Date: Tue, 10 Mar 1998 10:12:28 -0800 (PST) From: bb074@scn.org (SCN User) To: local-computer-activists@scn.org Subject: ACTION ALERT: Privacy and Social Security Numbers Reply-To: bb074@scn.org Sender: owner-local-computer-activists@scn.org DO YOU WANT SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS TO BE REQUIRED ON MOST WA LICENSE APPLICATIONS? Last Chance to Call on ESHB 6418 Last week, I hastily forwarded an alert on ESHB 6418, the bill described in the Seattle Times article below. Attempts to remove language requiring all citizens to provide Social Security numbers on applications for occupational, driver, professional and recreational licenses were defeated 39-55 on the House floor, which led to the final vote described in the article. Now, our state Senate, which did not require Social Security numbers in its version of ESHB 6418, must decide whether to give in to the House, or stand against further tracking of law-abiding citizens. This is your last chance to let your state senator, your two state representatives, and the governor know you want requirements for Social Security numbers on license applications removed from the final version of ESHB 6418. Either call, or prepare to be numbered wherever you go. To leave a single message for your state legislators and the governor, call the Legislative Hotline at 1-800-562-6000 between 8 am and 8 pm Monday through Friday. This issue should be settled before Friday. We are not alone. Citizens in other states are fighting the Social Security number requirement. Both Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) and Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) have introduced bills in Congress which would limit the use of Social Security numbers. This issue will swing our way if enough people complain. X-URL: http://www.seattletimes.com/news/local/html98/priv_030798.html Copyright © 1998 The Seattle Times Company Saturday, March 7, 1998 Privacy battle erupts in Legislature by David Postman Seattle Times Olympia bureau OLYMPIA - A bitter fight - pitting Democrat against Democrat, Republican against Republican and House against Senate - has broken out over a proposal to require Social Security numbers on applications for hunting, fishing, professional and driver's licenses. It's a fight that has mild-mannered lawmakers blowing their cool, the House speaker here ready to call the U.S. speaker of the House and the federal government threatening to cut off half-a-billion dollars a year in state aid. The federal government says unless the 1998 Legislature passes a law requiring the Social Security numbers on license applications, Washington will lose as much as $500 million a year in money for welfare and for tracking down dead-beat parents. Officials say the Social Security numbers are the best way to track down divorced parents who don't pay child support. The Social Security clause is included in a child-support enforcement bill. But a group of Democrats and Republicans in Olympia say the requirement is an invasion of privacy; Social Security numbers are for Social Security, not for the federal government to try to track down its scofflaw citizens, they say. Opponents also fear the Social Security numbers could be used for other purposes. Yesterday the Republican-controlled House voted 74-23 to require the Social Security numbers, with 22 Republicans and one Democrat voting no. The Senate earlier passed a version of the bill but without the clause requiring Social Security numbers. The House and Senate now has a week to settle the differences and send a bill to Gov. Gary Locke. Aides to the governor could not say yesterday what his position on the bill was. But Locke has expressed concerns about privacy and particularly about people being asked for their Social Security number when it's not absolutely necessary. "I am disturbed by how easily people can discover the most personal details about others, including purchasing habits, health records and other sensitive information. I want to protect the privacy of citizens," Locke said in announcing a privacy summit he convened at the University of Washington last year. Yesterday, legislative opponents to the Social Security number requirement said it is more important to protect privacy than get up to $500 million a year in federal welfare money. "I won't be their Judas. I won't take their 30 pieces of silver," said Rep. John Koster, R-Monroe. Rep. Mike Sherstad, R-Bothell, said he couldn't believe it was the Republican Party that was "selling out her constituents to the federal government." "I looked at what our founding fathers did. They died for our freedom. What are we willing to do? We're not willing to stand up to the federal government for some money," he said. "I looked at the logos from New Hampshire that said, `Live Free or Die'; Patrick Henry when he said, `Give me liberty or give me death.' "Well, you can kill me, but I'll be damned if I sell out my children," Sherstad said. It was all too much for Rep. Suzette Cooke, R-Kent, chairwoman of the House Children and Family Services Committee, who has been pushing the bill. She said on the House floor that a vote for the bill is about helping children whose parents aren't paying child support. "If you vote no on this bill you are saying that children do not count as a priority, and the financial keeping of those children is not a priority," Cooke said. For impugning the motives of her fellow lawmakers, House Speaker Clyde Ballard, R-East Wenatchee, gaveled Cooke out of order, a first in her three terms in office. "I was impugned, and I got to impugn," she said with a smile later. Ballard voted for the bill, but said he shares some of the privacy concerns. He said he would speak with U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and ask if Congress would reconsider the requirement. The bill requires that the state keep the Social Security numbers confidential. It also directs state officials to seek a waiver from the federal government saying the numbers aren't necessary. But Social Security numbers are an important tool in tracking divorced parents who cross state lines to get away from obligations of child support, said Jay Inslee, the Northwest regional director of the U.S. Health and Human Services Department. "We need to get our system functioning to the point, as Joe Louis said, you can run but you can't hide," Inslee said. He said that nationwide, one-third of all child support, $70 million, is past due. "This is a scandalous situation, and we intend to remedy it," Inslee said. "The only people who ought to be concerned about this bill are those who have refused to meet their obligations to their children. They are the only folks who are going to lose and rightfully so. The rest of us have no reason to be concerned because the government already knows our Social Security numbers." The next step is in the Senate, where members will be asked to go along with the House version. "We won't let that happen," said Sen. Darlene Fairley, D-Lake Forest Park. "This is dollars vs. American rights to privacy. If we don't keep fighting for our freedoms, we'll lose them." * * * * * * * * * * * * * * From the Listowner * * * * * * * * * * * * . To unsubscribe from this list, send a message to: majordomo@scn.org In the body of the message, type: unsubscribe local-computer-activists END