{"formats":[{"name":"JSON","format":"json","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-json\/2.2-3801.json"},{"name":"Plain Text","format":"text","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-text\/2.2-3801.txt"},{"name":"XML","format":"xml","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-xml\/2.2-3801.xml"},{"name":"HTML","format":"html","url":"\/downloads\/2025\/code-html\/2.2-3801.html"}],"law_id":54522,"edition_id":1,"section_id":54522,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3801","catch_line":"Definitions","history":"1976, c. 597, \u00a7 2.1-379; 1983, c. 372; 1999, c. 41; 2001, c. 844; 2003, c. 272; 2006, c. 474; 2008, cc. 840, 843; 2009, cc. 849, 867; 2018, cc. 597, 679.","full_text":"As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning:\n\t\t“Agency” means any agency, authority, board, department, division, commission, institution, bureau, or like governmental entity of the Commonwealth or of any unit of local government including counties, cities, towns, regional governments, and the departments thereof, and includes constitutional officers, except as otherwise expressly provided by law. “Agency” shall also include any entity, whether public or private, with which any of the foregoing has entered into a contractual relationship for the operation of a system of personal information to accomplish an agency function. Any such entity included in this definition by reason of a contractual relationship shall only be deemed an agency as relates to services performed pursuant to that contractual relationship, provided that if any such entity is a consumer reporting agency, it shall be deemed to have satisfied all of the requirements of this chapter if it fully complies with the requirements of the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act as applicable to services performed pursuant to such contractual relationship.\n\t\t“Data subject” means an individual about whom personal information is indexed or may be located under his name, personal number, or other identifiable particulars, in an information system.\n\t\t“Disseminate” means to release, transfer, or otherwise communicate information orally, in writing, or by electronic means.\n\t\t“Information system” means the total components and operations of a record-keeping process, including information collected or managed by means of computer networks and the Internet, whether automated or manual, containing personal information and the name, personal number, or other identifying particulars of a data subject.\n\t\t“Personal information” means all information that (i) describes, locates or indexes anything about an individual including, but not limited to, his social security number, driver’s license number, agency-issued identification number, student identification number, real or personal property holdings derived from tax returns, and his education, financial transactions, medical history, ancestry, religion, political ideology, criminal or employment record, or (ii) affords a basis for inferring personal characteristics, such as finger and voice prints, photographs, or things done by or to such individual; and the record of his presence, registration, or membership in an organization or activity, or admission to an institution. “Personal information” shall not include routine information maintained for the purpose of internal office administration whose use could not be such as to affect adversely any data subject nor does the term include real estate assessment information.\n\t\t“Proper purpose” includes the sharing or dissemination of data or information among and between agencies in order to (i) streamline administrative processes to improve the efficiency and efficacy of services, access to services, eligibility determinations for services, and service delivery; (ii) reduce paperwork and administrative burdens on applicants for and recipients of public services; (iii) improve the efficiency and efficacy of the management of public programs; (iv) prevent fraud and improve auditing capabilities; (v) conduct outcomes-related research; (vi) develop quantifiable data to aid in policy development and decision making to promote the most efficient and effective use of resources; and (vii) perform data analytics regarding any of the purposes set forth in this definition.\n\t\t“Purge” means to obliterate information completely from the transient, permanent, or archival records of an agency.","order_by":null,"text":{"0":{"id":200204,"text":"As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning:\n\t\t“Agency” means any agency, authority, board, department, division, commission, institution, bureau, or like governmental entity of the Commonwealth or of any unit of local government including counties, cities, towns, regional governments, and the departments thereof, and includes constitutional officers, except as otherwise expressly provided by law. “Agency” shall also include any entity, whether public or private, with which any of the foregoing has entered into a contractual relationship for the operation of a system of personal information to accomplish an agency function. Any such entity included in this definition by reason of a contractual relationship shall only be deemed an agency as relates to services performed pursuant to that contractual relationship, provided that if any such entity is a consumer reporting agency, it shall be deemed to have satisfied all of the requirements of this chapter if it fully complies with the requirements of the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act as applicable to services performed pursuant to such contractual relationship.\n\t\t“Data subject” means an individual about whom personal information is indexed or may be located under his name, personal number, or other identifiable particulars, in an information system.\n\t\t“Disseminate” means to release, transfer, or otherwise communicate information orally, in writing, or by electronic means.\n\t\t“Information system” means the total components and operations of a record-keeping process, including information collected or managed by means of computer networks and the Internet, whether automated or manual, containing personal information and the name, personal number, or other identifying particulars of a data subject.