[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 122 (Tuesday, September 26, 2006)]
[House]
[Pages H7468-H7478]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           VETERANS IDENTITY AND CREDIT SECURITY ACT OF 2006

  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 5835) to amend title 38, United States Code, to improve 
information management within the Department of Veterans Affairs, and 
for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 5835

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Veterans Identity and Credit 
     Security Act of 2006''.

     SEC. 2. FEDERAL AGENCY DATA BREACH NOTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.

       (a) Authority of Director of Office of Management and 
     Budget to Establish Data Breach Policies.--Section 3543(a) of 
     title 44, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (7);
       (2) by striking the period and inserting ``; and'' at the 
     end of paragraph (8); and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(9) establishing policies, procedures, and standards for 
     agencies to follow in the event of a breach of data security 
     involving the disclosure of sensitive personal information 
     and for which harm to an individual could reasonably be 
     expected to result, specifically including--
       ``(A) a requirement for timely notice to be provided to 
     those individuals whose sensitive personal information could 
     be compromised as a result of such breach, except no notice 
     shall be required if the breach does not create a reasonable 
     risk of identity theft, fraud, or other unlawful conduct 
     regarding such individual;
       ``(B) guidance on determining how timely notice is to be 
     provided; and
       ``(C) guidance regarding whether additional special actions 
     are necessary and appropriate, including data breach 
     analysis, fraud resolution services, identity theft 
     insurance, and credit protection or monitoring services.''.
       (b) Authority of Chief Information Officer to Enforce Data 
     Breach Policies and Develop and Maintain Inventories.--
     Section 3544(a)(3) of title 44, United States Code, is 
     amended--
       (1) by inserting after ``authority to ensure compliance 
     with'' the following: ``and, to the extent determined 
     necessary and explicitly authorized by the head of the 
     agency, to enforce'';
       (2) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (D);
       (3) by inserting ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (E); 
     and
       (4) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(F) developing and maintaining an inventory of all 
     personal computers, laptops, or any other hardware containing 
     sensitive personal information;''.
       (c) Inclusion of Data Breach Notification in Agency 
     Information Security Programs.--Section 3544(b) of title 44, 
     United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (7);
       (2) by striking the period and inserting ``; and'' at the 
     end of paragraph (8); and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(9) procedures for notifying individuals whose sensitive 
     personal information is compromised consistent with policies, 
     procedures, and standards established under section 
     3543(a)(9) of this title.''.
       (d) Authority of Agency Chief Human Capital Officers to 
     Assess Federal Personal Property.--Section 1402(a) of title 
     5, United States Code, is amended--
       (1) by striking ``, and'' at the end of paragraph (5) and 
     inserting a semicolon;
       (2) by striking the period and inserting ``; and'' at the 
     end of paragraph (6); and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(7) prescribing policies and procedures for exit 
     interviews of employees, including a full accounting of all 
     Federal personal property that was assigned to the employee 
     during the course of employment.''.
       (e) Sensitive Personal Information Definition.--Section 
     3542(b) of title 44, United States Code, is amended by adding 
     at the end the following new paragraph:
       ``(4) The term `sensitive personal information', with 
     respect to an individual, means any information about the 
     individual maintained by an agency, including--
       ``(A) education, financial transactions, medical history, 
     and criminal or employment history;
       ``(B) information that can be used to distinguish or trace 
     the individual's identity, including name, social security 
     number, date and place of birth, mother's maiden name, or 
     biometric records; or
       ``(C) any other personal information that is linked or 
     linkable to the individual.''.

     SEC. 3. UNDER SECRETARY FOR INFORMATION SERVICES.

       (a) Under Secretary.--Chapter 3 of title 38, United States 
     Code, is amended by inserting after section 307 the following 
     new section:

     ``Sec. 307A. Under Secretary for Information Services

       ``(a) Under Secretary.--There is in the Department an Under 
     Secretary for Information Services, who is appointed by the 
     President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. 
     The Under Secretary shall be the head of the Office of 
     Information Services and shall perform such functions as the 
     Secretary shall prescribe.

[[Page H7469]]

       ``(b) Service as Chief Information Officer.--
     Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Under 
     Secretary for Information Services shall serve as the Chief 
     Information Officer of the Department under section 310 of 
     this title.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the 
     item relating to section 307 the following new item:

``307A. Under Secretary for Information Services.''.

       (c) Conforming Amendment.--Section 308(b) of such title is 
     amended by striking paragraph (5) and redesignating 
     paragraphs (6) through (11) as paragraphs (5) through (10), 
     respectively.

     SEC. 4. DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS INFORMATION SECURITY.

       (a) Information Security.--Chapter 57 of title 38, United 
     States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following 
     new subchapter:

                 ``SUBCHAPTER III--INFORMATION SECURITY

     ``Sec. 5721. Definitions

       ``For the purposes of this subchapter:
       ``(1) The term `sensitive personal information', with 
     respect to an individual, means any information about the 
     individual maintained by an agency, including--
       ``(A) education, financial transactions, medical history, 
     and criminal or employment history;
       ``(B) information that can be used to distinguish or trace 
     the individual's identity, including name, social security 
     number, date and place of birth, mother's maiden name, or 
     biometric records; or
       ``(C) any other personal information that is linked or 
     linkable to the individual.
       ``(2) The term `data breach' means the loss, theft, or 
     other unauthorized access to data containing sensitive 
     personal information, in electronic or printed form, that 
     results in the potential compromise of the confidentiality or 
     integrity of the data.
       ``(3) The term `data breach analysis' means the 
     identification of any misuse of sensitive personal 
     information involved in a data breach.
       ``(4) The term `fraud resolution services' means services 
     to assist an individual in the process of recovering and 
     rehabilitating the credit of the individual after the 
     individual experiences identity theft.
       ``(5) The term `identity theft' has the meaning given such 
     term under section 603 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 
     U.S.C. 1681a).
       ``(6) The term `identity theft insurance' means any 
     insurance policy that pays benefits for costs, including 
     travel costs, notary fees, and postage costs, lost wages, and 
     legal fees and expenses associated with the identity theft of 
     the insured individual.
       ``(7) The term `principal credit reporting agency' means a 
     consumer reporting agency as described in section 603(p) of 
     the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a(p)).

     ``Sec. 5722. Office of the Under Secretary for Information 
       Services

       ``(a) Deputy Under Secretaries.--The Office of the Under 
     Secretary for Information Services shall consist of the 
     following:
       ``(1) The Deputy Under Secretary for Information Services 
     for Security, who shall serve as the Senior Information 
     Security Officer of the Department.
       ``(2) The Deputy Under Secretary for Information Services 
     for Operations and Management.
       ``(3) The Deputy Under Secretary for Information Services 
     for Policy and Planning.
       ``(b) Appointments.--Appointments under subsection (a) 
     shall be made by the Secretary, notwithstanding the 
     limitations of section 709 of this title.
       ``(c) Qualifications.--At least one of positions 
     established and filled under subsection (a) shall be filled 
     by an individual who has at least five years of continuous 
     service in the Federal civil service in the executive branch 
     immediately preceding the appointment of the individual as a 
     Deputy Under Secretary. For purposes of determining such 
     continuous service of an individual, there shall be excluded 
     any service by such individual in a position--
       ``(1) of a confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, 
     or policy-advocating character;
       ``(2) in which such individual served as a noncareer 
     appointee in the Senior Executive Service, as such term is 
     defined in section 3132(a)(7) of title 5; or
       ``(3) to which such individual was appointed by the 
     President.

