1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to government data practices; providing for 
  1.3             sharing certain data on individuals who complete adult 
  1.4             basic education programs; amending Minnesota Statutes 
  1.5             1998, sections 124D.52, by adding a subdivision; and 
  1.6             270B.14, by adding a subdivision; Minnesota Statutes 
  1.7             1999 Supplement, section 268.19. 
  1.8   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.9      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 124D.52, is 
  1.10  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  1.11     Subd. 6.  [PERFORMANCE ACCOUNTABILITY SYSTEM.] A 
  1.12  performance accountability system is created to assess the 
  1.13  effectiveness of adult basic education programs.  A district, 
  1.14  group of districts, or private nonprofit organization providing 
  1.15  an adult basic education program must request each learner to 
  1.16  provide the learner's social security number.  When a learner in 
  1.17  such a program is requested to provide the learner's social 
  1.18  security number, the learner must be notified whether providing 
  1.19  the social security number is optional and that if the learner 
  1.20  provides the social security number it will be used to assess 
  1.21  the effectiveness of the program by tracking the learner's 
  1.22  subsequent career.  The learner must be notified that the social 
  1.23  security number will be shared with the department of children, 
  1.24  families, and learning; the department of revenue; and the 
  1.25  department of economic security in order to accomplish this 
  1.26  purpose. 
  2.1      Each quarter, a district, group of districts, or private 
  2.2   nonprofit organization providing programs under this section 
  2.3   must forward social security numbers it receives from learners 
  2.4   to the department of children, families, and learning.  For the 
  2.5   purposes of longitudinal studies on the employment status of 
  2.6   former learners under this section, the department of children, 
  2.7   families, and learning must forward the social security numbers 
  2.8   to: 
  2.9      (1) the department of economic security to electronically 
  2.10  match the social security numbers of former learners with those 
  2.11  of recipients of reemployment insurance benefits; and 
  2.12     (2) the department of revenue to electronically match the 
  2.13  social security numbers and names of former learners with those 
  2.14  of tax return filers to determine the income and employment of 
  2.15  former learners. 
  2.16     The results of data matches performed under clauses (1) and 
  2.17  (2) shall be forwarded by the respective department to the 
  2.18  department of children, families, and learning for use in 
  2.19  longitudinal studies under this section.  Data on individuals 
  2.20  received from the department of economic security or the 
  2.21  department of revenue under this subdivision may be compiled and 
  2.22  released by the department of children, families, and learning 
  2.23  in the form of summary data but must not be released in a form 
  2.24  that identifies individual learners without the consent of each 
  2.25  individual learner.  Data that identifies individual learners 
  2.26  must be destroyed after summary data on those individuals has 
  2.27  been compiled. 
  2.28     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1999 Supplement, section 
  2.29  268.19, is amended to read: 
  2.30     268.19 [INFORMATION.] 
  2.31     (a) Except as otherwise provided by this section, data 
  2.32  gathered from any employer or individual pursuant to the 
  2.33  administration of sections 268.03 to 268.23 are private data on 
  2.34  individuals or nonpublic data not on individuals as defined in 
  2.35  section 13.02, subdivisions 9 and 12, and may not be disclosed 
  2.36  except pursuant to a court order or section 13.05.  These data 
  3.1   may be disseminated to and used by the following agencies 
  3.2   without the consent of the subject of the data:  
  3.3      (1) state and federal agencies specifically authorized 
  3.4   access to the data by state or federal law; 
  3.5      (2) any agency of Minnesota or any other state; or any 
  3.6   federal agency charged with the administration of an employment 
  3.7   security law or the maintenance of a system of public employment 
  3.8   offices; 
  3.9      (3) human rights agencies within Minnesota that have 
  3.10  enforcement powers; 
  3.11     (4) the department of revenue must have access to 
  3.12  department private data on individuals and nonpublic data not on 
  3.13  individuals only to the extent necessary for enforcement of 
  3.14  Minnesota tax laws; 
  3.15     (5) public and private agencies responsible for 
  3.16  administering publicly financed assistance programs for the 
