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New Jersey Legislature· A5328Approved by the Governor; P.L.2026, c.25

Regulates data brokers, data collectors, and collection and dissemination of certain sensitive information, the official text

Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official page posted by the New Jersey Legislature, fetched 2026-08-28. Where this bill amends existing law, language marked for deletion in the official page appears here in brackets. This is the first reprint. The official bill page.
[First Reprint]

ASSEMBLY, No. 5328

STATE OF NEW JERSEY

222nd LEGISLATURE

INTRODUCED JUNE 28, 2026

Sponsored by:

Assemblyman  WILLIAM F. MOEN, JR.

District 5 (Camden and Gloucester)

Senator  JOHN F. MCKEON

District 27 (Essex and Passaic)

Senator  RAJ MUKHERJI

District 32 (Hudson)

Co-Sponsored by:

Senator Timberlake

SYNOPSIS

Regulates data brokers, data collectors, and
collection and dissemination of certain sensitive information.

CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT

As amended by the Senate on June 30, 2026.

An Act concerning personal data, data brokers, data
collectors, and amending P.L.2023, c.266 and supplementing Title 56 of the
Revised Statutes.

Be It
Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of
the State of New Jersey:

1.    Section 9 of P.L.2023,
c.266 (C.56:8-166.12) is amended to read as follows:

9. a. A controller shall:

(1)  limit the collection of
personal data to what is adequate, relevant, and reasonably necessary in
relation to the purposes for which such data is processed, as disclosed to the
consumer;

(2)  except as otherwise
provided in P.L.2023, c.266 (C.56:8-166.4 et seq.), not process personal data
for purposes that are neither reasonably necessary to, nor compatible with, the
purposes for which such personal data is processed, as disclosed to the
consumer, unless the controller obtains the consumer's consent;

(3)  take reasonable measures
to establish, implement, and maintain administrative, technical, and physical
data security practices to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and
accessibility of personal data and to secure personal data during both storage
and use from unauthorized acquisition. The data security practices shall be
appropriate to the volume and nature of the personal data at issue;

(4)  not process sensitive
data concerning a consumer without first obtaining the consumer's consent, or,
in the case of the processing of personal data concerning a known child,
without processing such data in accordance with COPPA;

(5)  not process personal data
in violation of the laws of this State and federal laws that prohibit unlawful
discrimination against consumers;

(6)  not sell sensitive
data, which shall apply to all individuals or legal entities regardless of the
number of consumers whose data the individual or entity controls or processes;

(7)  provide an
effective mechanism for a consumer to revoke the consumer's consent under this
section that is at least as easy as the mechanism by which the consumer
provided the consumer's consent and, upon revocation of such consent, cease to
process the data as soon as practicable, but not later than 15 days after the
receipt of such request;

[(7)] (8) not process the
personal data of a consumer for purposes of targeted advertising, the sale of
the consumer's personal data, or profiling in furtherance of decisions that
produce legal or similarly significant effects concerning a consumer without
the consumer's consent, under circumstances where a controller has actual
knowledge, or willfully disregards, that the consumer is at least 13 years of
age but younger than 17 years of age;

[(8)] (9)  specify the express
purposes for which personal data are processed; and

[(9)] (10)  not conduct
processing that presents a heightened risk of harm to a consumer without
conducting and documenting a data protection assessment of each of its
processing activities that involve personal data acquired on or after the
effective date of P.L.2023, c.266 (C.56:8-166.4 et seq.) that present a
heightened risk of harm to a consumer.

b.    Data protection
assessments shall identify and weigh the benefits that may flow, directly and
indirectly, from the processing to the controller, the consumer, other
stakeholders, and the public against the potential risks to the rights of the
consumer associated with the processing, as mitigated by safeguards that the
controller can employ to reduce the risks. The controller shall factor into
this assessment the use of de-identified data and the reasonable expectations
of consumers, as well as the context of the processing and the relationship
between the controller and the consumer whose personal data will be processed.
A controller shall make the data protection assessment available to the
Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety upon
request. The division may evaluate the data protection assessment for
compliance with the duties contained in this section and with other laws. Data
protection assessments shall be confidential and exempt from public inspection
under P.L.1963 c.3 (C.47:1A-1 et al.). The disclosure of a data protection
assessment pursuant to a request from the division under this section shall not
constitute a waiver of any attorney-client privilege or work-product protection
that might otherwise exist with respect to the assessment and any information
contained in the assessment.