     ``Sec. 5723. Information security management

       ``(a) Responsibilities of Chief Information Officer.--To 
     support the economical, efficient, and effective execution of 
     subtitle III of chapter 35 of title 44, and policies and 
     plans of the Department, the Secretary shall ensure that the 
     Chief Information Officer of the Department has the authority 
     and control necessary to develop, approve, implement, 
     integrate, and oversee the policies, procedures, processes, 
     activities, and systems of the Department relating to that 
     subtitle, including the management of all related mission 
     applications, information resources, personnel, and 
     infrastructure.
       ``(b) Annual Compliance Report.--Not later than March 1 of 
     each year, the Secretary shall submit to the Committees on 
     Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives, 
     the Committee on Government Reform of the House of 
     Representatives, and the Committee on Homeland Security and 
     Governmental Affairs of the Senate, a report on the 
     Department's compliance with subtitle III of chapter 35 of 
     title 44. The information in such report shall be displayed 
     in the aggregate and separately for each Administration, 
     office, and facility of the Department.
       ``(c) Reports to Secretary of Compliance Deficiencies.--(1) 
     At least once every month, the Chief Information Officer 
     shall report to the Secretary any deficiency in the 
     compliance with subtitle III of chapter 35 of title 44 of the 
     Department or any Administration, office, or facility of the 
     Department.
       ``(2) The Chief Information Officer shall immediately 
     report to the Secretary any significant deficiency in such 
     compliance.
       ``(d) Data Breaches.--(1) The Chief Information Officer 
     shall immediately provide notice to the Secretary of any data 
     breach.
       ``(2) Immediately after receiving notice of a data breach 
     under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall provide notice of 
     such breach to the Director of the Office of Management and 
     Budget, the Inspector General of the Department, and, if 
     appropriate, the Federal Trade Commission and the United 
     States Secret Service.
       ``(e) Budgetary Matters.--When the budget for any fiscal 
     year is submitted by the President to Congress under section 
     1105 of title 31, the Secretary shall submit to Congress a 
     report that identifies amounts requested for Department 
     implementation and remediation of and compliance with this 
     subchapter and subtitle III of chapter 35 of title 44. The 
     report shall set forth those amounts both for each 
     Administration within the Department and for the Department 
     in the aggregate and shall identify, for each such amount, 
     how that amount is aligned with and supports such 
     implementation and compliance.

     ``Sec. 5724. Congressional reporting and notification of data 
       breaches

       ``(a) Quarterly Reports.--(1) Not later than 30 days after 
     the last day of a fiscal quarter, the Secretary shall submit 
     to the Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and 
     House of Representatives a report on any data breach with 
     respect to sensitive personal information processed or 
     maintained by the Department that occurred during that 
     quarter.
       ``(2) Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall 
     identify, for each data breach covered by the report, the 
     Administration and facility of the Department responsible for 
     processing or maintaining the sensitive personal information 
     involved in the data breach.
       ``(b) Notification of Significant Data Breaches.--(1) In 
     the event of a data breach with respect to sensitive personal 
     information processed or maintained by the Secretary that the 
     Secretary determines is significant, the Secretary shall 
     provide notice of such breach to the Committees on Veterans' 
     Affairs of the Senate and House of Representatives.
       ``(2) Notice under paragraph (1) shall be provided promptly 
     following the discovery of such a data breach and the 
     implementation of any measures necessary to determine the 
     scope of the breach, prevent any further breach or 
     unauthorized disclosures, and reasonably restore the 
     integrity of the data system.

     ``Sec. 5725. Data breaches

       ``(a) Independent Risk Analysis.--(1) In the event of a 
     data breach with respect to sensitive personal information 
     that is processed or maintained by the Secretary, the 
     Secretary shall ensure that, as soon as possible after the 
     data breach, a non-Department entity conducts an independent 
     risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of 
     risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse 
     of any sensitive personal information involved in the data 
     breach.
       ``(2) If the Secretary determines, based on the findings of 
     a risk analysis conducted under paragraph (1), that a 
     reasonable risk exists for the potential misuse of sensitive 
     information involved in a data breach, the Secretary shall 
     provide credit protection services in accordance with section 
     5726 of this title.
       ``(b) Notification.--(1) In the event of a data breach with 
     respect to sensitive personal information that is processed 
     or maintained by the Secretary, the Secretary shall provide 
     to an individual whose sensitive personal information is 
     involved in that breach notice of the data breach--
       ``(A) in writing; or
       ``(B) by email, if--
       ``(i) the Department's primary method of communication with 
     the individual is by email; and
       ``(ii) the individual has consented to receive such 
     notification.
       ``(2) Notice provided under paragraph (1) shall--
       ``(A) describe the circumstances of the data breach and the 
     risk that the breach could lead to misuse, including identity 
     theft, involving the sensitive personal information of the 
     individual;
       ``(B) describe the specific types of sensitive personal 
     information that was compromised as a part of the data 
     breach;
       ``(C) describe the actions the Department is taking to 
     remedy the data breach;
       ``(D) inform the individual that the individual may request 
     a fraud alert and credit security freeze under this section;
       ``(E) clearly explain the advantages and disadvantages to 
     the individual of receiving

[[Page H7470]]

     fraud alerts and credit security freezes under this section; 
     and
       ``(F) includes such other information as the Secretary 
     determines is appropriate.
       ``(3) The notice required under paragraph (1) shall be 
     provided promptly following the discovery of a data breach 
     and the implementation of any measures necessary to determine 
     the scope of the breach, prevent any further breach or 
     unauthorized disclosures, and reasonably restore the 
     integrity of the data system.
       ``(c) Report.--For each data breach with respect to 
     sensitive personal information processed or maintained by the 
     Secretary, the Secretary shall promptly submit to the 
     Committees on Veterans' Affairs of the Senate and House of 
     Representatives a report containing the findings of any 
     independent risk analysis conducted under subsection (a)(1), 
     any determination of the Secretary under subsection (a)(2), 
     and a description of any credit protection services provided 
     under section 5726 of this title.
       ``(d) Final Determination.--Notwithstanding sections 511 
     and 7104(a) of this title, any determination of the Secretary 
     under subsection (a)(2) with respect to the reasonable risk 
     for the potential misuse of sensitive information involved in 
     a data breach is final and conclusive and may not be reviewed 
     by any other official, administrative body, or court, whether 
     by an action in the nature of mandamus or otherwise.
       ``(e) Fraud Alerts.--(1) In the event of a data breach with 
     respect to sensitive personal information that is processed 
     or maintained by the Secretary, the Secretary shall arrange, 
     upon the request of an individual whose sensitive personal 
     information is involved in the breach to a principal credit 
     reporting agency with which the Secretary has entered into a 
     contract under section 5726(d) and at no cost to the 
     individual, for the principal credit reporting agency to 
     provide fraud alert services for that individual for a period 
     of not less than one year, beginning on the date of such 
     request, unless the individual requests that such fraud alert 
     be removed before the end of such period, and the agency 
     receives appropriate proof of the identity of the individual 
     for such purpose.
       ``(2) The Secretary shall arrange for each principal credit 
     reporting agency referred to in paragraph (1) to provide any 
     alert requested under such subsection in the file of the 
     individual along with any credit score generated in using 
     that file, for a period of not less than one year, beginning 
     on the date of such request, unless the individual requests 
     that such fraud alert be removed before the end of such 
     period, and the agency receives appropriate proof of the 
     identity of the individual for such purpose.
       ``(f) Credit Security Freeze.--(1) In the event of a data 
     breach with respect to sensitive personal information that is 
     processed or maintained by the Secretary, the Secretary shall 
     arrange, upon the request of an individual whose sensitive 
     personal information is involved in the breach and at no cost 
     to the individual, for each principal credit reporting agency 
     to apply a security freeze to the file of that individual for 
     a period of not less than one year, beginning on the date of 
     such request, unless the individual requests that such 
     security freeze be removed before the end of such period, and 
     the agency receives appropriate proof of the identity of the 
     individual for such purpose.
       ``(2) The Secretary shall arrange for a principal credit 
     reporting agency applying a security freeze under paragraph 
     (1)--
       ``(A) to send a written confirmation of the security freeze 
     to the individual within five business days of applying the 
     freeze;
       ``(B) to refer the information regarding the security 
     freeze to other consumer reporting agencies;
       ``(C) to provide the individual with a unique personal 
     identification number or password to be used by the 
     individual when providing authorization for the release of 
     the individual's credit for a specific party or period of 
     time; and
       ``(D) upon the request of the individual, to temporarily 
     lift the freeze for a period of time specified by the 
     individual, beginning not later than three business days 
     after the date on which the agency receives the request.