  3.17  purpose of monitoring the eligibility of the program's 
  3.18  recipients; 
  3.19     (6) the department of labor and industry on an 
  3.20  interchangeable basis with the department subject to the 
  3.21  following limitations and regardless of any law to the contrary: 
  3.22     (i) the department must have access to private data on 
  3.23  individuals and nonpublic data not on individuals for uses 
  3.24  consistent with the administration of its duties under sections 
  3.25  268.03 to 268.23; and 
  3.26     (ii) the department of labor and industry must have access 
  3.27  to private data on individuals and nonpublic data not on 
  3.28  individuals for uses consistent with the administration of its 
  3.29  duties under Minnesota law; 
  3.30     (7) the department of trade and economic development may 
  3.31  have access to private data on individual employers and 
  3.32  nonpublic data not on individual employers for its internal use 
  3.33  only; when received by the department of trade and economic 
  3.34  development, the data remain private data on individuals or 
  3.35  nonpublic data; 
  3.36     (8) local and state welfare agencies for monitoring the 
  4.1   eligibility of the data subject for assistance programs, or for 
  4.2   any employment or training program administered by those 
  4.3   agencies, whether alone, in combination with another welfare 
  4.4   agency, or in conjunction with the department or to monitor and 
  4.5   evaluate the statewide Minnesota family investment program by 
  4.6   providing data on recipients and former recipients of food 
  4.7   stamps, cash assistance under chapter 256, 256D, 256J, or 256K, 
  4.8   child care assistance under chapter 119B, or medical programs 
  4.9   under chapter 256B, 256D, or 256L; 
  4.10     (9) local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies for 
  4.11  the sole purpose of ascertaining the last known address and 
  4.12  employment location of the data subject, provided the data 
  4.13  subject is the subject of a criminal investigation; and 
  4.14     (10) the department of health may have access to private 
  4.15  data on individuals and nonpublic data not on individuals solely 
  4.16  for the purposes of epidemiologic investigations; and 
  4.17     (11) the department of children, families, and learning 
  4.18  must be given access to data as provided by section 124D.52, 
  4.19  subdivision 6.  
  4.20     (b) Data on individuals and employers that are collected, 
  4.21  maintained, or used by the department in an investigation 
  4.22  pursuant to section 268.182 are confidential as to data on 
  4.23  individuals and protected nonpublic data not on individuals as 
  4.24  defined in section 13.02, subdivisions 3 and 13, and must not be 
  4.25  disclosed except pursuant to statute or court order or to a 
  4.26  party named in a criminal proceeding, administrative or 
  4.27  judicial, for preparation of a defense.  
  4.28     (c) Tape recordings and transcripts of recordings of 
  4.29  proceedings conducted in accordance with section 268.105 and 
  4.30  exhibits received into evidence at those proceedings are private 
  4.31  data on individuals and nonpublic data not on individuals and 
  4.32  must be disclosed only pursuant to the administration of section 
  4.33  268.105, or pursuant to a court order.  
  4.34     (d) The department may disseminate an employer's name, 
  4.35  address, industry code, occupations employed, and the number of 
  4.36  employees by ranges of not less than 100 for the purpose of 
  5.1   assisting individuals using the Minnesota workforce center 
  5.2   system in obtaining employment. 
  5.3      (e) The general aptitude test battery and the nonverbal 
  5.4   aptitude test battery as administered by the department are 
  5.5   private data on individuals or nonpublic data.  
  5.6      (f) Data gathered by the department pursuant to the 
  5.7   administration of sections 268.03 to 268.23 must not be made the 
  5.8   subject or the basis for any suit in any civil proceedings, 
  5.9   administrative or judicial, unless the action is initiated by 
  5.10  the department. 
  5.11     Sec. 3.  Minnesota Statutes 1998, section 270B.14, is 
  5.12  amended by adding a subdivision to read: 
  5.13     Subd. 18.  [DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN, FAMILIES, AND 
  5.14  LEARNING.] If the commissioner of children, families, and 
  5.15  learning provides the social security numbers of former learners 
  5.16  under section 124D.52, the commissioner must electronically 
  5.17  match those social security numbers with the social security 
  5.18  numbers on returns to determine income and employment of former 
  5.19  learners and return the results of the matching to the 
  5.20  department of children, families, and learning for the purposes 
  5.21  in section 124D.52, subdivision 4.