30:4-80.6b Public access to certain liens limited.

1. a. Except as provided in subsection f. of this section and notwithstanding the provisions of P.L.1963, c.73 (C. 47:1A-1 et seq.) and P.L.2001, c.404 (C.47:1A-5 et al.) or any other provision of law to the contrary, all liens filed against a person treated at a psychiatric facility as defined in section 2 of P.L.1987, c.116 (C.30:4-27.2) and any index of such liens shall not be made available to a member of the public for inspection, review, or copying or included in any index that is available to the public on or after the effective date of this act, as provided in this section.

b. For any lien identified as a "hospital lien" on the records of the Clerk of the Superior Court where the issuer of the lien is:

(1) a State-operated psychiatric facility listed in R.S.30:1-7 or any variation of such a facility name as identified by the Commissioner of Human Services; or

(2) a county-operated psychiatric facility as identified by the chief executive officer of such a facility,

the Clerk of the Superior Court shall mark the lien as extinguished in accordance with section 8 of P.L.2005, c.55 (C.30:4-80.6a) and remove any record of the lien from public access so that it is not available to a member of the public for inspection, review, or copying or included in any index that is available to the public on or after the effective date of this act.

For the purposes of this subsection, "lien" means a lien index, abstract or other record maintained in electronic or digital format.

c. For any lien related to the cost of patient care identified as an "institutional lien" on the records of the clerk of the county, register of deeds and mortgages, or any other public custodian of such record where the issuer of the lien is:

(1) a State-operated psychiatric facility listed in R.S.30:1-7 or any variation of such a facility name as identified by the commissioner; or

(2) a county-operated psychiatric facility as identified by the chief executive officer of such a facility,

the clerk of the county, register of deeds and mortgages, or any other public custodian of such record shall mark the lien as extinguished in accordance with section 8 of P.L.2005, c.55 (C.30:4-80.6a) and remove any record of the lien from public access so that it is not available to a member of the public for inspection, review, or copying or included in any index that is available to the public on or after the effective date of this act.

d. Upon the filing of the discharge certificate pursuant to section 6 of P.L.1938, c.239 (C.30:4-80.6), with the clerk of the county, register of deeds and mortgages, the Clerk of the Superior Court, or other custodian of such record, the record of any such lien or index shall be removed from public access by the clerk of the county, register of deeds and mortgages, the Clerk of the Superior Court, or other custodian of such record, as appropriate, and shall not be made available to a member of the public for inspection, review, or copying or included in any index that is available to the public on or after the effective date of this act.

e. Any commercial public records company that has obtained a record of a lien filed against a person treated at a psychiatric facility from the clerk of the county, register of deeds and mortgages, the Clerk of the Superior Court, or other custodian of such record shall remove the record from its database within a reasonable amount of time from when the clerk of the county, register of deeds and mortgages, the Clerk of the Superior Court or other custodian removes the record of such lien from public access.

f. A member of the public may gain access to a lien removed from public access pursuant to this section by applying to the Superior Court of the county in which the lien was filed. The application shall be granted if, in the discretion of the court, there is a demonstrated, necessary, and reasonable basis and need for the access. The access and use of the information about the lien shall be on such terms as an order of the court shall provide.

g. No person shall have a private cause of action against a public entity or public employee for failing to carry out the provisions of this act and no public entity or public employee shall be liable for any claim arising from the failure to fulfill the provisions of this act, provided that a good faith effort was made by the public entity or public employee to carry out the provisions of this act.

h. The commissioner, in the case of a State-operated psychiatric facility listed in R.S.30:1-7, the chief executive officer of a county-operated psychiatric facility, the clerk of the county, register of deeds and mortgages, the Clerk of the Superior Court, or any other public custodian of a record of a lien filed against a person treated at a State or county-operated psychiatric facility prior to the effective date of section 8 of P.L.2005, c.55 (C.30:4-80.6a), shall jointly cooperate to ensure that, to the extent practicable, such records of liens are removed from public access.

L.2009, c.154, s.1.