Act No. 100
Public Acts of 1997
Approved by the Governor
August 6, 1997
Filed with the Secretary of State
August 7, 1997
EFFECTIVE DATE: August 7, 1997
STATE OF MICHIGAN
89TH LEGISLATURE
REGULAR SESSION OF 1997
Introduced by Reps. Brater, Wallace, Martinez, Schroer, Hanley, Hale, Walberg, LaForge, Profit, Goschka, McBryde, Baird, Cherry, Tesanovich, Freeman, DeHart, Whyman, Olshove, Scott, Parks, Jellema, London, Middleton, Gire, Varga, Curtis, Leland, Emerson, Gernaat, Oxender, Kukuk, Byl, Birkholz, Schauer, Galloway, Green, Schermesser, Mans, Llewellyn, Kaza, Harder and Agee
ENROLLED HOUSE BILL No. 4701
AN ACT to amend 1949 PA 300, entitled "An act to provide for the registration, titling, sale, transfer, and regulation of certain vehicles operated upon the public highways of this state or any other place open to the general public or generally accessible to motor vehicles and distressed vehicles; to provide for the licensing of dealers; to provide for the examination, licensing, and control of operators and chauffeurs; to provide for the giving of proof of financial responsibility and security by owners and operators of vehicles; to provide for the imposition, levy, and collection of specific taxes on vehicles, and the levy and collection of sales and use taxes, license fees, and permit fees; to provide for the regulation and use of streets and highways; to create certain funds; to provide penalties and sanctions for a violation of this act; to provide for civil liability of owners and operators of vehicles and service of process on residents and nonresidents; to provide for the levy of certain assessments; to provide for the enforcement of this act; to provide for the creation of and to prescribe the powers and duties of certain state and local agencies; to repeal all other acts or parts of acts inconsistent with this act or contrary to this act; and to repeal certain parts of this act on a specific date," by amending section 208 (MCL 257.208), as amended by 1996 PA 471, and by adding sections 40b, 208a, 208b, and 208c.
The People of the State of Michigan enact:
Sec. 40b. (1) "Personal information" means information that identifies an individual, including the individual's photograph or image, name, address (but not the zip code), driver license number, social security number, telephone number, digitized signature, and medical and disability information. Personal information does not include information on driving and equipment-related violations or civil infractions, driver or vehicle registration status, vehicular accidents, or other behaviorally-related information.
(2) "Highly restricted personal information" means an individual's photograph or image, social security number, digitized signature, and medical and disability information.
Sec. 208. (1) Except as otherwise specified in this section, the secretary of state may destroy any department records maintained on file for 7 years, including the information contained in the central file maintained under section 204a.
(2) Records of convictions of any offense for which points are provided under section 320a(1)(a), (b), (c), or (g) or section 320a(8) may be destroyed after being maintained on file for 10 years.
(3) Records of stolen vehicles reported in section 253 may be destroyed after being maintained on file for the year of entry plus 4 years.
(4) Except as otherwise specified in this act, records the secretary of state considers obsolete and of no further service in carrying out the department's powers and duties may be destroyed upon that determination.
(5) If a record of suspension under section 321a does not contain a conviction for a violation of section 904 or a local ordinance substantially corresponding to section 904 during the period of suspension, the secretary of state may destroy the record 180 days after the suspension terminates or as provided in subsections (1) to (4).
(6) The secretary of state may destroy a record of receipt of the notice provided for in section 321a(7) after the court involved informs the secretary of state that all outstanding matters regarding section 321a(7) have been resolved.
(7) The secretary of state may destroy a record maintained pursuant to section 204a 180 days after the nonresident driver against whom a civil infraction determination is entered complies with an order or judgment issued pursuant to section 907.
Sec. 208a. Records maintained under this act, other than those declared to be confidential by law or which are restricted by law from disclosure to the public, shall be available to the public in accordance with procedures prescribed in this act, the freedom of information act, 1976 PA 442, MCL 15.231 to 15.246, or other applicable laws.
Sec. 208b. (1) The secretary of state may provide a commercial look-up service of records maintained under this act. For each individual record looked up, the secretary of state shall charge a fee specified annually by the legislature, or if the legislature does not specify a fee, a market-based price established by the secretary of state. The secretary of state shall process a commercial look-up request only if the request is in a form or format prescribed by the secretary of state.