     ``Sec. 5726. Provision of credit protection services

       ``(a) Covered Individual.--For purposes of this section, a 
     covered individual is an individual whose sensitive personal 
     information that is processed or maintained by the Department 
     (or any third-party entity acting on behalf of the 
     Department) is involved, on or after August 1, 2005, in a 
     data breach for which the Secretary determines a reasonable 
     risk exists for the potential misuse of sensitive personal 
     information under section 5725(a)(2) of this title.
       ``(b) Notification.--(1) In addition to any notice required 
     under subsection 5725(b) of this title, the Secretary shall 
     provide to a covered individual notice in writing that--
       ``(A) the individual may request credit protection services 
     under this section;
       ``(B) clearly explains the advantages and disadvantages to 
     the individual of receiving credit protection services under 
     this section;
       ``(E) includes a notice of which principal credit reporting 
     agency the Secretary has entered into a contract with under 
     subsection (d), and information about requesting services 
     through that agency;
       ``(C) describes actions the individual can or should take 
     to reduce the risk of identity theft; and
       ``(D) includes such other information as the Secretary 
     determines is appropriate.
       ``(2) The notice required under paragraph (1) shall be made 
     as promptly as possible and without unreasonable delay 
     following the discovery of a data breach for which the 
     Secretary determines a reasonable risk exists for the 
     potential misuse of sensitive personal information under 
     section 5725(a)(2) of this title and the implementation of 
     any measures necessary to determine the scope of the breach, 
     prevent any further breach or unauthorized disclosures, and 
     reasonably restore the integrity of the data system.
       ``(3) The Secretary shall ensure that each notification 
     under paragraph (1) includes a form or other means for 
     readily requesting the credit protection services under this 
     section. Such form or other means may include a telephone 
     number, email address, or Internet website address.
       ``(c) Availability of Services Through Other Government 
     Agencies.--If a service required to be provided under this 
     section is available to a covered individual through another 
     department or agency of the Government, the Secretary and the 
     head of that department or agency may enter into an agreement 
     under which the head of that department or agency agrees to 
     provide that service to the covered individual.
       ``(d) Contract With Credit Reporting Agency.--Subject to 
     the availability of appropriations and notwithstanding any 
     other provision of law, the Secretary shall enter into 
     contracts or other agreements as necessary with one or more 
     principal credit reporting agencies in order to ensure, in 
     advance, the provision of credit protection services under 
     this section and fraud alerts and security freezes under 
     section 5725 of this title. Any such contract or agreement 
     may include provisions for the Secretary to pay the expenses 
     of such a credit reporting agency for the provision of such 
     services.
       ``(e) Data Breach Analysis.--The Secretary shall arrange, 
     upon the request of a covered individual and at no cost to 
     the individual, to provide data breach analysis for the 
     individual for a period of not less than one year, beginning 
     on the date of such request.
       ``(f) Provision of Credit Monitoring Services and Identity 
     Theft Insurance.--During the one-year period beginning on the 
     date on which the Secretary notifies a covered individual 
     that the individual's sensitive personal information is 
     involved in a data breach, the Secretary shall arrange, upon 
     the request of the individual and without charge to the 
     individual, for the provision of credit monitoring services 
     to the individual. Credit monitoring services under this 
     subsection shall include each of the following:
       ``(1) One copy of the credit report of the individual every 
     three months.
       ``(2) Fraud resolution services for the individual.
       ``(3) Identity theft insurance in a coverage amount that 
     does not exceed $30,000 in aggregate liability for the 
     insured.

     ``Sec. 5727. Contracts for data processing or maintenance

       ``(a) Contract Requirements.--If the Secretary enters into 
     a contract for the performance of any Department function 
     that requires access to sensitive personal information, the 
     Secretary shall require as a condition of the contract that--
       ``(1) the contractor shall not, directly or through an 
     affiliate of the contractor, disclose such information to any 
     other person unless the disclosure is lawful and is expressly 
     permitted under the contract;
       ``(2) the contractor, or any subcontractor for a 
     subcontract of the contract, shall promptly notify the 
     Secretary of any data breach that occurs with respect to such 
     information.
       ``(b) Liquidated Damages.--Each contract subject to the 
     requirements of subsection (a) shall provide for liquidated 
     damages to be paid by the contractor to the Secretary in the 
     event of a data breach with respect to any sensitive personal 
     information processed or maintained by the contractor or any 
     subcontractor under that contract.
       ``(c) Provision of Credit Protection Services.--Any amount 
     collected by the Secretary under subsection (b) shall be 
     deposited in or credited to the Department account from which 
     the contractor was paid and shall remain available for 
     obligation without fiscal year limitation exclusively for the 
     purpose of providing credit protection services in accordance 
     with section 5726 of this title.

     ``Sec. 5728. Authorization of appropriations

       ``There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this 
     subchapter such sums as may be necessary for each fiscal 
     year.''.
       (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections at the 
     beginning of such chapter is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new items:


                 ``Subchapter III--Information Security

``5721. Definitions.
``5722. Office of the Under Secretary for Information Services.
``5723. Information security management.
``5724. Congressional reporting and notification of data breaches.
``5725. Data breaches.
``5726. Provision of credit protection services.
``5727. Contracts for data processing or maintenance.
``5728. Authorization of appropriations.''.
       (c) Deadline for Regulations.--Not later than 60 days after 
     the date of the enactment

[[Page H7471]]

     of this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall publish 
     regulations to carry out subchapter III of chapter 57 of 
     title 38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a).

     SEC. 5. REPORT ON FEASIBILITY OF USING PERSONAL 
                   IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS FOR IDENTIFICATION.

       Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to 
     Congress a report containing the assessment of the Secretary 
     with respect to the feasibility of using personal 
     identification numbers instead of Social Security numbers for 
     the purpose of identifying individuals whose sensitive 
     personal information (as that term is defined in section 5721 
     of title 38, United States Code, as added by section 4) is 
     processed or maintained by the Secretary.

     SEC. 6. DEADLINE FOR APPOINTMENTS.

       (a) Deadline.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act--
       (1) the President shall nominate an individual to serve as 
     the Under Secretary of Veterans Affairs for Information 
     Services under section 307A of title 38, United States Code, 
     as added by section 3; and
       (2) the Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall appoint an 
     individual to serve as each of the Deputy Under Secretaries 
     of Veterans Affairs for Information Services under section 
     5722 of such title, as added by section 4.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 30 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, and every 30 days thereafter until the 
     appointments described in subsection (a) are made, the 
     Secretary of Veterans Affairs shall submit to Congress a 
     report describing the progress of such appointments.

