Montana Code Annotated 2023

TITLE 44. LAW ENFORCEMENT

CHAPTER 15. FACIAL RECOGNITION FOR GOVERNMENT USE

Part 1. General Provisions

Definitions

44-15-103. Definitions. As used in this part, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the following definitions apply:

(1) "Affirmative authorization" means an action that demonstrates the intentional decision by an individual to opt into the retention of the individual's facial biometric data by a third-party vendor.

(2) "Another jurisdiction" means the federal government, the United States military, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, a federally recognized Indian tribe, or a state other than Montana.

(3) "Continuous facial surveillance" means the monitoring of public places or third-party image sets using facial recognition technology for facial identification to match faces with a prepopulated list of face images. The term includes but is not limited to scanning stored video footage to identify faces in the stored data, real-time scanning of video surveillance to identify faces passing by the cameras, and passively monitoring video footage using facial recognition technology for general surveillance purposes without a particularized suspicion of a specific target.

(4) "Department" means the department of justice.

(5) "Digital driver's license" means a secure version of an individual's physical driver's license or identification card that is stored on the individual's mobile device.

(6) "Facial biometric data" means data derived from a measurement, pattern, contour, or other characteristic of an individual's face, either directly or from an image.

(7) (a) "Facial identification" means a computer system that, for the purpose of attempting to determine the identity of an unknown individual, uses an algorithm to compare the facial biometric data of an unknown individual derived from a photograph, video, or image to a database of photographs or images and associated facial biometric data in order to identify potential matches.

(b) The term does not include:

(i) a system used specifically to protect against unauthorized access to a particular location or an electronic device; or

(ii) a system a consumer uses for the consumer's private purposes.

(8) "Facial recognition service" or "facial recognition technology" means the use of facial identification or facial verification.

(9) "Facial verification" means the automated process of comparing an image or facial biometric data of a known individual to an image database, or to government documentation containing an image of the known individual, to identify a potential match in pursuit of the individual's identity.

(10) "Law enforcement agency" means:

(a) an agency or officer of the state of Montana or of a political subdivision that is empowered by the laws of this state to conduct investigations or to make arrests; and

(b) an attorney, including the attorney general, who is authorized by the laws of this state to prosecute or to participate in the prosecution of a person who is arrested or who may be subject to a civil action related to or concerning an arrest.

(11) "Motor vehicle division" means the division within the department of justice authorized to issue driver's licenses.

(12) "Personal information" has the same meaning as in 30-14-1704.

(13) "Public building" means any building that the state or any political subdivision of the state maintains for the use of the public.

(14) "Public employee" means a person employed by a state or local government agency, including but not limited to a peace officer.

(15) "Public official" means a person elected or appointed to a public office that is part of a state or local government agency.

(16) "Public roads and highways of this state" has the same meaning as in 15-70-401.

(17) "Serious crime" means:

(a) a crime under the laws of this state that is a violation of 45-5-102, 45-5-103, 45-5-104, 45-5-106, 45-5-202, 45-5-207, 45-5-210, 45-5-212, 45-5-213, 45-5-220, 45-5-302, 45-5-303, 45-5-401, 45-5-503, 45-5-504(3), 45-5-508, 45-5-602, 45-5-603, 45-5-622, 45-5-625, 45-5-627, 45-5-628, 45-5-702, 45-5-703, 45-5-704, or 45-5-705; or

(b) a crime under the laws of another jurisdiction that is substantially similar to a crime under subsection (17)(a).

(18) "State or local government agency" means a state, county, or municipal government, a department, agency, or subdivision of a state, county, or municipal government, or any other entity identified in law as a public instrumentality. The term does not include a school district or law enforcement agency.

(19) "Vendor" has the same meaning as in 18-4-123.

History: En. Sec. 3, Ch. 781, L. 2023.