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Bill Summary · SB 209

SB 209 — Data Privacy for Minors (North Carolina)

Status: Introduced Jan 23, 2025; Passed 1st Reading (to Rules)
Primary Sponsors: Sen. Chitlik; Sen. Murdock
Subject area: Confidentiality / Records / Minors / Local government programs

Purpose / Intent

SB 209 narrows public access to personally identifying information for minors who participate in certain local‑government‑sponsored programs or programs funded by the North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc. or local partnerships. The bill is aimed at protecting minors’ privacy and safety by excluding specified identifying information from the definition of a “public record.”

Key provisions

  • Adds a statutory exclusion from public records (G.S. 132‑1.11A) for the following information about any minor participating in covered programs:
    • name; address; age; date of birth; telephone number; e‑mail address;
    • the name or address of the minor’s parent or legal guardian; and
    • “any other identifying information” on applications or other program records.
  • Lists the programs covered: programs sponsored by a local government (or combination of local governments), programs funded by the North Carolina Partnership for Children, Inc. under G.S. 143B‑168.12, and programs funded by a local partnership under G.S. 143B‑168.14.
  • Preserves one exception: the name of a minor who has received a scholarship or other local government–funded financial award remains a public record.
  • Requires that the county, municipality, and ZIP code of each participating minor be public records, but with the identifying items above redacted.
  • Clarifies that the statute’s exclusion does not transform the listed items into “confidential information” under other laws — it simply excludes them from being public records under G.S. 132‑1.
  • Specifies the geographic scope: the rule applies only to the County of Chatham; the Counties of Chatham and Durham; the Towns of Apex, Cary, Fuquay‑Varina, Garner, Holly Springs, Knightdale, Morrisville, Rolesville, Wake Forest, Wendell, and Zebulon; and the City of Raleigh.

Who is affected

  • Minor program participants and their families in the listed localities (enhanced privacy protections).
  • Local governments, program administrators, and local partnerships in those localities — they must withhold or redact the specified information from public disclosure and public‑records responses.
  • Requesters of public records (journalists, researchers, members of the public) — access to certain identifying details about minors in covered programs will be limited.
  • State agencies and local records custodians responsible for public‑records compliance and redaction procedures.

Administrative and legal implications

  • Implementation will require local governments and program administrators to adjust intake, data storage, and public‑records processes to ensure redaction/exclusion of identified fields.
  • The bill does not specify penalties or enforcement mechanisms beyond statutory public‑records framework; it operates by excluding items from the definition of “public record.”
  • Because the statute excludes (rather than classifies as confidential) the information, interplay with other confidentiality laws should be considered by administrators and counsel.

Effective date / Procedure

  • The bill text directs: “This act is effective when it becomes law.”
  • Current procedural status: Passed first reading (Jan 23, 2025) and referred to further consideration (Rules / committee as noted in chamber records). Further committee action, floor votes, and enactment are required for it to become law.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

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