§ 13.04 — Rights of Subjects of Data
Plain-Language Summary
This section establishes the rights of individuals who are the subjects of government data. It covers the right to know what data the government holds about you, the right to see that data, the right to challenge inaccurate data, and the requirement that government agencies give you a 'Tennessen warning' before collecting private or confidential data.
13.04 RIGHTS OF SUBJECTS OF DATA.
§
Subdivision 1.Type of data.
The rights of individuals on whom the data is stored or to be stored shall be as set forth in this section. §
Subd. 2.Tennessen warning.
An individual asked to supply private or confidential data concerning the individual shall be informed of: (a) the purpose and intended use of the requested data within the collecting government entity; (b) whether the individual may refuse or is legally required to supply the requested data; (c) any known consequence arising from supplying or refusing to supply private or confidential data; and (d) the identity of other persons or entities authorized by state or federal law to receive the data. This requirement shall not apply when an individual is asked to supply investigative data, pursuant to section 13.82, subdivision 7, to a law enforcement officer. §
Subd. 3.Access to data by individual.
Upon request to a responsible authority or designee, an individual shall be informed whether the individual is the subject of stored data on individuals, and whether it is classified as public, private or confidential. Upon further request, an individual who is the subject of stored private or public data on individuals shall be shown the data without any charge and, if desired, shall be informed of the content and meaning of that data. After an individual has been shown the private data and informed of its meaning, the data need not be disclosed to that individual for six months thereafter unless a dispute or action pursuant to this section is pending or additional data on the individual has been collected or created. The responsible authority or designee shall provide copies of the private or public data upon request by the individual subject of the data. The responsible authority or designee may require the requesting person to pay the actual costs of making and certifying the copies.
The responsible authority or designee shall comply immediately, if possible, with any request made pursuant to this subdivision, or within ten days of the date of the request, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and legal holidays, if immediate compliance is not possible. §
Subd. 4.Procedure when data is not accurate or complete.
(a) An individual subject of the data may contest the accuracy or completeness of public or private data about themselves.
(b) To exercise this right, an individual shall notify in writing the responsible authority of the government entity that maintains the data, describing the nature of the disagreement.
(c) Upon receiving notification from the data subject, the responsible authority shall within 30 days either:
(1) correct the data found to be inaccurate or incomplete and attempt to notify past recipients of inaccurate or incomplete data, including recipients named by the individual; or
(2) notify the individual that the responsible authority has determined the data to be correct. If the challenged data are determined to be accurate or complete, the responsible authority shall inform the individual of the right to appeal the determination to the commissioner as specified under paragraph (d). Data in dispute shall be disclosed only if the individual’s statement of disagreement is included with the disclosed data.
(d) A data subject may appeal the determination of the responsible authority pursuant to the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act relating to contested cases. An individual must submit an appeal to the commissioner within 60 days of the responsible authority’s notice of the right to appeal or as otherwise provided by the rules of the commissioner. Upon receipt of an appeal by an individual, the commissioner shall, before issuing the order and notice of a contested case hearing required by chapter 14, try to resolve the dispute through education, conference, conciliation, or persuasion. If the parties consent, the commissioner may refer the matter to mediation. Following these efforts, the commissioner shall dismiss the appeal or issue the order and notice of hearing.
(e) The commissioner may dismiss an appeal without first attempting to resolve the dispute or before issuing an order and notice of a contested case hearing if:
(1) the appeal to the commissioner is not timely;
(2) the appeal concerns data previously presented as evidence in a court proceeding in which the data subject was a party; or
(3) the individual making the appeal is not the subject of the data challenged as inaccurate or incomplete.
(f) A responsible authority may submit private data to the commissioner to respond to a data subject’s appeal of the determination that data are accurate and complete. Section 13.03, subdivision 4, applies to data submitted by the responsible authority. Government data submitted to the commissioner by a government entity, copies of government data submitted by a data subject, or government data described by the data subject in their appeal have the same classification as the data when maintained by the government entity. The commissioner may disclose private data contained within the appeal record to the Office of Administrative Hearings.
(g) Data on individuals that have been successfully challenged by an individual must be completed, corrected, or destroyed by a government entity without regard to the requirements of section 138.17.
(h) After completing, correcting, or destroying successfully challenged data, a government entity may retain a copy of the commissioner of administration’s order issued under chapter 14 or, if no order were issued, a summary of the dispute between the parties that does not contain any particulars of the successfully challenged data.
(i) Data maintained by the commissioner that a responsible authority has completed, corrected, or destroyed as the result of the informal resolution process described in paragraph (d) or by order of the commissioner are private data on individuals. §
Subd. 4a.Sex offender program data; challenges.
Notwithstanding subdivision 4, challenges to the accuracy or completeness of data maintained by the Direct Care and Treatment sex offender program about a civilly committed sex offender as defined in section 246B.01, subdivision 1a, must be submitted in writing to the data practices compliance official of Direct Care and Treatment. The data practices compliance official must respond to the challenge as provided in this section. §
Subd. 5.
[Repealed, 2005 c 163 s 89]
History:
1974 c 479 s 4; 1975 c 401 s 4; 1977 c 375 s 7; 1980 c 603 s 12; 1981 c 311 s 9,39; 1982 c 545 s 4,24; 1984 c 436 s 5; 1Sp1985 c 14 art 1 s 3; 1986 c 444; 1987 c 351 s 2; 1988 c 670 s 1; 1994 c 647 art 3 s 1; 1999 c 227 s 2; 2002 c 379 art 1 s 1; 2005 c 163 s 13,14; 2007 c 129 s 4,5; 2009 c 111 s 1; 2011 c 76 art 1 s 2; 2023 c 62 art 2 s 33; 2024 c 125 art 5 s 42; 2024 c 127 art 50 s 42; 2025 c 39 art 2 s 15
History: History: 1974 c 479 s 4; 1975 c 401 s 4; 1977 c 375 s 7; 1980 c 603 s 12; 1981 c 311 s 9,39; 1982 c 545 s 4,24; 1984 c 436 s 5; 1Sp1985 c 14 art 1 s 3; 1986 c 444; 1987 c 351 s 2; 1988 c 670 s 1; 1994 c 647 art 3 s 1; 1999 c 227 s 2; 2002 c 379 art 1 s 1; 2005 c 163 s 13,14; 2007 c 129 s 4,5; 2009 c 111 s 1; 2011 c 76 art 1 s 2; 2023 c 62 art 2 s 33; 2024 c 125 art 5 s 42; 2024 c 127 art 50 s 42; 2025 c 39 art 2 s 15