§ 537 — Disclosures prohibited

New York § 537

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law LAB: Labor
• Title 3: Administration
• Art. 18: Unemployment Insurance Law

Text

§ 537. Disclosures prohibited. 1. a. Unemployment insurance\ninformation. (i) Unemployment insurance information is information\ncontained in the records of the department pertaining to the\nadministration of this article, including information obtained by the\ndepartment from employers and employees pursuant to this article. The\nterm includes wage reporting information obtained by the department from\nthe state department of taxation and finance pursuant to subdivision\nfour of section one hundred seventy-one-a and paragraph four of\nsubsection (a) of section six hundred seventy-four of the tax law. It\nfurther includes information in the state directory of new hires that\nhas been disclosed to the department for use in the unemployment\ninsurance program. Such information does not include the personnel or\ngeneral fiscal information of the department or information in the\npublic domain.\n (ii) For purposes of this paragraph, the term public domain means: (A)\ninformation about the department and the unemployment insurance appeal\nboard; (B) information about applicable state and federal law, rules and\nregulations pertaining to unemployment insurance, including\ninterpretations thereof and statements of general policy and\ninterpretations of general applicability but excluding investigative\nmanuals and procedures pertaining to unemployment insurance; and (C) any\nagreements relating to the administration of this article.\nNotwithstanding the foregoing, nothing in this subdivision shall be\nconstrued to limit, restrict, or abrogate the department's right to deny\naccess to any records pursuant to the provisions of the public officers\nlaw.\n b. Use of unemployment insurance information. Unemployment insurance\ninformation shall be for the exclusive use and information of the\ncommissioner in the discharge of his or her duties under this chapter\nand shall not be open to the public nor be used in any court in any\naction or proceeding pending therein unless the commissioner is a party\nto such action or proceeding, or such action or proceeding involves\ninformation provided pursuant to paragraph g of subdivision three of\nthis section, notwithstanding any other provisions of law. Such\ninformation insofar as it is material to the making and determination of\na claim for benefits or to adjudicating a claim for benefits shall be\navailable to the parties affected and, in the commissioner's discretion,\nmay be made available to the parties affected in connection with\neffecting placement.\n c. Disclosure of unemployment insurance information to an individual\nor employer. (i) The department may disclose unemployment insurance\ninformation about an individual to such individual or unemployment\ninsurance information about an employer to such employer. As a condition\nto making such disclosure, the department shall require a written\nauthorization to disclose such information from the individual or\nemployer in a form acceptable to the department together with such proof\nof identity or authorization to act on behalf of the individual or\nemployer as the commissioner shall deem appropriate. Notwithstanding the\nforegoing, except as may otherwise be authorized under paragraph b of\nthis subdivision, this paragraph shall not be construed to authorize the\ndepartment to disclose information acquired from an employer under this\narticle to an individual or information acquired from an employee under\nthis article to an employer.\n (ii) Nothing in this subdivision shall be construed to prohibit the\ndisclosure of the wage reporting information obtained by the department\nfrom the department of taxation and finance pursuant to subdivision four\nof section one hundred seventy-one-a and paragraph four of subsection\n(a) of section six hundred seventy-four of the tax law pertaining to an\nindividual to such individual or pertaining to an employer to such\nemployer.\n d. Disclosure upon informed consent. (i) The department may disclose\nunemployment insurance information about an individual or an employer to\nan agent of such individual or employer, or to a third party, on the\nbasis of informed consent received from such individual or employer. An\ninformed consent from an individual shall not be construed to authorize\nthe department to disclose information acquired from an employer under\nthis article to an agent or third party identified in an individual's\ninformed consent nor to authorize the department to disclose information\nacquired from an individual under this article to the agent or third\nparty identified in the employer's informed consent. Nothing in this\nsubdivision shall be construed to prohibit the disclosure of the wage\nreporting information obtained by the department from the department of\ntaxation and finance pursuant to subdivision four of section one hundred\nseventy-one-a and paragraph four of subsection (a) of section six\nhundred seventy-four of the tax law pertaining to an individual to the\nagent or third party identified in the individual's informed consent or\npertaining to an employer to the agent or third party identified in the\nemployer's consent.