     SEC. 7. INFORMATION SECURITY EDUCATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM.

       (a) Program Required.--Title 38, United States Code, is 
     amended by inserting after chapter 78 the following new 
     chapter:

    ``CHAPTER 79--INFORMATION SECURITY EDUCATION ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

``Sec.
``7901. Programs; purpose.
``7902. Scholarship program.
``7903. Education debt reduction program.
``7904. Preferences in awarding financial assistance.
``7905. Requirement of honorable discharge for veterans receiving 
              assistance.
``7906. Regulations.
``7907. Termination.

     ``Sec. 7901. Programs; purpose

       ``(a) In General.--To encourage the recruitment and 
     retention of Department personnel who have the information 
     security skills necessary to meet Department requirements, 
     the Secretary shall carry out programs in accordance with 
     this chapter to provide financial support for education in 
     computer science and electrical and computer engineering at 
     accredited institutions of higher education.
       ``(b) Types of Programs.--The programs authorized under 
     this chapter are as follows:
       ``(1) Scholarships for pursuit of doctoral degrees in 
     computer science and electrical and computer engineering at 
     accredited institutions of higher education.
       ``(2) Education debt reduction for Department personnel who 
     hold doctoral degrees in computer science and electrical and 
     computer engineering at accredited institutions of higher 
     education.

     ``Sec. 7902. Scholarship program

       ``(a) Authority.--(1) Subject to the availability of 
     appropriations, the Secretary shall establish a scholarship 
     program under which the Secretary shall, subject to 
     subsection (d), provide financial assistance in accordance 
     with this section to a qualified person--
       ``(A) who is pursuing a doctoral degree in computer science 
     or electrical or computer engineering at an accredited 
     institution of higher education; and
       ``(B) who enters into an agreement with the Secretary as 
     described in subsection (b).
       ``(2)(A) Except as provided under subparagraph (B), the 
     Secretary may provide financial assistance under this section 
     to an individual for up to five years.
       ``(B) The Secretary may waive the limitation under 
     subparagraph (A) if the Secretary determines that such a 
     waiver is appropriate.
       ``(3)(A) The Secretary may award up to five scholarships 
     for any academic year to individuals who did not receive 
     assistance under this section for the preceding academic 
     year.
       ``(B) Not more than one scholarship awarded under 
     subparagraph (A) may be awarded to an individual who is an 
     employee of the Department when the scholarship is awarded.
       ``(b) Service Agreement for Scholarship Recipients.--(1) To 
     receive financial assistance under this section an individual 
     shall enter into an agreement to accept and continue 
     employment in the Department for the period of obligated 
     service determined under paragraph (2).
       ``(2) For the purposes of this subsection, the period of 
     obligated service for a recipient of financial assistance 
     under this section shall be the period determined by the 
     Secretary as being appropriate to obtain adequate service in 
     exchange for the financial assistance and otherwise to 
     achieve the goals set forth in section 7901(a) of this title. 
     In no event may the period of service required of a recipient 
     be less than the period equal to two times the total period 
     of pursuit of a degree for which the Secretary agrees to 
     provide the recipient with financial assistance under this 
     section. The period of obligated service is in addition to 
     any other period for which the recipient is obligated to 
     serve on active duty or in the civil service, as the case may 
     be.
       ``(3) An agreement entered into under this section by a 
     person pursuing an doctoral degree shall include terms that 
     provide the following:
       ``(A) That the period of obligated service begins on a date 
     after the award of the degree that is determined under the 
     regulations prescribed under section 7906 of this title.
       ``(B) That the individual will maintain satisfactory 
     academic progress, as determined in accordance with those 
     regulations, and that failure to maintain such progress 
     constitutes grounds for termination of the financial 
     assistance for the individual under this section.
       ``(C) Any other terms and conditions that the Secretary 
     determines appropriate for carrying out this section.
       ``(c) Amount of Assistance.--(1) The amount of the 
     financial assistance provided for an individual under this 
     section shall be the amount determined by the Secretary as 
     being necessary to pay--
       ``(A) the tuition and fees of the individual; and
       ``(B) $1500 to the individual each month (including a month 
     between academic semesters or terms leading to the degree for 
     which such assistance is provided or during which the 
     individual is not enrolled in a course of education but is 
     pursuing independent research leading to such degree) for 
     books, laboratory expenses, and expenses of room and board.
       ``(2) In no case may the amount of assistance provided for 
     an individual under this section for an academic year exceed 
     $50,000.
       ``(3) In no case may the total amount of assistance 
     provided for an individual under this section exceed 
     $200,000.
       ``(4) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, financial 
     assistance paid an individual under this section shall not be 
     considered as income or resources in determining eligibility 
     for, or the amount of benefits under, any Federal or 
     federally assisted program.
       ``(d) Repayment for Period of Unserved Obligated Service.--
     (1) An individual who receives financial assistance under 
     this section shall repay to the Secretary an amount equal to 
     the unearned portion of the financial assistance if the 
     individual fails to satisfy the requirements of the service 
     agreement entered into under subsection (b), except in 
     certain circumstances authorized by the Secretary.
       ``(2) The Secretary may establish, by regulations, 
     procedures for determining the amount of the repayment 
     required under this subsection and the circumstances under 
     which an exception to the required repayment may be granted.
       ``(3) An obligation to repay the Secretary under this 
     subsection is, for all purposes, a debt owed the United 
     States. A discharge in bankruptcy under title 11 does not 
     discharge a person from such debt if the discharge order is 
     entered less than five years after the date of the 
     termination of the agreement or contract on which the debt is 
     based.
       ``(e) Waiver or Suspension of Compliance.--The Secretary 
     shall prescribe regulations providing for the waiver or 
     suspension of any obligation of a individual for service or 
     payment under this section (or an agreement under this 
     section) whenever noncompliance by the individual is due to 
     circumstances beyond the control of the individual or 
     whenever the Secretary determines that the waiver or 
     suspension of compliance is in the best interest of the 
     United States.
       ``(f) Internships.--(1) The Secretary may offer a 
     compensated internship to an individual for whom financial 
     assistance is provided under this section during a period 
     between academic semesters or terms leading to the degree for 
     which such assistance is provided. Compensation provided for 
     such an internship shall be in addition to the financial 
     assistance provided under this section.
       ``(2) An internship under this subsection shall not be 
     counted toward satisfying a period of obligated service under 
     this section.
       ``(g) Ineligibility of Individuals Receiving Montgomery GI 
     Bill Education Assistance Payments.--An individual who 
     receives a payment of educational assistance under chapter 
     30, 31, 32, 34, or 35 of this title or chapter 1606 or 1607 
     of title 10 for a month in which the individual is enrolled 
     in a course of education leading to a doctoral degree in 
     information security is not eligible to receive financial 
     assistance under this section for that month.

     ``Sec. 7903. Education debt reduction program

       ``(a) Authority.--(1) Subject to the availability of 
     appropriations, the Secretary shall establish an education 
     debt reduction program under which the Secretary shall make 
     education debt reduction payments under this section to 
     qualified individuals eligible under subsection (b) for the 
     purpose of reimbursing such individuals for payments by such 
     individuals of principal and interest on loans described in 
     paragraph (2) of that subsection.
       ``(2)(A) For each fiscal year, the Secretary may accept up 
     to five individuals into the program established under 
     paragraph (1)who did not receive such a payment during the 
     preceding fiscal year.
       ``(B) Not more than one individual accepted into the 
     program for a fiscal year under subsection (A) shall be a 
     Department employee as of the date on which the individual is 
     accepted into the program.