c.    For the purposes of this
section, "heightened risk" includes:

(1)  processing personal data
for purposes of targeted advertising or for profiling if the profiling presents
a reasonably foreseeable risk of: unfair or deceptive treatment of, or unlawful
disparate impact on, consumers; financial or physical injury to consumers; a
physical or other intrusion upon the solitude or seclusion, or the private
affairs or concerns, of consumers if the intrusion would be offensive to a
reasonable person; or other substantial injury to consumers;

(2)  selling personal data;
and

(3)  processing sensitive
data.

d.    A single data protection
assessment may address a comparable set of processing operations that include
similar activities.

(cf: P.L.2023, c.266, s.9)

2.  (New section)   a. As used
in P.L.     , c.    (C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill):

“Consumer”
means an identified person who is a resident of this State acting only in an
individual or household context.  “Consumer” shall not include a person acting
in a commercial or employment context.

“Data
broker” means a person or legal entity, including, but not limited to, a
controller, that knowingly collects or purchases the
personal data of a consumer with whom the person or legal entity does not have
a direct relationship and sells or licenses
that data to a third party.  A third party shall not include a processor
if licensure or disclosure of personal data to the processor is solely to
process the personal data on the data broker’s or data controller’s behalf.
“Data broker” shall not include a government entity, including any federal
agency or State agency as defined in section 2 of P.L.1971, c.182
(C.52:13D-13), any political subdivision, or any division, board, bureau,
office, commission, or other instrumentality created by a political subdivision.  Examples of a direct relationship include if the
consumer is a past or present:  (1) customer, client, subscriber, or user of
the person or legal entity’s goods or services; (2) employee, contractor, or
agent of the person or legal entity; (3) investor in the person or legal
entity; or (4) donor to the
person or legal entity.

“Data collector” means a
business, or units of a business, separately or together, that knowingly:  (1)
collect the personal data of a consumer with whom the data collector has a
direct relationship; and (2) sell or license such personal data to a data broker.
“Data collector” shall not include a government entity, including any federal
agency or State agency as defined in section 2 of P.L.1971, c.182
(C.52:13D-13), any political subdivision, or any division, board, bureau,
office, commission, or other instrumentality created by a political
subdivision.

“De-identified
data” means: data that cannot be reasonably used to infer information about, or
otherwise be linked to, an identified or identifiable individual, or a device
linked to such an individual, if the data broker or data 1[controller] collector1 that possesses the data:  (1)
takes reasonable measures to ensure that the data cannot be associated with an
individual; (2)
publicly commits to maintain and use the data only in a de-identified fashion
and not to attempt to re-identify the data; and (3) contractually obligates any recipients of
the information to comply with the requirements of this paragraph and enforces
or otherwise ensures compliance with such obligation.

“Director” means the Director
of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.

“Division” means the Division
of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety.

“Personal data” means any
information that is linked or reasonably linkable to an identified or
identifiable person.  “Personal data” shall not include de-identified data or
publicly available information.

“Precise geolocation data”
means information derived from technology, including, but not limited to,
global positioning system level latitude and longitude coordinates or other
mechanisms, that directly identifies the specific location of an individual with
precision and accuracy within a radius of 1,750 feet.  “Precise geolocation
data” shall not include the content of communications or any data generated by
or connected to advanced utility metering infrastructure systems or equipment
for use by a utility.

“Process” or “processing”
means an operation or set of operations performed, whether by manual or
automated means, on personal data or on sets of personal data, such as the
collection, use, storage, disclosure, analysis, deletion, or modification of
personal data, and also includes the actions of a 1[controller] data
broker or data collector1
directing a processor to process personal data.

“Processor” means a
person, private entity, public entity, agency, or other entity that solely
processes personal data on behalf of the 1[controller] data
broker or data collector1.

“Publicly available
information” means information that is lawfully made available from federal,
State, or local government records or widely distributed media or information
that a 1[controller] data
broker or data collector1
has a reasonable basis to believe a consumer has lawfully made available to the
general public and has not restricted to a specific audience.

“Sale” or “sell” means
sharing, disclosing, or transferring personal data for monetary or other
valuable consideration.

