Bill > HB522

This bill establishes a comprehensive privacy protection framework for personal information maintained by government entities in New Hampshire. The bill defines personal information broadly, including sensitive data like social security numbers, biometric identifiers, financial records, and contact information. It creates a legal expectation of privacy for individuals by prohibiting government entities from acquiring, collecting, retaining, or using personal information from third-party providers without specific exceptions. These exceptions include situations involving state regulatory agencies, judicial warrants, emergency services, imminent dangers, legally authorized requests, and cases where individuals directly provide or authorize access to their information. The bill imposes criminal penalties for knowingly violating these privacy protections and allows individuals who suffer injury due to violations to seek damages of at least $1,000 per violation, plus legal costs. Importantly, the bill does not create a cause of action against non-government entities providing information and includes provisions for federal law preemption. The new privacy protections will take effect on January 1, 2026, and amend existing state regulations regarding biometric data collection and privacy expectations.

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https://gc.nh.gov/bill_status/legacy/bs2016/bill_docket.aspx?lsr=398&sy=2025&sortoption=&txtsessionyear=2025&txtbillnumber=HB522