[[Page H7472]]

       ``(b) Eligibility.--An individual is eligible to 
     participate in the program under this section if the 
     individual--
       ``(1) has completed a doctoral degree a doctoral degree in 
     computer science or electrical or computer engineering at an 
     accredited institution of higher education during the five-
     year period preceding the date on which the individual is 
     hired;
       ``(2) is an employee of the Department who serves in a 
     position related to information security (as determined by 
     the Secretary); and
       ``(3) owes any amount of principal or interest under a 
     loan, the proceeds of which were used by or on behalf of that 
     individual to pay costs relating to a doctoral degree in 
     computer science or electrical or computer engineering at an 
     accredited institution of higher education.
       ``(c) Amount of Assistance.--(1) Subject to paragraph (2), 
     the amount of education debt reduction payments made to an 
     individual under this section may not exceed $82,500 over a 
     total of five years, of which not more than $16,500 of such 
     payments may be made in each year.
       ``(2) The total amount payable to an individual under this 
     section for any year may not exceed the amount of the 
     principal and interest on loans referred to in subsection 
     (b)(3) that is paid by the individual during such year.
       ``(d) Payments.--(1) The Secretary shall make education 
     debt reduction payments under this section on an annual 
     basis.
       ``(2) The Secretary shall make such a payment--
       ``(A) on the last day of the one-year period beginning on 
     the date on which the individual is accepted into the program 
     established under subsection (a); or
       ``(B) in the case of an individual who received a payment 
     under this section for the preceding fiscal year, on the last 
     day of the one-year period beginning on the date on which the 
     individual last received such a payment.
       ``(3) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, education 
     debt reduction payments under this section shall not be 
     considered as income or resources in determining eligibility 
     for, or the amount of benefits under, any Federal or 
     federally assisted program.
       ``(e) Performance Requirement.--The Secretary may make 
     education debt reduction payments to an individual under this 
     section for a year only if the Secretary determines that the 
     individual maintained an acceptable level of performance in 
     the position or positions served by the individual during the 
     year.
       ``(f) Notification of Terms of Provision of Payments.--The 
     Secretary shall provide to an individual who receives a 
     payment under this section notice in writing of the terms and 
     conditions that apply to such a payment.
       ``(g) Covered Costs.--For purposes of subsection (b)(3), 
     costs relating to a course of education or training include--
       ``(1) ) tuition expenses; and
       ``(2) all other reasonable educational expenses, including 
     fees, books, and laboratory expenses;

     ``Sec. 7904. Preferences in awarding financial assistance

       ``In awarding financial assistance under this chapter, the 
     Secretary shall give a preference to qualified individuals 
     who are otherwise eligible to receive the financial 
     assistance in the following order of priority:
       ``(1) Veterans with service-connected disabilities.
       ``(2) Veterans.
       ``(3) Persons described in section 4215(a)(B) of this 
     title.
       ``(4) Individuals who received or are pursuing degrees at 
     institutions designated by the National Security Agency as 
     Centers of Academic Excellence in Information Assurance 
     Education.
       ``(5) Citizens of the United States.

     ``Sec. 7905. Requirement of honorable discharge for veterans 
       receiving assistance

       ``No veteran shall receive financial assistance under this 
     chapter unless the veteran was discharged from the Armed 
     Forces under honorable conditions.

     ``Sec. 7906. Regulations

       ``The Secretary shall prescribe regulations for the 
     administration of this chapter.

     ``Sec. 7907. Termination

       ``The authority of the Secretary to make a payment under 
     this chapter shall terminate on July 31, 2017.''.
       (b) GAO Report.--Not later than three years after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General shall 
     submit to Congress a report on the scholarship and education 
     debt reduction programs under chapter 79 of title 38, United 
     States Code, as added by subsection (a).
       (c) Applicability of Scholarships.--Section 7902 of title 
     38, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall 
     apply with respect to financial assistance provided for an 
     academic semester or term that begins on or after August 1, 
     2007.
       (d) Clerical Amendment.--The tables of chapters at the 
     beginning of such title, and at the beginning of part V of 
     such title, are amended by inserting after the item relating 
     to chapter 78 the following new item:

``79. Information Security Education Assistance Program.........7901''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Indiana (Mr. Buyer) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Filner) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Indiana.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the Committee on Veterans' 
Affairs, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5835, and I yield myself such 
time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, having moved H.R. 5835, as amended, the Veterans 
Identity Credit Security Act of 2006, I, along with Ranking Member Lane 
Evans and Acting Ranking Member Bob Filner, Chairman Davis, and Ranking 
Member Waxman of the Committee on Government Reform, Chairman Walsh and 
Ranking Member Edwards on the Appropriations Subcommittee on Military 
Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs, and other members of this body 
introduced this legislation on July 19, 2006.
  Since 2000, the Veterans' Affairs Committee and our subcommittees 
have held 16 hearings on information technology at the Department of 
Veterans Affairs, and as a subset, information security issues. These 
hearings have covered a variety of IT issues, including the budget, 
organization, authorities, actions VA has taken regarding its IT 
programs, and of course information security.
  Last year, the House passed H.R. 4061 to address problems in IT at 
the VA. The Senate and the administration can best be described as 
having stiff-armed us in our proposals to centralize the IT 
architecture at the VA, opting for more of what they call now a 
federated model, or what I will also refer to as an incremental 
approach. That is how they wanted to proceed. Then bad things happened.
  This summer, we held 8 hearings in response to the May 3 theft of a 
loaned lap-top belonging to the VA that held the sensitive personal 
data of 26.5 million veterans and 2.2 million Guard and Reserve 
component servicemembers and families. We heard from 23 witnesses 
during our hearings. These witnesses included the VA's Secretary, the 
Inspector General, the General Counsel, as well as others from 
academia, the Government Accountability Office, and experts in data 
security, information technology management, and identity theft.
  Mr. Speaker, I applaud Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson 
for his stated commitment to making the VA the gold standard in 
information security. H.R. 5835, as amended, will provide the Secretary 
with some of the tools needed to make the VA that gold standard and set 
an example for the Federal Government.
  H.R. 5835, as amended, provides the chief information officer the 
authority to enforce information security in the Department. It also 
requires a monthly briefing to the Secretary on VA's compliance with 
the Information Security Management Act of 2002, which we refer to as 
FISMA.
  Mr. Speaker, Chairman Tom Davis of the Committee on Government Reform 
and I have worked together cooperatively, and our staffs, on a 
provision in the bill, and the Committee on Government Reform has 
waived consideration of H.R. 5835. Included in this bill is a part of 
Chairman Davis' work product, and I want to thank him for his 
cooperation, along with Mr. Waxman.
  I would, in addition, also like to thank Chairman Mike Oxley of the 
Committee on Financial Services, who has waived consideration on this 
bill, and the committee will continue to work with these two committees 
on this legislation as we move forward with the Senate.
  Mr. Speaker, the letters that I have here in my hand between the two 
committees and the Veterans' Affairs Committee regarding H.R. 5835, in 
which they have waived jurisdiction, are submitted as follows for the 
Congressional Record.
                                         House of Representatives,


                               Committee on Veterans' Affairs,

                               Washington, DC, September 12, 2006.
     Hon. Tom Davis,
     Chairman, House Committee on Government Reform, Washington, 
         DC.
       Dear Chairman Davis: I am writing regarding your 
     committee's jurisdictional interest in H.R. 5835, the 
     Veterans Identity and Credit Security Act of 2006, and would 
     appreciate your cooperation in waiving consideration of the 
     bill by the Committee on Government Reform in order to allow 
     expedited consideration of the legislation next week under 
     suspension of the rules.

