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Letter in Support of House Bill 74

Cross-linked to SB 117

February 11, 2004  

The Honorable Dereck E. Davis , Chairman

Economic Matters Committee

Lowe House Office Building , Room 150

Annapolis , MD 21401

Re:  Support for House Bill 74 - Privacy of Social Security Numbers

Dear Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:

The Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition, Inc. is a non-profit education and advocacy organization that promotes equity and fairness in the consumer marketplace.  We support the enactment of House Bill 74 - Consumer Protection – Privacy of Social Security Numbers.

Protecting individuals’ Social Security Numbers (SSNs) is of utmost importance because of the dramatic increase in identity theft in the past few years. Identity theft has reached epidemic proportions. Two new surveys found that about seven million Americans were victims of identity theft in 2002. That is an 81% increase over 2001. All indications suggest that the increases will continue. SSNs are the key to identity theft - if a criminal obtains your SSN he or she can apply for credit cards, buy a car, and even obtain a driver’s license in your name. Many victims of identity theft have had their lives turned upside down after their identity was stolen and have spent countless hours -- sometimes years-- trying to restore their good credit standing.

In order to stem the tide of identity theft, more needs to be done to limit the availability of the SSN.  The provisions of House Bill 74 would provide consumers with much needed protection from those who would attempt to steal their identity. House Bill 74 prohibits the public posting of SSNs, the use of SSNs on ID cards and the printing of SSNs on certain material that is mailed to consumers. It also makes a violation of the Act an unfair and deceptive trade practice, which is an important provision to ensure the enforcement of the law.   Enactment of these protections will make it harder for criminals to obtain SSNs and use them to commit fraud and is a good first step toward curbing the tide of identity theft.

Some businesses will oppose this measure – citing the expense to them of implementing its provisions.  However, the cost of making these simple changes pales in comparison to the cost to consumers and to businesses of ID theft – estimated at 52 billion in 2002.

California passed a bill that is very similar to HB74, which went into effect on July 1. 2002. Some companies that operate nationwide are changing their practices for all states in order to comply with the California law. There has been no major fallout from the California law – it is not putting companies out of business or making them pull out of doing business in California .  In fact, according to one article, many companies have wanted to get away from using SSN’s for some time –the law gave them the incentive to do it.

The SSN was never intended to be used for anything other than to allow the Social Security Administration to track a person’s earnings. Unfortunately, the number has become a national identification number.  It is time to take this first step to protect consumers by limiting the use of SSNs. For these reasons, the Maryland Consumer Rights Coalition urges you to give HB 74 a favorable report.  

                                                                                    Very truly yours,

                                                                                    Cheryl L. Hystad

                                                                                    Executive Director       

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