44-315. Confidentiality; violation; classification; definitions

A. The department may disclose confidential information relating to an item of property to the claimant or relating to reports of abandoned property to the holder, a successor in interest to the claimant or holder or a designee of the claimant or holder who is authorized in writing by the claimant or holder.

B. The department also may disclose confidential information to:

1. Any employee of the department whose official duties involve tax or unclaimed property administration.

2. The office of the attorney general for its use in providing counsel relating to unclaimed property administration or in preparation for any proceeding involving unclaimed property before the department or any other agency or board of this state or before any grand jury or any state or federal court.

3. Pursuant to a written agreement between the department and another state or an organization of states that operates an information exchange for unclaimed property administration purposes, a state unclaimed property official from the other state if the other state or organization grants substantially similar privileges to the department for the same type of information.

4. The auditor general, in connection with any audit of the department subject to the restrictions in section 42-2002, subsection D.

5. Any person to the extent necessary for effective unclaimed property administration in connection with the processing, storage, transmission and reproduction of the information and the programming, maintenance, repair, testing and procurement of equipment for purposes of unclaimed property administration.

C. Except as provided in section 42-2002, subsection D, the department may disclose confidential information in any state or federal judicial or administrative proceeding relating to unclaimed property administration if:

1. The claimant or holder is a party to the proceeding.

2. The treatment of an item reflected in the information is directly related to the resolution of an issue in the proceeding.

3. The information directly relates to a transactional relationship between a person who is a party to the proceeding and the claimant or holder and the information directly affects the resolution of an issue in the proceeding.

D. The department may disclose identity information for purposes of notifying persons who appear to be entitled to unclaimed property in the manner described in section 44-309.

E. The department may disclose statistical information gathered from confidential information if it does not disclose confidential information attributable to a claimant or holder.

F. A court may order the department to disclose confidential information pertaining to a party to an action. An order shall be made only on a showing of good cause and that the party who seeks the information has demanded the information from the claimant or holder.

G. If the department is required or permitted to disclose confidential information, it may charge the person or agency that requests the information for the reasonable cost of the department's services.

H. A disclosure of confidential information in violation of this section is a class 1 misdemeanor. A knowing disclosure of confidential information in violation of this section is a class 6 felony.

I. The provisions of this section apply to independent auditors hired by the department to enforce the provisions of this chapter and chapter 3.1 of this title.

J. A person, including a former employee, agent or independent auditor of the department or office of administrative hearings or a person previously having an administrative duty for the department or the office of administrative hearings, who has received confidential information while an employee, agent or independent auditor of the department or the office of administrative hearings, shall not disclose that information except as provided in this section.

K. For the purposes of this section:

1. " Claimant" means a person or entity that claims to have a property interest in the item of property that is presumed abandoned pursuant to this chapter.

2. " Confidential information" includes reports filed by holders of property presumed abandoned under this chapter, a claimant's application and documents submitted to support a claim and information discovered by the department concerning claims, and claimants, holder reports or holders. Confidential information also includes information supplied at the special request of the department which the claimant or holder requests to be held confidential, whether a holder or report was, is being or will be subject to examination, investigation or collection and data received by, recorded by, prepared by, furnished to or collected by the department with respect to the existence or possible existence of a liability of any holder for unclaimed property.