[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 72 (Thursday, May 26, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1114]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 KEEP DOMESTIC VIOLENCE VICTIMS IN HUD HOUSING SAFE FROM THEIR ABUSERS

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                            HON. GWEN MOORE

                              of wisconsin

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 26, 2005

  Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce the 
Safe Housing Identification Exemption for the Lives of Domestic 
Violence Victims (SHIELD) Act.
  Mr. Speaker, I know of the victims that have finally built up the 
courage to leave their abusive relationships and have nowhere to go but 
a homeless shelter. I know of the women who everyday are scared for 
their lives because their abusers are trying to track them down.
  Mr. Speaker, I know of the victims who want to feel safe, who want to 
believe that these federal agencies and services are there to protect 
them. And, ultimately all of our federal services are intended to 
effectively serve and protect our citizens.
  But, I also know of the victims who are scared that they can be 
tracked down by their predators and probably would not seek housing 
assistance if they knew about the HUD requirement to disclose their 
personal information and location. All HUD homeless shelters and food 
banks, domestic violence centers and transitional housing receiving 
McKinney-Vento Funds are required to input personal identifying data 
into the Homeless Management Information System Database. This tracking 
database requires personal identifying information including names, 
Social Security numbers, date of birth, race and ethnicity. This 
personal information database can be easily accessed by personnel 
working in state, local and federal agencies.
  Mr. Speaker, I am thinking of the victims whose abusers readily have 
access to this personal information. These abusers may work in one of 
these agencies or have the ability to access this database. All they 
would have to do is type in the victim's name or other identifying 
pieces of information and they would immediately know where the victim 
is staying or the domestic violence shelter they visited. A loophole 
like this is far too detrimental to their safety and could put many 
victims of domestic violence in further danger.
  In order to address this problem, I have introduced the SHIELD Act 
along with my colleague from Florida, Katherine Harris. This bill would 
require any agency participating in the Homeless Management Information 
System to exclude personal identifying information of victims of 
domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, or stalking. 
Instead the legislation recommends the use of nonpersonal identifying 
information for data collection and statistical purposes.
  Reaching out for assistance is already a big step for many victims of 
domestic violence. We should not put them in greater danger or deter 
them from seeking these valuable services because of an agency 
loophole. I urge my colleagues to join me in cosponsoring the SHIELD 
Act.

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