(2) The secretary of state shall not provide an entire computerized central file or other file of records maintained under this act to a nongovernmental person or entity, unless the person or entity pays the prescribed fee for each individual record contained within the computerized file.
Sec. 208c. (1) Except as provided in this section and in section 232, personal information in a record maintained under this act shall not be disclosed, unless the person requesting the information furnishes proof of identity satisfactory to the secretary of state and certifies that the personal information requested will be used for a permissible purpose identified in this section or in section 232. However, highly restricted personal information shall be used and disclosed only as expressly permitted in section 307 or as otherwise expressly provided by law.
(2) Personal information in a record maintained under this act shall be disclosed by the secretary of state if required to carry out the purposes of federal law or federal regulations.
(3) Personal information in a record maintained under this act may be disclosed by the secretary of state as follows:
(a) For use by a federal, state, or local governmental agency, including a court or law enforcement agency, in carrying out the agency's functions, or by a private person or entity acting on behalf of a governmental agency in carrying out the agency's functions.
(b) For use in connection with matters of motor vehicle and driver safety or auto theft; motor vehicle emissions; motor vehicle product alterations, recalls, or advisories; performance monitoring of motor vehicles; motor vehicle market research activities, including survey research; and the removal of nonowner records from the original records of motor vehicle manufacturers.
(c) For use in the normal course of business by a legitimate business, including the agents, employees, and contractors of the business, but only to verify the accuracy of personal information submitted by an individual to the business or its agents, employees, or contractors, and if the information as so submitted is no longer correct, to obtain the correct information, for the sole purpose of preventing fraud by pursuing legal remedies against, or recovering on a debt against, the individual.
(d) For use in connection with a civil, criminal, administrative, or arbitration proceeding in a federal, state, or local court or governmental agency or before a self-regulatory body, including use for service of process, investigation in anticipation of litigation, and the execution or enforcement of judgments and orders, or pursuant to an order of a federal, state, or local court, an administrative agency, or a self-regulatory body.
(e) For use in legitimate research activities and in preparing statistical reports for commercial, scholarly, or academic purposes by a bona fide research organization, if the personal information is not published, redisclosed, or used to contact individuals.
(f) For use by an insurer or insurance support organization, or by a self-insured entity, or its agents, employees, or contractors, in connection with claims investigating activity, antifraud activity, rating, or underwriting.
(g) For use in providing notice to the owner of an abandoned, towed, or impounded vehicle.
(h) For use either by a private detective or private investigator licensed under the private detective license act of 1965, 1965 PA 285, MCL 338.821 to 338.851, or by a private security guard agency or alarm system contractor licensed under the private security guard act of 1968, 1968 PA 330, MCL 338.1051 to 338.1085, only for a purpose permitted under this section.
(i) For use by an employer, or the employer's agent or insurer, to obtain or verify information relating either to the holder of a commercial driver license that is required under federal law or to the holder of a chauffeur's license that is required under chapter 3.
(j) For use by a car rental business, or its employees, agents, contractors, or service firms, for the purpose of making rental decisions.
(k) For use in connection with the operation of private toll transportation facilities.
(l) For use by a news medium in the preparation and dissemination of a report related in part or in whole to the operation of a motor vehicle or public safety. "News medium" includes a newspaper, a magazine or periodical published at regular intervals, a news service, a broadcast network, a television station, a radio station, a cablecaster, or an entity employed by any of the foregoing.
(m) For any use by an individual requesting information pertaining to himself or herself or requesting in writing that the secretary of state provide information pertaining to himself or herself to the individual's designee. A request for disclosure to a designee, however, may be submitted only by the individual.
Enacting section 1. This amendatory act takes effect July 1, 1997.
Enacting section 2. This amendatory act does not take effect unless all of the following bills of the 89th Legislature are enacted into law:
(a) Senate Bill No. 319.
(b) Senate Bill No. 534.
(c) House Bill No. 4700.
This act is ordered to take immediate effect.
Clerk of the House of Representatives.
Secretary of the Senate.
Approved
Governor.