\n (ii) Informed consent shall consist of a written release from the\nindividual or employer to whom the information pertains. Where a written\nrelease is impossible or impracticable to obtain, the department may\naccept an informed consent from a representative acceptable to the\ndepartment, including but not limited to a conservator, guardian, or\nexecutor or administrator of a decedent's estate, together with such\ndocumentation as the department deems necessary, including but not\nlimited to orders of appointment or letters of administration, to\nestablish the right of the representative to act on the individual's\nbehalf. An informed consent must include a statement:\n (A) specifically identifying the information that is to be disclosed;\n (B) acknowledging that department files will be accessed to obtain the\ninformation;\n (C) identifying the specific purpose or purposes for which the\ninformation is sought, subject to the limitations on such purpose or\npurposes set forth in subparagraph (iii) of this paragraph, and\nindicating that information obtained under the release will only be used\nfor that purpose or purposes; and\n (D) identifying all the parties who may receive the information\ndisclosed pursuant to the consent.\n (iii) The purpose specified in the release must be limited to\nproviding a service or benefit to the individual signing the release\nthat such individual expects to receive as a result of signing the\nrelease or for the purpose of carrying out administration or evaluation\nof a public program to which the release pertains.\n e. Funding for disclosure of requested unemployment insurance\ninformation. Except as permitted under applicable federal law or\nregulation, or as otherwise authorized by agreement between the\ndepartment and the United States Department of Labor, federal\nunemployment insurance grant funds shall not be used to pay for any of\nthe costs incurred by the department in processing and handling a\nrequest for disclosure of unemployment information made under this\narticle.\n 2. Violations of the confidentiality provisions of this section. Any\nperson, who, without authority of the commissioner or as otherwise\nrequired by law, shall disclose information in violation of the\nconfidentiality provisions of this section, upon conviction, shall be\nguilty of a misdemeanor.\n 3. Exceptions. The commissioner may, however, disclose the information\ndescribed in subdivisions one and four of this section under the\nfollowing circumstances:\n a. Federal law. The commissioner shall report fully and completely to\nthe appropriate agency of the United States on the effect and\nadministration of this article in the manner prescribed by such agency,\nand further he or she shall make information available, upon request, to\nany federal, state or local agency entitled to such information under\nthe social security act or any other federal law in the manner\nprescribed by such federal law or its implementing regulations.\n b. Chief administrator of the courts; commissioners of jurors; county\nclerks; chief judges of United States district courts; clerks of the\ncourt or jury administrators of the United States district courts.\n (i) The commissioner shall provide lists of the names of persons\nreceiving unemployment insurance benefits to the chief administrator of\nthe courts, appointed pursuant to section two hundred ten of the\njudiciary law. The lists shall be provided for the sole purpose of\nintegration into lists of prospective jurors as provided by section five\nhundred six of the judiciary law. The chief administrator of the courts\nshall upon request provide information from the lists to the\ncommissioner of jurors in each county or, in a county within a city\nhaving a population of one million or more, the county clerk of said\ncounty, solely for the purpose of compiling lists of prospective jurors\nfor the appropriate county. The lists of persons receiving unemployment\ninsurance benefits shall be provided only pursuant to a cooperative\nagreement between the chief administrator of the courts and the\ncommissioner that is consistent with all federal regulations or\nrequirements governing such disclosures and guarantees that all\nnecessary steps shall be taken by the chief administrator of the courts,\nthe commissioners of jurors and the county clerks to insure that the\nlists are kept confidential and that there is no unauthorized use or\ndisclosure of such lists. Furthermore, the lists will be provided only\nif the chief administrator of the courts determines that the lists are\nneeded for integration into lists of prospective jurors in one or more\ncounties.\n (ii) The commissioner shall provide lists of the names of persons\nreceiving unemployment insurance benefits to the chief judge of any\nUnited States district court in New York State, appointed pursuant to\ntitle twenty-eight of the United States Code, section one hundred\nthirty-six. The lists shall be provided for the sole purpose of\nintegration into lists of prospective jurors in such United States\ndistrict court. The chief judge of such district court shall upon\nrequest provide information from the lists to the clerk of the court or\njury administrator of such United States district court, solely for the\npurpose of compiling lists of prospective jurors for such district\ncourt. The lists of persons receiving unemployment insurance benefits\nshall be provided only pursuant to a cooperative agreement between the\nchief judge of such district court and the commissioner that is\nconsistent with all federal regulations or requirements governing such\ndisclosures and guarantees that all necessary steps shall be taken by\nthe chief judge of the district court, the clerk of the court or jury\nadministrator of such district court to insure that the lists are kept\nconfidential and that there is no unauthorized use or disclosure of such\nlists. Furthermore, the lists will be provided only if the chief judge\nof such district court determines that the lists are needed for\nintegration into lists of prospective jurors in such district.