(1) The general assembly hereby finds that while it is beneficial to the children of the state of Colorado to have procedures by which to enhance the establishment and enforcement of child support, some of which may include the collection and transmission of certain informational data by electronic and other means, the general assembly also determines that it is equally important to prevent abuses of personal information and to safeguard the fundamental right of individuals to privacy. To ensure the privacy of individuals against whom child support is to be established or enforced or on whose behalf it is to be collected, the general assembly hereby determines that it is appropriate that certain safeguards be established.
(2) In addition to any other confidentiality provisions set forth in this article and section 14-14-113, C.R.S., the child support enforcement agency and the delegate child support enforcement units, when exercising authority pursuant to this article and section 14-14-113, C.R.S., to establish, modify, or enforce support obligations, shall make every effort to preserve the integrity and confidentiality of the informational data obtained from other sources about the support obligor and obligee and the informational data provided to any other source about such individuals. The child support enforcement agency and the delegate child support enforcement units shall share only the minimum amount of information required by law and by means that are most capable of preserving the integrity and confidentiality of the information or data about the individual. Specifically, the informational data maintained or transmitted pursuant to this article shall be:
Processed fairly and lawfully;
Collected for specified, explicit, and legitimate purposes as provided by statute orrule and not further processed in a way incompatible with those purposes;
Adequate, relevant, and not excessive in relation to the purposes for which suchinformation is collected or processed;
Accurate and, where necessary, kept up to date to the maximum extent feasible; and
Kept in a form that permits identification of the subject of such information for nolonger than is necessary for the purposes for which the information was collected or for which it was processed.
In addition, an individual about whom information is gathered or transmitted pursuant to this article or section 14-14-113, C.R.S., shall have the right to access such information relating to him or her in order to verify the accuracy of the information and the lawfulness of the processing of such information.
Any individual about whom information is gathered or transmitted pursuant to thisarticle or section 14-14-113, C.R.S., shall be entitled to civil damages in a court of law against any person or entity who knowingly violates the provisions of this section.
Source: L. 97: Entire section added, p. 1288, § 33, effective July 1.
Cross references: For the legislative declaration contained in the 1997 act enacting this section, see section 1 of chapter 236, Session Laws of Colorado 1997.