\n\t\t“Personal information” means all information that (i) describes, locates or indexes anything about an individual including, but not limited to, his social security number, driver’s license number, agency-issued identification number, student identification number, real or personal property holdings derived from tax returns, and his education, financial transactions, medical history, ancestry, religion, political ideology, criminal or employment record, or (ii) affords a basis for inferring personal characteristics, such as finger and voice prints, photographs, or things done by or to such individual; and the record of his presence, registration, or membership in an organization or activity, or admission to an institution. “Personal information” shall not include routine information maintained for the purpose of internal office administration whose use could not be such as to affect adversely any data subject nor does the term include real estate assessment information.\n\t\t“Proper purpose” includes the sharing or dissemination of data or information among and between agencies in order to (i) streamline administrative processes to improve the efficiency and efficacy of services, access to services, eligibility determinations for services, and service delivery; (ii) reduce paperwork and administrative burdens on applicants for and recipients of public services; (iii) improve the efficiency and efficacy of the management of public programs; (iv) prevent fraud and improve auditing capabilities; (v) conduct outcomes-related research; (vi) develop quantifiable data to aid in policy development and decision making to promote the most efficient and effective use of resources; and (vii) perform data analytics regarding any of the purposes set forth in this definition.\n\t\t“Purge” means to obliterate information completely from the transient, permanent, or archival records of an agency.","type":"section","prefixes":[""],"prefix":"","entire_prefix":"","prefix_anchor":"","level":1}},"ancestry":[{"id":13559,"edition_id":1,"name":"Government Data Collection and Dissemination Practices Act","identifier":"38","label":"chapter","depth":4,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12751,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:45:14","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:45:14","permalink":{"id":176597,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":13559,"identifier":"38","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38","url":"\/2.2\/II\/B\/38\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12751,"edition_id":1,"name":"Transaction of Public Business","identifier":"B","label":"part","depth":3,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12750,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","permalink":{"id":176445,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12751,"identifier":"B","token":"2.2\/II\/B","url":"\/2.2\/II\/B\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12750,"edition_id":1,"name":"Administration of State Government","identifier":"II","label":"subtitle","depth":2,"order_by":1,"parent_id":12749,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","permalink":{"id":176253,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12750,"identifier":"II","token":"2.2\/II","url":"\/2.2\/II\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}},{"id":12749,"edition_id":1,"name":"Administration of Government","identifier":"2.2","label":"title","depth":1,"order_by":1,"parent_id":null,"metadata":{},"date_created":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","date_modified":"2026-06-26 03:43:51","permalink":{"id":171453,"object_type":"structure","relational_id":12749,"identifier":"2.2","token":"2.2","url":"\/2.2\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1}}],"structure_contents":[{"id":69409,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3800","catch_line":"Short title; findings; principles of information practice","url":"\/2.2-3800\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3800","metadata":false},{"id":54522,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3801","catch_line":"Definitions","url":"\/2.2-3801\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3801","metadata":false},{"id":62575,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3802","catch_line":"Systems to which chapter inapplicable","url":"\/2.2-3802\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3802","metadata":false},{"id":58950,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3803","catch_line":"Administration of systems including personal information; Internet privacy policy; exceptions","url":"\/2.2-3803\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3803","metadata":false},{"id":55705,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3804","catch_line":"Military recruiters to have access to student information, school buildings, etc","url":"\/2.2-3804\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3804","metadata":false},{"id":59280,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3805","catch_line":"Dissemination of reports","url":"\/2.2-3805\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3805","metadata":false},{"id":58445,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3806","catch_line":"Rights of data subjects","url":"\/2.2-3806\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3806","metadata":false},{"id":69841,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3807","catch_line":"Agencies to report concerning systems operated or developed; publication of information","url":"\/2.2-3807\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3807","metadata":false},{"id":86548,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3808","catch_line":"Collection, disclosure, or display of social security number; personal identifying information of donors; penalty","url":"\/2.2-3808\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3808","metadata":false},{"id":62639,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3808.1","catch_line":"Agencies' disclosure