House Bill 1138

AN ACT TO PROHIBIT GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES FROM USING REVERSE-LOCATION COURT ORDERS, REVERSE-KEYWORD COURT ORDERS, REVERSE-LOCATION REQUESTS AND REVERSE-KEYWORD REQUESTS; TO PROVIDE DEFINITIONS FOR THE ORDERS; TO AUTHORIZE A RIGHT OF ACTION IF A GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY USES SUCH; AND FOR RELATED PURPOSES.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI:

SECTION 1. (1) The following words shall have the meanings described in this section, unless the context indicates otherwise.

(a) "Government entity" means the state, county or municipality or any agency, department, political subdivision thereof, or any individual acting for or on behalf of the state or a political subdivision thereof.

(b) "Reverse-keyword court order" shall mean any court order, including a search warrant, compelling the disclosure of records or information identifying any unnamed persons, by name or other unique identifier, who electronically searched for a particular word(s), phrase(s), or website(s), or who visited a particular website through a link generated by such a search, regardless of whether or not the order is limited to a specific geographic area or time frame.

(c) "Reverse-keyword request" shall mean any request, in the absence of a court order, by any government entity for the voluntary provision of records or information identifying any unnamed persons, by name or other unique identifier, who electronically searched for a particular word(s), phrase(s), or website(s), or who visited a particular website through a link generated by such a search, regardless of whether or not the request is limited to a specific geographic area or time frame.

(d)"Reverse-location court order" shall mean any court order, including a search warrant, compelling the disclosure of records or information pertaining to the location of unspecified electronic devices or their unnamed users or owners, whose scope extends to an unknown number of electronic devices present in a given geographic area at a given time, whether such location is measured via global positioning system coordinates, cell tower connectivity, wi-fi positioning, or any other form of location detection.

(e) "Reverse-location request" shall mean any request, in the absence of a court order, by any government entity for the voluntary provision of records or information pertaining to the location of unspecified electronic devices or their unnamed users or owners, whose scope extends to an unknown number of electronic devices present in a given geographic area at a given time, whether such location is measured via global positioning system coordinates, cell tower connectivity, wi-fi positioning, or any other form of location detection.

(2) (a) No government entity shall seek, from any court, a reverse-location court order or a reverse-keyword court order.

(b) No government entity shall seek, secure, obtain, borrow, purchase, or review any information or data obtained through a reverse-location court order or a reverse-keyword court order.

(c) No court subject to the laws of this state shall issue a reverse-location court order or a reverse-keyword court order.

(3) (a) No government entity shall make a reverse-location request or a reverse-keyword request.

(b) No government entity shall seek, secure, obtain, borrow, purchase, or review any information or data obtained through a reverse-location request or a reverse-keyword request.

(c) No government entity shall seek the assistance of any agency of the federal government or any agency of the government of another state or subdivision thereof in obtaining information or data from a reverse-location court order, reverse-keyword court order, reverse-location request, or reverse-keyword request if the government entity would be barred from directly seeking such information under this act.

(4) (a) Except as proof of a violation of this act, no information obtained, accessed, or otherwise secured in violation of this act, nor any evidence derived therefrom, shall be admissible in any criminal, civil, administrative, or other proceeding.

(b) For the purposes of this Section, information or evidence is “derived from” a reverse-location court order, reverse-keyword court order, reverse-location request, or reverse-keyword request where the government entity would not have originally possessed the information or evidence but for the violative court order or request, and regardless of any claim that the information or evidence is attenuated from the unlawful order or request, would inevitably have been discovered, or was subsequently reobtained through other means.

(5) (a) Any person whose name or other identifying information was obtained by a government entity in violation of this act:

(i) Shall be notified of the violation, in writing, by the government entity who committed the violation and of the legal recourse available to that person pursuant to the provisions of this act; and

(ii) May institute a civil action against such governmental entity for any of the following:

1. One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00) per violation or actual damages, whichever is greater;

2. Punitive damages;

3. Injunctive or declaratory relief; and

4. Any other relief the court deems proper.

(iii) In assessing the amount of punitive damages, the court shall consider:

1. The number of people whose information was disclosed;

2. Whether the violation directly or indirectly targeted persons engaged in the exercise of activities protected by the Constitution of the United States of America or the Constitution of the state; and

3. The persistence of violations by the particular government entity.

(iv) In any successful action brought under this section, the court shall award reasonable attorneys’ fees to a prevailing plaintiff.

(6) The provisions in this act are severable. If any part or provision of this act, or the application of this act to any person, entity, or circumstance, is held invalid, the remainder of this act, including the application of such part or provision to other persons, entities, or circumstances, shall not be affected by such holding and shall continue to have force and effect.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect and be in force from and after July 1, 2022.