\n c. Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the delivery of\nunemployment benefit information contained in the department's records\nto the secretary of health and human services of the United States or\nthe state agency responsible for collecting such information, in\naccordance with regulations promulgated by such secretary, as necessary\nfor the purposes of the national directory of new hires as established\nunder section four hundred fifty-three A of the social security act, as\nadded by section three hundred thirteen of the personal responsibility\nand work opportunity reconciliation act of 1996, P.L. 104-193.\n d. (i) Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the disclosure\nquarterly, to the secretary of health and human services of the United\nStates or the state agency responsible for collecting such information,\nclaim information contained in the department's records, as required by\nsection four hundred fifty-three A of the social security act\n(establishing the national directory) as amended by section three\nhundred thirteen of the personal responsibility and work opportunity\nreconciliation act of 1996, P.L. 104-193. Such claim information is to\nbe used only for the purposes of section four hundred fifty-three A of\nthe social security act in carrying out child support enforcement\nprograms. Costs of furnishing such claim information shall be reimbursed\nconsistent with federal law and regulations.\n (ii) For the purpose of this paragraph the term "claim information"\nmeans information regarding whether an individual is receiving, has\nreceived, or has made application for, unemployment insurance benefits,\nthe amount of such benefits being received or to be received and the\nindividual's most recent address contained in the department's records.\n e. Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the disclosure of\nclaim information as defined in subparagraph (ii) of paragraph d of this\nsubdivision to the "state directory of new hires," as established under\nsection one hundred seventy-one-h of the tax law as amended, and to the\nstate office of temporary and disability assistance for disseminating to\nsupport collection units designated by social services districts or\ntheir duly authorized agents for all purposes designated by the personal\nresponsibility and worker opportunity reconciliation act of 1996, public\nlaw 104-193. The cost of providing such claim information shall be\nreimbursed consistent with federal law and regulations.\n f. United States census bureau. Upon request to the commissioner, such\ninformation may be disclosed to the United States census bureau for\nstatistical analyses related to population and employment measurements\nand trends. The confidentiality of such information shall be protected\nby subdivisions one and two of this section and title thirteen of the\nUnited States Code and subject to the terms of a written agreement\nbetween the United States census bureau and the commissioner.\n g. Federal, state and local agencies. (i) Upon request to the\ncommissioner, such information may be disclosed to certain federal,\nstate and local agencies. The commissioner may require written\nagreements with requesting agencies in a form determined by the\ncommissioner and consistent with 20 CFR 603 and other federal\nregulations. The information that may be disclosed pursuant to this\nparagraph shall be disclosed only after the requesting agency has\ndemonstrated, to the commissioner's satisfaction, that the information\nshall be kept confidential, except for those purposes for which it was\nprovided to the requesting agency, and that the requesting agency has\nsecurity safeguards in place to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of\nsuch information.\n (ii) The information disclosed pursuant to this paragraph may be\ndisclosed to the following agencies to be used exclusively for the\nfollowing legitimate governmental purposes:\n (1) any federal, state or local agency in the investigation of fraud\nrelating to public programs, or misuse of public funds;\n (2) any state or United States territorial workforce agency, local\nworkforce investment board and its agents, and one-stop operating\npartner receiving funds under the workforce investment act of 1998 for\nprogram performance purposes and other legitimate programmatic purposes\nauthorized by the commissioner;\n (3) the United States department of labor or its agents, as required\nby law, or in connection with the requirements imposed as a result of\nreceiving federal administrative funding;\n (4) state and local economic development agencies, or their agents,\nwhere such information is necessary to carry out the statutory functions\nof such agencies, shall receive a quarterly census of employment and\nwage information compiled by the department, provided that such\ndisclosure shall not violate federal law. Any redisclosure of\ninformation obtained by such agencies under this clause shall be limited\nto tabulation and publication of such information in an aggregated\nstatistical form. No individual identifying information obtained\npursuant to this clause shall be redisclosed in the course of the\ntabulation or publication. As used in this clause, the term "aggregated\nstatistical form" shall mean, in the case of information regarding\nindividuals, a data set that includes information about not fewer than\nten individuals, and, in the case of employer information, a data set\nthat includes information about no fewer than three employers, of which\nno one employer comprises more than eighty percent of the aggregated\ndata set; and\n (5) the workers' compensation board, the state insurance fund and the\nstate department of financial services, for purposes of determining\ncompliance with the coverage of workers' compensation and disability\ninsurance and to the workers' compensation board for purposes of\ndetermining eligibility for workers' compensation benefits.