of certain account information prohibited","url":"\/2.2-3808.1\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3808.1","metadata":false},{"id":71106,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3808.2","catch_line":"Repealed","url":"\/2.2-3808.2\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3808.2","metadata":false},{"id":80323,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3809","catch_line":"Injunctive relief; civil penalty; attorneys' fees","url":"\/2.2-3809\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3809","metadata":false}],"previous_section":{"id":69409,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3800","catch_line":"Short title; findings; principles of information practice","url":"\/2.2-3800\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3800","metadata":false},"next_section":{"id":62575,"structure_id":13559,"section_number":"2.2-3802","catch_line":"Systems to which chapter inapplicable","url":"\/2.2-3802\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3802","metadata":false},"metadata":false,"official_url":"https:\/\/law.lis.virginia.gov\/vacode\/2.2-3801\/","history_text":"

This law was first created in 1976. The record of its establishment is cataloged in chapter 597 of that year\u2019s edition of \u201cActs of Assembly,\u201d the annual state publication listing all changes made to the Code of Virginia in that year. Unfortunately, the 1976 \u201cActs\u201d aren\u2019t available online. It has been modified 8 times. Those modifications are cataloged by \u201cThe Acts of Assembly,\u201d a state publication, by year and chapter. Those modifications that can be read on the General Assembly\u2019s website will be linked accordingly. Those modifications are as follows: in 1983, chapter 372; in 1999, chapter 41<\/a>; in 2001, chapter 844<\/a>; in 2003, chapter 272<\/a>; in 2006, chapter 474<\/a>; in 2008, chapters 840<\/a> and 843<\/a>; in 2009, chapters 849<\/a> and 867<\/a>; in 2018, chapters 597<\/a> and 679<\/a>.<\/p>","references":[{"id":69909,"section_number":"2.2-3705.4","catch_line":"Exclusions to application of chapter; educational records and certain records of educational institutions","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-3705.4\/"},{"id":79544,"section_number":"2.2-3705.7","catch_line":"Exclusions to application of chapter; records of specific public bodies and certain other limited exclusions","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-3705.7\/"},{"id":72789,"section_number":"2.2-3711","catch_line":"(Effective July 1, 2026) Closed meetings authorized for certain limited purposes","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-3711\/"},{"id":84798,"section_number":"2.2-3815","catch_line":"Access to social security numbers prohibited; exceptions","order_by":null,"url":"\/2.2-3815\/"},{"id":59691,"section_number":"46.2-208","catch_line":"Records of Department; when open for inspection; release of privileged information","order_by":null,"url":"\/46.2-208\/"},{"id":55091,"section_number":"46.2-209","catch_line":"Release of information in Department records for motor vehicle research purposes","order_by":null,"url":"\/46.2-209\/"},{"id":68475,"section_number":"46.2-2099.53","catch_line":"Recordkeeping and reporting requirements for transportation network companies","order_by":null,"url":"\/46.2-2099.53\/"},{"id":67308,"section_number":"46.2-345","catch_line":"Issuance of special identification cards; fee; confidentiality; penalties","order_by":null,"url":"\/46.2-345\/"},{"id":77296,"section_number":"46.2-345.2","catch_line":"Issuance of special identification cards without photographs; fee; confidentiality; penalties","order_by":null,"url":"\/46.2-345.2\/"}],"refers_to":false,"permalink":{"id":176603,"object_type":"law","relational_id":54522,"identifier":"2.2-3801","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3801","url":"\/2.2-3801\/","edition_id":1,"permalink":0,"preferred":1},"url":"\/2.2-3801\/","token":"2.2\/II\/B\/38\/2.2-3801","dublin_core":{"Title":"Definitions","Type":"Text","Format":"text\/html","Identifier":"\u00a7 2.2-3801","Relation":"Code of Virginia"},"html":"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning:\n\t\t“Agency<\/span>” means any agency<\/span>, authority, board, department, division, commission, institution, bureau, or like governmental entity of the Commonwealth or of any unit of local government including counties, cities, towns, regional governments, and the departments thereof, and includes constitutional officers, except as otherwise expressly provided by law<\/span>. “Agency<\/span>” shall also include any entity, whether public or private, with which any of the foregoing has entered into a contractual relationship for the operation of a system of personal information<\/span> to accomplish an agency<\/span> function. Any such entity included in this definition by reason of a contractual relationship shall only be deemed an agency<\/span> as relates to services performed pursuant to that contractual relationship, provided that if any such entity is a consumer reporting agency<\/span>, it shall be deemed to have satisfied all of the requirements of this chapter if it fully complies with the requirements of the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act as applicable to services performed pursuant to such contractual relationship.\n\t\t“Data subject<\/span>” means an individual about whom personal information<\/span> is indexed or may be located under his name, personal number, or other identifiable particulars, in an information system<\/span>.\n\t\t“Disseminate<\/span>” means to release, transfer, or otherwise communicate information orally, in writing, or by electronic means.\n\t\t“Information system<\/span>” means the total components and operations of a record-keeping process, including information collected or managed by means of computer networks and the Internet, whether automated or manual, containing personal information<\/span> and the name, personal number, or other identifying particulars of a data subject<\/span>.