[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 36 (Thursday, March 26, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2660-S2661]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. BAUCUS:
  S. 1865. A bill to amend title IV of the Social Security Act to 
provide safeguards against the abuse of information reported to the 
National Directory of New Hires; to the Committee on Finance.

[[Page S2661]]

         the safeguard of new employee information act of 1998

  Mr. BAUCUS. Mr. President, today I am introducing the Safeguard of 
New Employee Information Act of 1998. This bill will ensure that the 
mechanisms created in the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity 
Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA) to enhance our child support 
enforcement system will not lead to a misuse of personal information. I 
believe that my bill will assure that new employee information is kept 
confidential without compromising the usefulness of the National 
Directory of New Hires. The legislation provides clear safeguards 
against the abuse of personal employee information, and makes sure that 
the information is erased two years after entry.

  As we all know, child support is a critical part of welfare reform. I 
strongly support the measures in PRWORA that help states track and 
crack down on parents who fail to pay court-ordered child support. In 
response to the fact that over 30 percent of child support cases 
involve parents who do not live in the same state as their children, a 
National Directory of New Hires was created to assist states in 
locating parents who reside in other states.
  Thus far, the new data base has been very successful in enabling 
states to locate delinquent parents, enforcing payment orders and 
reducing the number of welfare families. However, many folks are 
concerned about the confidentiality of the registry, and the fact that 
this information is never deleted.
  Last year, for example, the Montana State Legislature passed a child 
support bill to comply with the new federal regulations. I must add, 
this bill was passed in the final hours of the legislative session and 
under the threat of losing $52 million a year in federal funds. At that 
time, the legislature was hesitant to pass the bill because of concerns 
regarding confidentiality.
  Mr. President, the Safeguard of New Employee Information Act of 1998 
makes needed changes to the National Directory to alleviate these fears 
and ensure the registry's continuation. The bill provides penalties for 
misuse of information by federal employees. Specifically, it 
establishes a fine of $1,000 for each act of unauthorized access to, 
disclosure, or use of information in the National Directory of New 
Hires.
  The bill also establishes a 24-month limit on retention of New Hire 
data. This two year limit gives Child Support Enforcement agencies the 
necessary time to determine paternity, establish a child support order 
or enforce existing orders. A shorter period of data retention would 
impede enforcement activities, and a longer period of retention 
increases the potential for abuse.
  Mr. President, in my state of Montana, 90 percent of families on 
welfare are headed by single parents. That is why it is so important to 
require that the absent mothers or fathers provide money to feed, 
clothe and care for their children. The National Directory of New Hires 
is a good idea--we just need to ensure new employee confidentiality. I 
urge my colleagues to protect new hire confidentiality and support this 
important legislation.
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