§17-16D-7. Owner who is lessor.

(a) An owner of a vehicle who is a lessor of the vehicle used in violation of the toll collection monitoring system regulations of the authority shall not be responsible for the violation of this article if the lessor submits to the Parkways Authority, in a timely manner, the name and address of the lessee who leased the vehicle on the day of the violation: Provided, That a lessor shall provide a copy of the rental agreement, lease or other contract document covering that vehicle on the date of the violation to the Parkways Authority upon written request for a violation that is in litigation.

(b) If the lessor fails to provide the information in a timely manner, the lessor shall be held responsible for the violation of this article. If the lessor provides the required information to the Parkways Authority, the lessee of the vehicle on the date of the violation shall be deemed to be the owner of the vehicle for the purposes of enforcement of the violation of this article.

(c) Except as otherwise provided in this subsection, a certified report of an employee or agent of the authority reporting a violation of the toll collection monitoring system rules and regulations and any information obtained from a toll collection monitoring system shall be available for the exclusive use of the Parkways Authority and any law enforcement official for the purposes of discharging their duties under this article and the toll collection monitoring system rules and regulations. Any such report or information shall not be deemed a public record under article one, chapter twenty-nine-b of this code or the common law concerning access to public records. The certified reports and information, including but not limited to, any recorded image of any motor vehicle, the license plate of any motor vehicle or the operator or any passenger in any motor vehicle, shall not be discoverable as a public record by any person, entity or governmental agency, except pursuant to a properly issued subpoena or by an order of a court of competent jurisdiction, nor shall they be offered in evidence in any civil or administrative proceeding, not directly related to a violation of the toll collection monitoring system rules and regulations, or in any municipal court prosecution for a violation of the motor vehicle laws of this state. However, in the event that, notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (c), section nine of this article, a recorded image of the face of the operator or any passenger in a motor vehicle is produced by the toll collection monitoring system, that image shall not be used by the Parkways Authority for any purpose nor shall the image or any record or copy thereof be transmitted or communicated to any person, governmental, non-governmental, or judicial or administrative entity.