\n\t\t“Personal information<\/span>” means all information that (i) describes, locates or indexes anything about an individual including, but not limited to, his social security number, driver’s license number, agency<\/span>-issued identification number, student identification number, real or personal property holdings derived from tax returns, and his education, financial transactions, medical history, ancestry, religion, political ideology, criminal or employment record, or (ii) affords a basis for inferring personal characteristics, such as finger and voice prints, photographs, or things done by or to such individual; and the record of his presence, registration, or membership in an organization or activity, or admission to an institution. “Personal information<\/span>” shall not include routine information maintained for the purpose of internal office administration whose use could not be such as to affect adversely any data subject<\/span> nor does the term include real estate assessment information.\n\t\t“Proper purpose<\/span>” includes the sharing or dissemination of data or information among and between agencies in order<\/span> to (i) streamline administrative processes to improve the efficiency and efficacy of services, access to services, eligibility determinations for services, and service delivery; (ii) reduce paperwork and administrative burdens on applicants for and recipients of public services; (iii) improve the efficiency and efficacy of the management of public programs; (iv) prevent fraud<\/span> and improve auditing capabilities; (v) conduct outcomes-related research; (vi) develop quantifiable data to aid in policy development and decision making to promote the most efficient and effective use of resources; and (vii) perform data analytics regarding any of the purposes set forth in this definition.\n\t\t“Purge<\/span>” means to obliterate information completely from the transient, permanent, or archival records of an agency<\/span>.<\/p><\/section>","plain_text":" CODE OF VIRGINIA\n\nDEFINITIONS (\u00a7 2.2-3801)\n\nAs used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning:\n\t\t“Agency” means any agency, authority, board, department, division,\ncommission, institution, bureau, or like governmental entity of the Commonwealth\nor of any unit of local government including counties, cities, towns, regional\ngovernments, and the departments thereof, and includes constitutional officers,\nexcept as otherwise expressly provided by law. “Agency” shall also\ninclude any entity, whether public or private, with which any of the foregoing\nhas entered into a contractual relationship for the operation of a system of\npersonal information to accomplish an agency function. Any such entity included\nin this definition by reason of a contractual relationship shall only be deemed\nan agency as relates to services performed pursuant to that contractual\nrelationship, provided that if any such entity is a consumer reporting agency,\nit shall be deemed to have satisfied all of the requirements of this chapter if\nit fully complies with the requirements of the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act\nas applicable to services performed pursuant to such contractual relationship.\n\t\t“Data subject” means an individual about whom personal information\nis indexed or may be located under his name, personal number, or other\nidentifiable particulars, in an information system.\n\t\t“Disseminate” means to release, transfer, or otherwise communicate\ninformation orally, in writing, or by electronic means.\n\t\t“Information system” means the total components and operations of\na record-keeping process, including information collected or managed by means of\ncomputer networks and the Internet, whether automated or manual, containing\npersonal information and the name, personal number, or other identifying\nparticulars of a data subject.\n\t\t“Personal information” means all information that (i) describes,\nlocates or indexes anything about an individual including, but not limited to,\nhis social security number, driver’s license number, agency-issued\nidentification number, student identification number, real or personal property\nholdings derived from tax returns, and his education, financial transactions,\nmedical history, ancestry, religion, political ideology, criminal or employment\nrecord, or (ii) affords a basis for inferring personal characteristics, such as\nfinger and voice prints, photographs, or things done by or to such individual;\nand the record of his presence, registration, or membership in an organization\nor activity, or admission to an institution. “Personal information”\nshall not include routine information maintained for the purpose of internal\noffice administration whose use could not be such as to affect adversely any\ndata subject nor does the term include real estate assessment information.\n\t\t“Proper purpose” includes the sharing or dissemination of data or\ninformation among and between agencies in order to (i) streamline administrative\nprocesses to improve the efficiency and efficacy of services, access to\nservices, eligibility determinations for services, and service delivery; (ii)\nreduce paperwork and administrative burdens on applicants for and recipients of\npublic services; (iii) improve the efficiency and efficacy of the management of\npublic programs; (iv) prevent fraud and improve auditing capabilities; (v)\nconduct outcomes-related research; (vi) develop quantifiable data to aid in\npolicy development and decision making to promote the most efficient and\neffective use of resources; and (vii) perform data analytics regarding any of\nthe purposes set forth in this definition.\n\t\t“Purge” means to obliterate information completely from the\ntransient, permanent, or archival records of an agency.\n\nHISTORY: 1976, c. 597, \u00a7 2.1-379; 1983, c. 372; 1999, c. 41; 2001, c. 844;\n2003, c. 272; 2006, c. 474; 2008, cc. 840, 843; 2009, cc. 849, 867; 2018, cc.\n597, 679.","edition":{"id":1,"name":"2025","slug":"2025","date_created":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","date_modified":"2026-06-21 22:39:22","current":1,"order_by":1,"last_import":null}}