“Sensitive data” means
personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin; religious beliefs; mental or
physical health condition, treatment, or diagnosis; financial information,
which shall include a consumer’s account number, account log-in, financial account,
or credit or debit card number, in combination with any required security code,
access code, or password that would permit access to a consumer’s financial
account; sex life or sexual orientation; citizenship or immigration status;
status as transgender or non-binary; genetic or biometric data that may be
processed for the purpose of uniquely identifying an individual; personal data
collected from a known child; or precise geolocation data.

b.    The Division of Consumer
Affairs in the Department of Law and Public Safety shall establish and maintain
a public registry of data brokers and data collectors engaged in 1[processing] selling or
licensing1
personal data of New Jersey consumers.  Using the information submitted
pursuant to subsection c. of this section, the registry shall include, at a
minimum, for each data broker and data collector:  the data broker’s or data
collector’s name and physical address; a general email address that may be used
to request information about the data broker’s or data collector’s privacy
policies and data collection practices; a general Internet website address for
the data broker or data collector; an Internet website address specific to the
data broker’s or data collector’s privacy policies; and any relevant opt-out
information.  The division shall review and update the information contained in
the registry at least annually.  The division shall not publish any information
that is submitted to the division pursuant to paragraph (6) of subsection d. of
this section.

c. (1)          Each data
broker and data collector engaged in selling or licensing personal data of New
Jersey consumers shall annually register with the division and pay to the
division a registration fee in accordance with paragraph (2) of this
subsection.  Registration fees collected pursuant to this subsection shall be
used as necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act.

(2) The registration fee
schedule shall be as follows for a data broker that 1[possesses] sells or
licenses1,
or a data collector that collects and sells or licenses to a data broker, the
personal data of:

(a)
100,000 consumers or fewer in the State—$5,000;

(b)  more
than 100,000 and fewer than 500,000 consumers in the State—$10,000;

(c)   more
than 500,000 and fewer than one million consumers in the State—$100,000;

(d)  more
than one million and fewer than 1.5 million consumers in the State—$500,000;

(e)   more
than 1.5 million and fewer than 2.5 million consumers in the State—$750,000;

(f)   more
than 2.5 million and fewer than 4.5 million consumers in the State—$1,000,000;
and

(g)  more
than 4.5 million consumers in the State—$1,500,000.

d.    Each data broker and
each data collector shall submit the following information to the division at
the time of registration, which information shall be updated by the data broker
or data collector at least annually, or at such other frequency as the division
may require:

(1)  the data broker’s or data
collector’s name and primary physical, email, and Internet website addresses;

(2)  whether
the data broker or data collector permits individuals
to opt out of the data broker’s or data collector’s collection practices, including the method for requesting
an opt-out, the type of opt-out, whether the opt-out is limited to
certain activities or sales, and whether the
data broker or data collector permits
individuals to authorize a third party to opt out on the individual’s behalf;

(3)  whether
the data broker or data collector permits individuals to direct the data broker
or data collector to delete any personal data in the data broker’s or data
collector’s possession;

(4) a statement specifying the data collection, databases, or
sales activities from which an individual may not opt out;

(5)  whether the data broker
or data collector uses a credentialing process for purchasers of data and, if
applicable, a general explanation of that process;

(6)  a history of data
breaches and other cybersecurity events affecting the data broker or data
collector and personal 1[identifying
information]
data1
in the data broker’s or data collector’s possession, including the number of
individuals affected by each data breach or cybersecurity event;

(7)  a separate statement
detailing the data collection practices, databases, sales activities, and
opt-out methods that are applicable to the personal 1[identifying
information]
data1
of persons under the age of 18 and whether the data broker or data collector
has actual knowledge that it possesses the personal 1[identifying
information]
data1
of persons under the age of 18;

(8)  any information the
division deems appropriate to implement the purposes of P.L.    , c.
(C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) as identified in
regulations adopted pursuant to the “Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968,
c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.); and

(9) the processors who process
personal data on behalf of the data broker or data 1[controller] collector1.

e.    A person or entity that
knowingly collects or purchases the personal data of a consumer with whom the
person or legal entity does not have a direct relationship and sells or
licenses data to third parties shall not be considered a data broker or data
collector for the purposes of this section if:

(1)  the full extent to which
the person or entity collects or purchases the personal data of a consumer with
whom the person or legal entity does not have a direct relationship and sells,
licenses or otherwise provides that data to third parties is incidental to
conducting one or more of the following activities:

