[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 146 (Wednesday, October 14, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12604-S12605]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           AMENDING CHAPTER 47, TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE

  Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate 
proceed to the immediate consideration of H.R. 4151, which was received 
from the House.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report.
  The legislative clerk read as follows:

       A bill (H.R. 4151) to amend chapter 47 of title 18, United 
     States Code, relating to identity fraud, and for other 
     purposes.

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to the immediate 
consideration of the bill?
  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I am pleased that the Senate today is 
passing H.R. 4151, the ``Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence 
Act.'' This is virtually identical to the Kyl-Leahy substitute to 
S.512, which passed the Senate unanimously on July 30, 1998. This bill 
penalizes the theft of personal identification information that results 
in harm to the person whose identification is stolen and then used for 
false credit cards, fraudulent loans or for other illegal purposes. It 
also sets up a ``clearinghouse'' at the Federal Trade Commission to 
keep track of consumer complaints of identity theft and provide 
information to victims of this crime on how to deal with its aftermath.
  Protecting the privacy of our personal information is a challenge, 
especially in this information age. Every time we obtain or use a 
credit card, place a toll-free phone call, surf the Internet, get a 
driver's license or are featured in ``Who's Who,''in the form of 
personal information, which can be used without our consent or even our 
knowledge. Too frequently, criminals are getting hold of this 
information and using the personal information of

[[Page S12605]]

innocent individuals to carry out other crimes. Indeed, U.S. News & 
World Report has called identity theft ``a crime of the 90's''.
  The consequences for the victims of identity theft can be severe. 
They can have their credit ratings ruined and be unable to get credit 
cards, student loans, or mortgages. They can be hounded by creditors or 
collection agencies to repay debts they never incurred, but were 
obtained in their name, at their address, with their social security 
number or driver's license number. It can take months or even years, 
and agonizing effort, to clear their good names and correct their 
credit histories. I understand that, in some instances, victims of 
identity theft have even been arrested for crimes they never committed 
when the actual perpetrators provided law enforcement officials with 
assumed names.
  The new legislation provides important remedies for victims of 
identity theft. Specifically, it makes clear that these victims are 
entitled to restitution, including payment for any costs and attorney's 
fees in clearing up their credit histories and having to engage in any 
civil or administrative proceedings to satisfy debts, liens or other 
obligations resulting from a defendant's theft of their identity. In 
addition, the bill directs the Federal Trade Commission to keep track 
of consumer complaints of identity theft and provide information to 
victims of this crime on how to deal with its aftermath.
  This is an important bill on an issue that has caused harm to many 
Americans. It has come a long way from its original Senate formulation, 
which would have made it an offense, subject to 15 years' imprisonment, 
to possess ``with intent to deceive" identity information issued to 
another person. I was concerned that the scope of the proposed offense 
in the original Senate version of the bill would have resulted in the 
federalization of innumerable state and local offenses, such as the 
status offenses of underage teenagers using fake ID cards to gain 
entrance to bars or to buy cigarettes, or even the use of a borrowed ID 
card without any illegal purpose. This problem, and others, were 
addressed in the Kyl-Leahy substitute that was passed by the Senate.
  This bill appropriately limits the scope of the new offense governing 
the illegal transfer or use of another person's ``means of 
identification'' to exclude ``possession.'' This change ensures that 
the bill does not inadvertently subject innocuous conduct to the risk 
of serious federal criminal liability. For example, with this change, 
the bill would no longer raise the possibility of criminalizing the 
mere possession of another person's name in an address book or Rolodex, 
when coupled with some sort of bad intent.
  At the same time, the Kyl-Leahy substitute as reflected in H.R. 4151, 
restores the nuanced penalty structure of section 1028 of the Federal 
criminal code. Specifically, the bill provides that the use or transfer 
of 1 or more means of identification that results in the perpetrator 
receiving anything of value aggregating $1,000 or more over a 1-year 
period, would carry a penalty of a fine or up to 15 years' 
imprisonment, or both. The use or transfer of another person's means of 
identification that does not satisfy those monetary and time period 
requirements, would carry a penalty of a fine and up to three years' 
imprisonment, or both.
  Finally, again with the support of the Department of Justice, we 
created a limited and appropriate forfeiture penalty for these offenses 
and specified the forfeiture procedure to be used in connection with 
them.
  I am glad that Senator Kyl and I were able to join forces to craft 
legislation that both punishes the perpetrators of identity theft and 
helps the victims of this crime.
  Finally, an amendment added in the House, at the joint request of 
Senator Hatch and myself, gives the United States Judicial Conference 
limited authority to withhold personal and sensitive information about 
judicial officers and employees whose lives have been threatened. 
Apparently, sophisticated criminals are able to use information set 
forth in publicly available financial disclosure forms to collect more 
detailed personal information then used in carrying out threats against 
our judicial officers. This amendment is an important step to protect 
the lives of judges, and I am glad that we were able to accomplish 
this.
  Mr. JEFFORDS. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be 
considered read a third time and passed; that the motion to reconsider 
be laid upon the table; and that any statements relating to the bill be 
printed at the appropriate place in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The bill (H.R. 4151) was considered read the third time and passed.

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