\n (6) any federal, state, or local law enforcement agency in accordance\nwith a proper judicial order or grand jury subpoena served upon the\ndepartment.\n (7) the office of temporary and disability assistance, or local social\nservices districts, for purposes of establishing or verifying the income\nand eligibility of applicants for, or recipients of, benefits under\nstate public assistance programs for such benefits. Information obtained\nby the office of temporary and disability assistance under this clause\nshall not be disclosed, except to local social services districts for\npurposes of establishing or verifying the income and eligibility of\napplicants for, or recipients of, benefits under state public assistance\nprograms.\n (8) the office of vocational and educational services for individuals\nwith disabilities of the education department for the evaluation of the\neffect on earnings of participants, or former participants, in\nemployment and training programs for which the office of vocational and\neducational services for individuals with disabilities of the education\ndepartment has reporting, monitoring or evaluating responsibilities.\n (9) the commission for the blind for the evaluation of the effect on\nearnings of participants, or former participants, in employment and\ntraining programs for which the commission for the blind has reporting,\nmonitoring or evaluating responsibilities.\n (10) any other federal, state, or local governmental agency, including\nthe state university of New York, the city university of New York, and\nany of their constituent units, or the agents or contractors of a\ngovernmental agency, where such information is to be used for (A)\nevaluation of program performance, including, but not limited to,\nlongitudinal outcome analysis of programs (including programs funded by\npublic or private moneys or a combination thereof) to the extent\npermitted by federal law; (B) financial or other analysis required by\nfederal, state, or local law or regulation; (C) preparation of reports\nrequired by federal, state, or local law or regulation; (D) operation of\npublic programs by such agencies, their agents, contractors and\nsubcontractors, whenever the commissioner determines that such\ninformation sharing is for the purpose of improving the quality or\ndelivery of program services or to create operational efficiencies; or\n(E) establishment of common case management systems between federal,\nstate, or local agencies delivering or supporting workforce services for\na shared customer base, wherever such common case management system is\nfor the purpose of fostering workforce partnerships, program\ncoordination, inter-agency collaboration, improving program services, or\ncreating operational efficiencies. Any redisclosure of information\nobtained by such agencies, their agents, or their contractors under this\nclause shall be limited to tabulation and publication of such\ninformation in an aggregated statistical form, except when an agency,\nits agent, its contractor or other agency must exchange such information\nfor an authorized purpose as provided for in the written agreement\nrequired by 20 CFR Part 603. No individual identifying information\nobtained pursuant to paragraph d of subdivision one of this section\nshall be redisclosed in the course of the tabulation or publication. As\nused in this clause, the term "aggregated statistical form" shall mean,\nin the case of information regarding individuals, a data set that\nincludes information about no fewer than ten individuals, and, in the\ncase of employer information, a data set that includes information about\nno fewer than three employers, of which no one employer comprises more\nthan eighty percent of the aggregated data set. When the commissioner\napproves a requested disclosure of information for the purposes of a\nlongitudinal study, the commissioner shall allow such information to be\nused for a specified period of time as provided for in the written\nagreement required by 20 CFR Part 603. Such agreement may only provide\nfor information to be used for a period of up to ten years but may be\nrenewed for additional periods of time.\n (11) (A) Pursuant to clause ten of this subparagraph, the commissioner\nshall electronically post in a place accessible by the general public\n(i) the minimum conditions for granting a request from governmental\nagencies for disclosure of information, (ii) a standard application for\nsubmitting requests for disclosure of unemployment insurance information\nin individually identifiable form in accordance with paragraph d of\nsubdivision one of this section, in de-identified unit level form, or\naggregated statistical form, (iii) the timeframe for information request\ndeterminations by the commissioner, such that within twenty business\ndays of receiving a request, the commissioner shall either approve or\ndeny the request or ask for additional information; within twenty\nbusiness days of receiving a request for additional information, the\nrequesting agency shall respond to the commissioner, and; within thirty\ncalendar days of receiving the additional information, the commissioner\nshall provide a final approval or denial of the request, and (iv)\ncontact information for assistance with requests for disclosure of\ninformation.