[[Page H7473]]

       I acknowledge your committee's jurisdictional interest in 
     section 2 of H.R. 5835, as ordered reported by the Committee 
     on Veterans' Affairs. Any decision by the Committee on 
     Government Reform to forego further action on the bill will 
     not prejudice the Committee on Government Reform with respect 
     to its jurisdictional prerogatives on this or similar 
     legislation. I will support your request for an appropriate 
     number of conferees should there be a House-Senate conference 
     on this or similar legislation.
       Finally, I will include a copy of this letter and your 
     response in the Congressional Record when the legislation is 
     considered by the House.
       Thank you for your assistance.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Steve Buyer,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                    Congress of the United States,


                                     House of Representatives,

                               Washington, DC, September 12, 2006.
     Hon. Steve Buyer,
     Chairman, House Committee on Veterans Affairs, Washington, 
         DC.
       Dear Steve:, On July 20, 2006, the House Veterans' Affairs 
     Committee reported H.R. 5835, the ``Veterans Identity and 
     Credit Security Act of 2006.'' As you know, the bill includes 
     provisions within the jurisdiction of the Committee on 
     Government Reform including Section 2 of the bill regarding 
     federal agency data breach notification amendments under the 
     Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA).
       In the interest of moving this important legislation 
     forward, I agreed to waive sequential consideration of this 
     bill by the Committee on Government Reform. However, I do so 
     only with the understanding that this procedural route would 
     not be construed to prejudice the Committee on Government 
     Reform's jurisdictional interest and prerogatives on this 
     bill or any other similar legislation. I understand this will 
     not be considered as precedent for consideration of matters 
     of jurisdictional interest to my Committee in the future.
       I respectfully request your support for the appointment of 
     outside conferees from the Committee on Government Reform 
     should this bill or a similar bill be considered in a 
     conference with the Senate. Finally, I request that you 
     include this letter and your response in the Congressional 
     Record during consideration of the legislation on the House 
     floor.
       Thank you for your attention to these matters.
           Sincerely,
     Tom Davis.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                              Committee on Financial Services,

                               Washington, DC, September 26, 2006.
     Hon. Steve Buyer,
     Committee on Veterans Affairs,
     House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman, I am writing to confirm our mutual 
     understanding with respect to the consideration of H.R. 5835, 
     the Veterans Identity and Credit Security Act of 2006. This 
     bill was introduced on July 19, 2006, and referred to the 
     Committees on Veterans Affairs and Government Reform. I 
     understand that committee action has already taken place on 
     the bill and that floor consideration is likely in the near 
     future.
       Portions of section 4 of the bill as reported involve 
     remedies for breaches in data security. Some of these 
     remedies, such as a credit security freeze, fall within the 
     jurisdiction of this Committee and could have caused the 
     referral of this bill to the Committee on Financial Services. 
     However, given the importance and timeliness of this bill, 
     and your' willingness to work with us regarding these issues 
     as the legislative process continues, proceedings on this 
     bill in this Committee will not be necessary. However, I do 
     so only with the understanding that this procedural route 
     should not be construed to prejudice the jurisdictional 
     interest of the Committee on Financial Services on these 
     provisions or any other similar legislation and will not be 
     considered as precedent for consideration of matters of 
     jurisdictional interest to my committee in the future. 
     Furthermore, should these or similar provisions be considered 
     in a conference with the Senate, I would expect members of 
     the Committee on Financial Services be appointed to the 
     conference committee on these provisions.
       Finally, I would ask that you include a copy of our 
     exchange of letters in the Congressional Record during the 
     consideration of this bill. If you have any questions 
     regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to call me. I 
     thank you for your consideration.
           Yours truly,
                                                 Michael G. Oxley,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                               Committee on Veterans' Affairs,

                               Washington, DC, September 26, 2006.
     Hon. Michael G. Oxley,
     Chairman, House Committee on Financial Services, Washington, 
         DC.
       Dear Chairman Oxley, Thank you for your recent letter 
     regarding your committee's jurisdictional interest in H.R. 
     5835, the Veterans Identity and Credit Security Act of 2006. 
     I appreciate all of your efforts to expedite consideration of 
     this important legislation.
       I acknowledge your committee's jurisdictional interest in 
     portions of section 4 of the bill as ordered reported by the 
     Committee on Veterans' Affairs, which involve remedies for 
     breaches in data security. I further acknowledge that some of 
     these remedies, such as a credit security freeze, fall within 
     the jurisdiction of your committee, and could have been 
     referred to the Committee on Financial Services. I appreciate 
     your cooperation in allowing speedy consideration of the 
     legislation. We will continue to work with your Committee 
     regarding these issues as the legislative process continues.
       I agree that your decision to forego further action on the 
     bill will not prejudice the Committee on Financial Services 
     with respect to its jurisdictional prerogatives on this or 
     similar legislation. I will support your request for an 
     appropriate number of conferees should there be a House-
     Senate conference on this or similar legislation.
       Finally, I will include a copy of your letter and this 
     response in the Congressional Record when the legislation is 
     considered by the House. Thank you for your assistance.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Steve Buyer,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 5835, as amended, requires notification to Congress 
and individuals in the event of a data breach. The bill would require 
the VA to conduct a data breach analysis, and if the Secretary deems 
necessary, to provide credit protection at the request of affected 
individuals. This protection may include a credit freeze, identity 
theft insurance and/or credit monitoring.
  The bill also requires a report on the feasibility of using an 
independent number for identification in lieu of the Social Security 
Number.
  This bill also includes a scholarship and loan repayment program to 
provide the Secretary with a recruitment and retention tool to attract 
qualified people in the area of information technology and information 
security to work at the VA.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  As Chairman Buyer stated, a near catastrophe occurred in early May of 
this year when a lap-top containing 26 million names and data, Social 
Security data and some medical data, was stolen from a VA employee's 
home. Now, this theft of data was not just human error, it was not just 
an accident, it was not just bad luck. As Mr. Buyer had been pointing 
out for many years, this was a systemic problem, a problem of 
incredibly bad management of cyberinformation at the VA, a lack of 
cybersecurity, a lack of centralization of responsibility for 
cybersecurity, and it could have resulted in identity theft for 
millions of our Nation's veterans.
  We were lucky. Apparently, the lap-top was recovered before the names 
were stolen. Although I don't have 100 percent confidence in that 
judgment, that is what we think right now. But the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs, under the leadership of Chairman Buyer, saw this as 
a wake-up call, a time to change failed policies, a time to change 
directions. Under the leadership of Chairman Buyer, the Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs took this wake-up call as an opportunity to change 
the way things were going, to change a backward culture, and to bring 
the VA into the 21st century.
  Now, Mr. Buyer had been saying such things about the need for 
cybersecurity and the need for centralization for many years. I have to 
say, Mr. Buyer, that I admire your persistence and your lack of 
discouragement when people did not pay attention. We should have. But 
we are now, and we thank you for doing all that work at a time when 
people did not pay much attention.
  I think you have, you have set up a model here in the bill that other 
Departments in the government should be looking at. You have set up a 
model where we can in fact say to the people who our government is 
serving, we are protecting your identity, we are protecting your data, 
we are making sure that if there is any breach of that, we will take 
these steps to make sure you don't have any losses, either material or 
psychological. And that was a real problem in the VA which you 
recognized.
  When this data was stolen, there was incredible fear throughout the 
country, because the VA did not have the steps ready to take to assure 
the veterans that they would not suffer any material or other loss. So, 
Mr. Buyer, I thank you for working not only in a bipartisan manner, but 
bicameral and bicommittee. You brought everybody into the process.

