Dear Investigation and Security Professionals,
During September, ISPLA representatives met in Washington, DC with Congressional sponsors, or their staff, regarding each of the following House bills, except for the Employee Free Choice Act; that legislation will be resolved in the Senate.
Privacy advocates are aggressively pushing their agenda with continued efforts to close investigative and security professionals’ sources of information and access to records of personal identifying information. Security breach, stalking, pretexting, anti-spoofing, identity theft, and Social Security number ban legislation are the vehicles for such attempts. When such legislation is proposed on what appear to be valid grounds, there are unintended consequences often not foreseen by the sponsors.
Restricting access to Social Security numbers, limiting use of credit reports and security breach issues:
Should legislation limit private investigators’ access to Social Security numbers, which are a key identifier used to locate people, there would be serious due process issues. Such bills always provide an exception for law enforcement. However, if the government only has access to such information an inequity will exist if such access is denied to defense counsel and its investigators.
There is a legitimate critical need for continued access to such information. It is used to identify and locate witnesses, missing children, heirs, deadbeat parents, and criminals. It is also a necessary tool in combating and investigating ID theft, as well as other types of fraud. It is a means of locating individuals who have hidden their ill-gotten gains taken from our clients.
HR 3306, the “Social Security Number Privacy and Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2009” – Rep. John S. Tanner [D-TN-8]
In amending the Social Security Act to enhance SSN account privacy protections and fraudulent misuse of the Social Security account number, HR 3306 prohibition of the sale, purchase, and display to the general public of the Social Security account number in the private sector is a worthwhile act. However, there is no exception for the necessary valid use of such a number by investigators and security professionals needing such information during the course of conducting lawful investigations.
Suggested Exceptions:
“… to the extent necessary to identify or locate missing or abducted children, witnesses to an ongoing or potential civil or criminal law suit, criminals, criminal suspects, parties to lawsuits, parents delinquent in child support payments, organ and bone marrow donors, pension fund beneficiaries, missing heirs, and for similar legal, medical, or family related purposes, if the person selling, providing, displaying, or obtaining the social security account number does not do so for marketing purposes.”
Additional exceptions might include fraud prevention and other legitimate uses in conducting lawful investigations by state licensed investigators.
The Drivers Protection Act of 1994 contains a provision for allowing an exception for investigations that reads in part “...in anticipation of litigation.” It also specifically mentions state licensed private investigators and security firms.
HR 122, the “Protecting the Privacy of Social Security Numbers Act” – Rep. Rodney P. Frelinghuysen [R-NJ-11]
In amending title 18, United States Code, and the Social Security Act to limit the misuse of Social Security numbers, and establishing criminal penalties for such misuse, it is important to investigative and security professionals that the “business to business” exception remain in this proposed legislation.
HR 3149, the “Equal Employment Act for All” – Rep. Steve Cohen [D-TN-9]
In amending the Fair Credit Reporting Act to prohibit the use of consumer credit checks against prospective and current employees regarding adverse action, pre-employment background screening and workplace and other investigations will be hindered.
HR 1529, the “Second Chance for Ex-Offenders Act of 2009” – Rep. Charles Rangel [D-NY-15]
Creates mechanism in expunging non-violent federal criminal records thus impacting the usefulness of background and pre-employment investigations, as well as the investigation of serious “white collar crime”, generally non-violent.
HR 3126, the “Consumer Financial Protection Agency Act of 2009” – Rep. Barney Frank [D-MA-4]
Precludes the Federal Trade Commission of rulemaking authority which will become the jurisdiction of a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency. The FTC has a long history of knowing the needs of the investigative and security professions and its methods of and need for information gathering subject to the FCRA, GBLA, and other laws.
H.R. 414, the “Camera Phone Predator Act” – Rep. Peter King [R-NY-3]
Require any mobile phone containing a digital camera to sound a tone whenever a photograph is taken with the camera’s phone. In a far fetched stretch, disabling or silencing the tone would purportedly violate a consumer product safety standard and require enforcement by the Consumer Product Safety Commission. Legislative intent is thought by some as a measure to the recent trend of taking “up-skirting” photos with camera phones which would be thwarted by cell phones having to make a clicking sound when taking pictures. Bills such as this need a “criminal intent” exception for lawfully conducted investigations and
surveillance.
HR 1409, the “Employee Free Choice Act of 2009” – Rep. George Miller [D-CA-7]
Eliminates the secret ballot allowing unions to utilize “card check” method in organizing a company and mandates that if contract is not signed within a prescribed time limit binding arbitration takes effect with regard to setting wages and work rules. Mandatory arbitration we feel will more likely favor Labor’s position. This legislation, if enacted, directly adversely affects security companies and their clients. We believe this legislation, which is also being pressured by the SEIU will be followed by attempts to gut 9(b)3 which prohibits a unionized company from having its security guards members of the same
company union.
Tell a friend about ISPLA and what it has to offer. Better yet, get them to join.
Thank you as always for supporting ISPLA,
Peter Psarouthakis
Chairman, ISPLA
Executive Committee