(a)   developing or
maintaining a third-party e-commerce or application platform;

(b)  providing 411 directory
assistance or directory information services, including name, address, and
telephone number, on behalf of or as a function of a telecommunications
carrier;

(c)   providing publicly
available information related to an individual’s business or profession or
related to providing financial or real estate services;

(d)  providing publicly
available information via real-time or near real-time alert services for health
or safety purposes; or

(e) providing title and
settlement services that are regulated and examined by the New Jersey
Department of Banking and Insurance; or

(2)  the person or entity is a
nonprofit organization established to provide enrollment data reporting
services on behalf of postsecondary educational institutions.

f.     A person or entity that
engages in one or more of the activities described in subparagraphs (a) through
(d) of paragraph (1) of subsection e. of this section shall be considered a
data broker or data collector for the purposes of P.L.    , c.     (C.        )
(pending before the Legislature as this bill) if the person or entity collects
and or purchases the personal data of a consumer with whom the person or legal
entity does not have a direct relationship and sells or licenses data to third
parties in any way that is not incidental to an activity described in
subparagraphs (a) through (d) of paragraph (1) of subsection e.  of this
section, unless the person or entity is exempt under paragraph (2) of
subsection e. of this section.

g.  Nothing in this
section shall apply to:

(1)  protected health
information collected by a covered entity or business associate subject to the
privacy, security, and breach notification rules issued by the United States
Department of Health and Human Services, Parts 160 and 164 of Title 45 of the
Code of Federal Regulations, established pursuant to the "Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996" (“HIPAA”), Pub.L.104-191, and
the "Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health
Act," 42 U.S.C. s.17921 et seq.; or information treated like protected
health information collected, used, or disclosed by a covered entity or
business associate under HIPAA when the information is used or disclosed in
accordance with HIPAA and the information is afforded all the privacy protections
and security safeguards of the federal laws and implementing regulations under
HIPAA;

(2)  a financial institution,
data, or an affiliate of a financial institution that is subject to Title V of
the federal "Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act," 15 U.S.C. s.6801 et seq., and
the rules and implementing regulations promulgated thereunder;

(3)  the secondary market
institutions identified in 15 U.S.C. s.6809(3)(D) and 12 C.F.R.
s.1016.3(l)(3)(iii);

(4)  an insurance institution
subject to P.L.1985, c.179 (C.17:23A-1 et seq.);

(5)  the sale of a consumer's
personal data by the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission that is permitted by
the federal "Driver’s Privacy Protection Act of 1994," 18 U.S.C.
s.2721 et seq.;

(6)  personal data collected,
processed, sold, or disclosed by a consumer reporting agency, as defined in 15
U.S.C. s.1681a(f), if the collection, processing, sale, or disclosure of the
personal data is limited, governed, and collected, maintained, disclosed, sold,
communicated, or used only as authorized by the federal "Fair Credit
Reporting Act," 15 U.S.C. s.1681 et seq., and implementing regulations;

(7)  any State agency as
defined in section 2 of P.L.1971, c.182 (C.52:13D-13), any political
subdivision, and any division, board, bureau, office, commission, or other
instrumentality created by a political subdivision;

(8) personal data that is
collected, processed, or disclosed, as part of research conducted in accordance
with the Federal Policy for the protection of human subjects pursuant to 45
C.F.R. Part 46; human subjects research conducted in accordance with good
clinical practice guidelines issued by The International Council for
Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use; or
research conducted in accordance with the protection of human subjects pursuant
to 21 C.F.R. Parts 50 and 56;

(9) an insurance-support
organization as defined in section 2 of P.L.1985, c.179 (C.17:23A-2); or

(10) the person or entity is a
national securities association registered pursuant to section 15A of the
“Securities Exchange Act of 1934,” 15 U.S.C. s.78a et seq., and any rules or
regulations promulgated thereunder.