[[Page H7474]]

  The committee held hours and hours of hearings. We checked out all 
the expertise in the country. Our chairman, Mr. Buyer, brought 
expertise from all around the Nation. I think we took the role of 
oversight that is appropriate for every committee in this Congress, 
that is, we had a problem with the executive branch, we went to work to 
make sure that we had the knowledge, we had the information, we had the 
attention of the executive branch; and this bill is a result of that 
effort.
  I think Mr. Buyer described what was in the bill. I just want to 
point out that it establishes data breach notification requirements, it 
makes substantive changes to how the VA addresses information 
technology, and it clarifies how the VA is to comply with the Federal 
Information Security Management Act of 2002.

                              {time}  2200

  Most importantly, it provides veterans with the tools that they can 
use immediately to protect themselves in the case of future data 
breaches. If a veteran's data is compromised, they can immediately 
request that a fraud alert be placed on their credit files for a period 
of 1 year, as well as a credit security freeze.
  It also mandates that the VA undertake an independent analysis of any 
data breach, and if it is determined that a reasonable risk of misuse 
exists, then the VA will provide a range of remediation services, 
including making available data breach analysis, credit reports, credit 
monitoring services, and identity theft insurance.
  Finally, and again, Mr. Buyer, your creativity here was very 
important, knowing that an agency like the VA, which does not have the 
background or information or expertise, you said let's create a 
scholarship fund so we can train people in this area and that the VA 
can fund and then draw on that new expertise to improve its services in 
the cybersecurity area.
  So, again, I think this is a model for other agencies to look at, the 
way you looked at a problem and not only tried to solve it, but moved 
us forward with a real creative program of scholarship and loan 
forgiveness that I think will help students in our Nation and, of 
course, help our Federal Government.
  The VA Secretary, Mr. Nicholson, has stated that the goal now is to 
make the VA the gold standard in data security. I hope he takes 
advantage of this bill to allow him to reach that goal.
  I thank Chairman Buyer for the way he undertook the oversight, the 
bipartisan way we approached this bill, the drawing on all the Members 
for their ideas and their expertise, and I urge us all to support this 
bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I will cherish the sincerity of the compliment from Mr. 
Filner. I do not question his commitment nor his motive to the service 
of veterans in this country. I think members of the committee over the 
last 14 years have recognized that Mr. Filner and I have had some real 
battles, but at the same time, when it comes to this particular issue 
on IT, there is no difference. We walk together in lockstep.
  It is not just Mr. Filner and I. It is the entire committee over the 
years we have taken this on, even when I chaired the oversight 
investigations. So I appreciate the commitment on both sides on 
improving the IT infrastructure.
  I also want to compliment the Government Reform Committee, because 
they have taken this issue on over the years.
  Mr Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Tom 
Davis), chairman of the Government Reform Committee, and thank him for 
his cooperation in working with our committee. He introduced his own 
bill on notification provisions. He worked with us and waived 
jurisdiction. We incorporated that in our bill.
  Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia. Chairman Buyer, I thank you and Mr. Filner 
for your leadership on this.
  Secure information is the lifeblood of effective government policy 
and management, yet Federal agencies continue to hemorrhage vital data. 
Recent losses of personal information compel us to ask, what is being 
done to protect the sensitive digital identities of millions of 
Americans, and how can we limit the damage when personal data goes 
astray?
  As we all now know, a Department of Veterans Affairs employee 
reported the theft of computer equipment from his home, equipment that 
stored more than 26 million records containing personal information. VA 
leadership delayed acting on the report for almost 2 weeks while 
millions were at risk of serious harm from identity theft and the 
agency struggled to determine the exact extent of the breach.
  But this is only one in a long string of personal information 
breaches in the public and private sectors, including financial 
institutions, data brokerage companies, and academic institutions. Just 
last week, we learned the Census Bureau cannot account for 1,100 
laptops issued to employees. These breaches illustrate how far we have 
to go to reach the goal of strong, uniform government-wide information 
security policies and procedures.
  On our committee, we focused on government-wide information 
management security for a long time. The Privacy Act and the E-
Government Act of 2002 outline the parameters for the protection of 
personal information. These recent incidents highlight the importance 
of establishing and following security standards for safeguarding 
personal information. They also highlight the need for the proactive 
security breach notification requirements for organizations, including 
Federal agencies, that deal with sensitive personal information.
  Congress has been working on requirements for the private sector, but 
Federal agencies present unique requirements and challenges, and these 
incidents demonstrate that we need to strengthen laws and rules 
protecting personal information held by Federal agencies.
  Given the VA incident, and in order to get a more complete picture of 
the problems before pursuing legislation, our Committee sent a request 
to every Cabinet agency seeking information about data breaches.
  The results are in, and they are troubling. We have learned there has 
been a wide range of incidents involving data loss or theft, privacy 
breaches and security incidents. In almost all of these cases, Congress 
and the public would not have learned of such events unless we had 
requested the information. This history of withholding incidents has to 
stop.
  Our committee bill, which has been incorporated as a manager's 
amendment in section 2, requires that timely notice be provided to 
individuals whose sensitive personal information could be compromised 
by a breach of data security at a Federal agency.
  Despite the volume of sensitive information held by agencies, until 
now there has been no requirement that people be notified if their 
information is compromised. Under this legislation, the administration 
must establish practices, procedures, and standards for the agencies to 
follow if sensitive personal information is lost or stolen and there is 
reasonable risk of harm to an individual; and we provide a clear 
definition of the type of sensitive information we are trying to 
protect. We also give the agency CIOs the authority when appropriate 
and authorized to ensure that agency personnel comply with the 
information security laws that are already on the books.
  Finally, we ensure that costly equipment containing potentially 
sensitive information is accounted for and secure. Half of the lost 
Census Bureau computers simply weren't returned by departing or 
terminated employees. The agency did not track computer equipment, nor 
were employees held accountable for failing to return it. This is 
taxpayer-funded equipment containing sensitive information, and we have 
to know who has it at all times.
  Each year our committee releases information security score cards. 
This year the VA earned an F, the second consecutive year and fourth 
time in the past 5 years the Department received a failing grade, and 
the government overall got a D-plus.
  Our Federal Government has sensitive personal information on every 
citizen, health records, tax returns, military records. If our 
government can't secure this information, who can? We need to ensure 
the public knows when its sensitive personal information has been lost 
or compromised in some way.

