personal social media handles of any active 50 or former New York state, New York city or local municipal emergency 51 first responder, a judge of any court of law of this state, or a New 52 York state, county or municipal prosecutor is prohibited. 1. For the 53 purposes of this section: 54 (a) "First responder" or "New York state, New York city or local 55 municipal emergency first responder" shall mean a police officer, peace 56 officer, firefighter, emergency medical technician, paramedic, or other 
 S. 9975 3 1 emergency medical services provider engaged in the lawful performance of 2 official duties. 3 (b) "Disclose" shall mean to solicit, sell, manufacture, give, 4 provide, lend, trade, mail, deliver, transfer, publish, distribute, 5 circulate, disseminate, present, exhibit, advertise or offer. 6 2. No person, business, or association shall disclose or post or 7 publish in any way including on the internet the home address, personal 8 telephone numbers, personal email addresses, or personal social media 9 handles of an active or former New York state, New York city or local 10 municipal emergency first responder, a judge of any court of law of this 11 state, or a New York state, county or municipal prosecutor or spouse or 12 child thereof under circumstances in which a reasonable person would 13 believe that providing that information would expose another to harass- 14 ment or risk of harm to life or property. 15 3. A person, business, or association that violates subdivision two of 16 this section shall be liable to the active or former New York state, New 17 York city or local municipal emergency first responder, judge of any 18 court of law of this state, or state, county or municipal prosecutor, 19 the spouse or child thereof, or any other person residing at the home 20 address of such individual, who may bring a civil action in the supreme 21 court. 22 4. The court may award: 23 (a) actual damages, but not less than liquidated damages computed at 24 the rate of one thousand dollars for each violation of this section; 25 (b) punitive damages upon proof of willful or reckless disregard of 26 the law; 27 (c) reasonable attorneys' fees and other litigation costs reasonably 28 incurred; and 29 (d) any other preliminary and equitable relief as the court determines 30 to be appropriate. 31 § 4. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall 32 have become a law.