3.  (New section)  a.  In
no case shall a data broker or data collector sell or license sensitive data to
any other individual or entity.

b. For the purposes of
this section only, nothing in this section shall apply to:

(1) protected health
information collected by a covered entity or business associate subject to the
privacy, security, and breach notification rules issued by the United States
Department of Health and Human Services, Parts 160 and 164 of Title 45 of the
Code of Federal Regulations, established pursuant to the "Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996" (“HIPAA”), Pub.L.104-191, and
the "Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health
Act," 42 U.S.C. s.17921 et seq.; or information treated like protected
health information collected, used, or disclosed by a covered entity or
business associate under HIPAA when the information is used or disclosed in
accordance with HIPAA and the information is afforded all the privacy protections
and security safeguards of the federal laws and implementing regulations under
HIPAA;

(2) a financial institution,
data, or an affiliate of a financial institution that is subject to Title V of
the federal "Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act," 15 U.S.C. s.6801 et seq., and
the rules and implementing regulations promulgated thereunder;

(3) the secondary market
institutions identified in 15 U.S.C. s.6809(3)(D) and 12 C.F.R.
s.1016.3(l)(3)(iii);

(4) an insurance institution
subject to P.L.1985, c.179 (C.17:23A-1 et seq.);

(5) the sale of a consumer's 1[personal] sensitive1 data by
the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission that is permitted by the federal
"Driver’s Privacy Protection Act of 1994," 18 U.S.C. s.2721 et seq.;

(6) 1[personal] sensitive1 data
collected, processed, sold, or disclosed by a consumer reporting agency, as
defined in 15 U.S.C. s.1681a(f), if the collection, processing, sale, or
disclosure of the 1[personal] sensitive1 data is
limited, governed, and collected, maintained, disclosed, sold, communicated, or
used only as authorized by the federal "Fair Credit Reporting Act,"
15 U.S.C. s.1681 et seq., and implementing regulations;

(7) any State agency as
defined in section 2 of P.L.1971, c.182 (C.52:13D-13), any political
subdivision, and any division, board, bureau, office, commission, or other
instrumentality created by a political subdivision;

(8) 1[personal] sensitive1 data
that is collected, processed, or disclosed, as part of research conducted in
accordance with the Federal Policy for the protection of human subjects
pursuant to 45 C.F.R. Part 46; human subjects research conducted in accordance
with good clinical practice guidelines issued by The International Council for
Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use; or
research conducted in accordance with the protection of human subjects pursuant
to 21 C.F.R. Parts 50 and 56;

(9) an insurance-support
organization as defined in section 2 of P.L.1985, c.179 (C.17:23A-2); or

(10) a national securities
association registered pursuant to section 15A of the “Securities Exchange Act
of 1934,” 15 U.S.C. s.78a et seq., and any rules or regulations promulgated
thereunder.

4.    (New section) a. A data broker or data collector that fails to register with the division or to
submit the annual registration fee as required under subsection c. of section 2
of P.L.    , c.     (C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill)
shall be liable for, in addition to such
registration fees for each year the data broker or data collector failed to
register with the division, a civil penalty of $2,500 for each day the
data broker or data collector fails to
register or submit the required fee.

b.    A data broker or data collector that fails to submit or
update the information required under subsection d. of section 2 of P.L.    ,
c.     (C.        ) (pending before the Legislature as this bill) shall be
liable for a civil penalty of $2,500 for each day the data broker or data collector fails to submit or update
the information.

c.    A civil penalty assessed
pursuant to this section, in addition to any
other penalties imposed by law, shall be collected and enforced by the
division in a summary proceeding before a court of competent jurisdiction
pursuant to the provisions of the “Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999,” P.L.1999,
c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).

5.    (New section) A data
broker 1,
including a controller,1
or data collector, 1[including a
controller,]
that sells, offers for sale, or licenses sensitive data in violation of
paragraph (6) of subsection a. of section 9 of P.L.2023, c.266 (C.56:8-166.12)
or section 3 of P.L.    ,
c. (C. ) (pending
before the Legislature as this bill) shall be liable to a civil penalty of
$50,000 for each record sold, offered for sale, or licensed.

6.   (New
section) The provisions of this act shall be construed as applying in addition
to and not in lieu of the provisions of P.L.2023, c.266 (C.56:8-166.4 et seq.).

7.    (New section) The
Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs in the Department of Law and
Public Safety shall adopt rules and regulations, pursuant to the
“Administrative Procedure Act,” P.L.1968, c.410 (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), as shall
be necessary for the implementation of P.L.    , c.     (C.        ) (pending
before the Legislature as this bill).

8.    This act shall take
effect immediately, except that 1subsection
b. of1
section 2 of this act shall remain inoperative for 270 days following the date
of enactment.
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