\n (B) Any approval or denial pursuant to clause ten of this subparagraph\nshall be in writing. Denials shall identify the reason or category of\nreason for the denial.\n (C) The commissioner shall issue guidelines regarding the development\nof agreements with respect to disclosures approved pursuant to clause\nten of this subparagraph, and such guidelines shall include, but not be\nlimited to, the process and timeframe for developing such agreements and\nthe terms therein consistent with 20 CFR Part 603 and other federal\nregulations.\n h. Department contractors, subcontractors, or agents. The department\nmay disclose unemployment insurance information to its contractors,\nsubcontractors, or agents as the commissioner deems necessary to carry\nout the statutory functions of the department. Such disclosure shall be\nconsistent with the authorized purposes described in subdivision four of\nthis section and all applicable federal regulations, guidelines and\npolicies.\n i. Payment to the department for disclosure of requested unemployment\ninsurance information. (1) Except as permitted under applicable federal\nlaw or regulation, or as otherwise authorized by agreement between the\ndepartment and the United States department of labor, federal\nunemployment insurance grant funds shall not be used to pay for any of\nthe costs incurred by the department in processing and handling a\nrequest for disclosure of unemployment information made under this\narticle. Such costs shall be calculated, collected, and administered by\nthe department consistent with applicable federal rules and guidelines\nand shall be paid in advance of disclosure to the department by the\nentity requesting the information or by another party acting on behalf\nof such entity. Where the recipient is a public official, the department\nmay accept payment of costs by way of reimbursement.\n (2) Costs paid under this paragraph shall be income of the state\nunemployment insurance program and shall only be used as permitted under\nthe provisions of applicable federal regulations or guidelines governing\nthe assessment and expenditure of such costs.\n 4. Wage reporting information obtained by the department from the\nstate department of taxation and finance pursuant to subdivision four of\nsection one hundred seventy-one-a of the tax law, as added by chapter\nfive hundred forty-five of the laws of nineteen hundred seventy-eight,\nand information obtained or derived from quarterly combined withholding,\nwage reporting and unemployment insurance returns required to be filed\nby employers pursuant to paragraph four of subsection (a) of section six\nhundred seventy-four of the tax law shall be considered confidential and\nshall be used for the administration of the unemployment insurance\nprogram, employment services program, federal and state employment and\ntraining programs, employment statistics and labor market information\nprograms, employer services program, worker protection programs, federal\nprograms for which the department has administrative responsibility or\nfor other purposes deemed appropriate by the commissioner under this\nchapter. Such information shall not be disclosed to persons or agencies\nother than those considered entitled to such information under the\nsocial security act or other federal law, or as provided in subdivision\nthree of this section or when such disclosure is necessary for the\nproper administration of the department's unemployment insurance\nprogram, employment services program, employment and training programs,\nworker protection programs, federal programs for which the department\nhas administrative responsibility or for other purposes deemed\nappropriate by the commissioner under this chapter. Any reports\nconcerning employment and training programs submitted to a state or\nfederal agency shall also be submitted to the governor, the temporary\npresident of the senate, the speaker of the assembly and the chairs of\nthe labor committees in the senate and the assembly.\n 5. Withholding tax information obtained by the department from the\nstate department of taxation and finance pursuant to subsection (1) of\nsection six hundred ninety-seven of the tax law shall be confidential\nand shall not be disclosed or redisclosed by any person or agency except\nin accordance with the provisions of subsections (e) and (l) of section\nsix hundred ninety-seven of such law. When used for the purpose of\nevaluating monitoring or reporting on the department's employment\nsecurity and training programs, access to such information shall be\nlimited to that which concerns individuals who applied to or\nparticipated in such programs.\n 7. The department shall notify all applicants to, and participants in,\nemployment security and training programs for which the department has\nreporting, monitoring or evaluating responsibilities that information\nobtained from the department of taxation and finance may be used to\nevaluate program effectiveness of up to ten years after such application\nor participation, whichever is later.\n