PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- One side argued the rights of childrens' camp owners to screen out potential child predators by checking their social-media postings. The other side said it is not worth "stomping'' on everyone's privacy to weed out a few.
In the end, the Rhode Island House of Representatives unanimously approved a bill to ban employers and schools from requiring students and employees to "disclose the password or any other means for accessing a personal social media account.''
The lawmakers included an exemption, sought by Fidelity Investments, for companies that routinely "supervise communications'' by their employees on insurance and securities matters, in keeping with federal law.
But they rejected 63 to 8 a bid by Rep. Michael Chippendale, R-Foster, to also exempt camp owners, citing the case of one that saw on a job applicant's Facebook page "things that, quote, no reasonable person would allow their child to be supervised by this individual.''
House Judiciary Chairwoman Edith Ajello acknowledged the possibility that "one time in several years, a picture will be posted online that will shed light on a person's character that was not apparent during the reference check process.
"If we fish long enough through ... people's private lives, we will likely come across someone who has done something objectionable ... but that doesn't mean we should be permitted to stomp on the privacy rights of every other employee,'' she said.
The bill now goes to the Senate.