The U.S. House of Representatives early next week is expected to pass and send to the Senate a bill that would require all federal agencies to publicly detail how any new rules and regulations they propose would affect personal privacy.
A vote on the Federal Agency Protection of Privacy Act (HR-4561), which has broad bipartisan support, the endorsement of the House Judiciary Committee and privacy advocates, is tentatively scheduled for Tuesday.
With fewer than 60 legislative days left on the congressional calendar, it is questionable whether the Senate will act on the measure before the 107th Congress expires.
In addition to requiring every federal agency to include a privacy impact analysis with any new proposed new rule, the measure would require those agencies to disclose what information they are collecting about individuals, how they would obtain that information, how it would be maintained and used and if it would be shared with third parties for any reason.
A great deal of the information about individuals in the files of various government agencies is used by the direct marketing industry’s list sector to develop compiled lists which are later sold for marketing purposes.
While the bill would require government agencies to conduct periodic reviews of their rules and regulations to determine both their need and affect on personal privacy, it also provides for both congressional and judicial review of all agency rules and regulations.
According to Rep. Bob Barr (R-GA), its sponsor, the bill makes the federal government more accountable to the public and will “slow the growing erosion of [a] citizen’s privacy rights.”
In a related privacy protection development, victims of identity theft would be able to prevent credit reporting agencies from including that information in any credit report that is provided to a third party under a bill introduced by Rep. Adam Smith (D-WA).
Victims of identity theft, under Smith’s bill, The Identity Theft Victim’s Assistance Act (HR-5124) amending the Fair Credit Reporting Act, would also authorize the attorneys general of each state to sue a credit reporting agency failing to honor an a person’s request to withhold disclosure of that information.
In still another related privacy protection development, California Gov. Gray Davis Wednesday signed a bill into law prohibiting the state from selling and posting on the Internet databases that contain a mothers’ maiden name and Social Security Number. The measure, SB-1614, was sponsored by Democrat State Sen. Jackie Speier.
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