[[Page H7475]]

  I again want to commend my colleagues, Chairman Buyer, Ms. Pryce, Mr. 
Sweeney, Mr. Filner, all who recognize the importance of securing 
personal information held by agencies. I appreciate their work in 
supporting this issue. The provisions we have included in this bill are 
a great first step. If new policies and procedures are not forthcoming 
quickly or if they fail to have the teeth to get the job done, we will 
revisit the matter.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, again, to have the chairman of another committee testify 
to working together is really I think a good model. So thank you again, 
Mr. Chairman.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman 
from South Dakota (Ms. Herseth), the ranking member of our Economic 
Opportunities Subcommittee of the VA committee, a lady who has left 
much of her fingerprints on this bill. We thank you for your expertise, 
your real ability to stick to the issues here.
  Ms. HERSETH. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Mr. Filner for yielding. I 
would like to congratulate both Chairman Buyer and Ranking Member 
Filner for their hard work in bringing this urgently needed bill to the 
House floor. I appreciated working with them both in the many oversight 
hearings to review the VA's information technology management system.
  The Veterans Identity and Credit Security Act is the result of 
judicious bipartisan work by members and staff of the House Veterans' 
Affairs Committee, working closely with those on the Government Reform 
Committee; and it is an important step towards safeguarding the 
personal information of our Nation's veterans.
  Now, I share the frustration of my colleagues regarding the repeated 
failures of the VA's information technology management and the theft in 
May of the personal data of as many as 26.5 million veterans and 
servicemembers from a VA employee's home.
  While we are all relieved the laptop containing this data has been 
recovered and authorities have found no evidence that the data has been 
accessed, the data breach raised serious concerns about the VA's 
information security. It is clear that we dodged a bullet.
  Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of the security breach was the 
previous recommendations and warnings by the General Accounting Office 
and the VA's Inspector General were not given adequate consideration. 
The Department's inexcusable and unacceptable inaction was 
disrespectful to the brave men and women who serve the country.
  As my colleagues have outlined, the Veterans Identity and Credit 
Security Act would require the VA to report to Congress after any data 
theft and to provide credit monitoring and fraud remediation services 
to affected individuals. The bill creates an Under Secretary for 
Information Services, sets conditions of contracting with the VA for 
work dealing with sensitive personal information, and establishes a 
scholarship program for students pursuing doctorates in information 
technology, security or computer engineering.
  I believe these important changes to the VA's information technology 
management structure are essential to better protecting the personal 
information of our Nation's veterans and their families. While there is 
no perfect solution, given the magnitude of this problem, not only for 
the VA but so many other Federal agencies, as the gentleman from 
Virginia just described, this legislation is an important step in the 
right direction.
  I encourage my colleagues to support it.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, the gentleman from South Carolina has 
requested 2 minutes of me, and I have great fear that the slowest 
talking man from the First District of South Carolina may not make the 
mark. But let's see how he does.
  I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Brown), 
the chairman of the Health Subcommittee of the Committee on Veterans' 
Affairs.
  Mr. BROWN of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the 
chairman, for yielding me this time; and I hope I can make it in 2 
minutes.
  This is an important issue, one which the committee has addressed not 
only by this legislation, but also through hearings and meetings of 
members of the committees, officials from the VA, and representatives 
of our Nation's veterans organizations.
  As chairman of the Committee's Subcommittee on Health, I led the 
committee's effort to understand the health-related impact of the 
recent loss of computers by the Veterans Administration. While this 
summer's computer loss regrettably saw the theft of VA data, this 
incident did not see the security of veterans health records 
compromised.
  Indeed, recent events, such as the VA's response to Katrina, have 
shown the value of electronic medical records. During the aftermath of 
that disaster, VA doctors and nurses were able to treat without 
interruption patients transferred from VA facilities in New Orleans 
because of the VA's reliance on electronic medical records. All patient 
records were backed up, secured, transported and were back online and 
available almost immediately.
  That said, we should not let the benefits of portable electronic 
records of any kind conflict with the need to keep them secure. Medical 
records contain a great deal of confidential personal information; and 
if those records get in the hands of the wrong people, it would pose a 
real problem and even in some cases, perhaps a national security risk.
  For that reason, Congress needs to remain vigilant in order to ensure 
against the loss of all information by the VA. The VA itself needs to 
be proactive in maintaining the integrity of the health records. 
Lastly, our soldiers and their families need to continue to feel secure 
with VA having guardianship over those records.
  In closing, I thank the chairman and the ranking member for their 
leadership on this issue and for introducing this important 
legislation. I urge all Members to support H.R. 5835.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I am so proud of my friend from South 
Carolina for delivering those remarks within the limits of time.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. 
Boozman).
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. Chairman, I want to congratulate you for your 
leadership and really appreciate all the hard work. This has been a 
difficult thing to get to the floor. Also I want to thank Mr. Filner 
and Ms. Herseth and again the staffs on both sides that have worked so 
very, very hard to, like I say, get this thing done.
  I rise in strong support of H.R. 5835, and I would like to highlight 
section 7 of the bill. This section would create a scholarship and debt 
reduction program at VA to encourage recruitment of new personnel with 
Ph.D.s in information security, computer engineering or electrical 
engineering from an accredited institution of higher learning. This is 
so we can attract and secure the best talent possible at the VA's IT 
department.
  This section would allow the Secretary to award scholarships or 
repayment of education debts to future VA employees. The scholarships 
would not exceed $200,000, or $50,000 per year, per person. Debt 
reduction payments would not exceed $82,500 over a total of 5 years of 
participation, or $16,500 per year in the program. The recipients would 
also be required to agree to a period of obligated service at the 
Department of not less than 2 years for every 1 year of tuition paid.
  This is a great way to attract talented people at the VA. I urge my 
colleagues to support H.R. 5835.

                              {time}  2215

  Mr. BUYER. I appreciate the chairman's contribution to the bill. He 
chairs the Economic Opportunity Subcommittee on Veterans Affairs.
  At this time, I yield 2 minutes to Mr. Murphy of Pennsylvania, who 
also worked with us on the bill. He had his own bill, H.R. 6109, 
dealing with encryption; and we worked with the gentleman. We have 
three legacy platforms which are basically older operating systems. We 
were not able to achieve everything the gentleman has been seeking, but 
I want to appreciate the gentleman's sincerity and his effort and want 
to continue to work with the gentleman.
  Mr. MURPHY. Mr. Speaker, I am in support of H.R. 5835 and commend the 
distinguished chairman for his hard work for veterans.

[[Page H7476]]

  We all know veterans deserve the best from the Federal Government 
following their service. Unfortunately, on two separate occasions there 
were some major breaches which raised the risk of identity theft and 
fraud. In May, the VA announced a laptop computer containing personal 
information of 26 million veterans and spouses had been stolen; and, in 
August, a desktop with personal and health information of 38,000 
veterans was stolen from a subcontractor performing insurance 
collections for VA medical centers in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia.
  These losses are totally unacceptable. Identity theft touches the 
lives of more than 10 million Americans per year, and our veterans 
deserve better protection of their records. The bill before us would 
provide better protections, and these are important steps, and we 
should support the underlying bill.
  In addition to H.R. 5835, I introduced last week H.R. 6109, the Stop 
Endangering the Records of Veterans, or the SERV Act. This bill would 
require the VA to physically secure and encrypt all veterans' personal 
records held by the Department. The VA announced in August that it will 
add enhanced encryption systems to all the Department's laptop and 
desktop computers. Today may not be the day for Congress to pass the 
requirements of H.R. 6109, since a great deal of technical work is 
currently taking place to define how these encryptions should take 
place with the system, but I look forward to joining Chairman Buyer and 
my colleagues in energetic oversight of the VA's implementation of 
encryption standards on this data.
  Mr. Speaker, America's veterans have given blood, sweat, and tears 
for our Nation from the world wars to the current operations in Iraq 
and Afghanistan. They have earned peace of mind when it comes to their 
critical personal information. Today, the House is helping to ensure 
the mistakes of this year will not happen again.
  Again, I commend the leadership of Chairman Buyer and all the members 
of the Veterans Committee, and I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 
5835.
  Mr. BUYER. At this time, I would like to yield 1 minute to the 
gentleman from San Diego, California (Mr. Bilbray), who helped us work 
on the provisions of the bill.
  Mr. BILBRAY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bill and would 
like to thank the chairman of the committee for this legislation, and I 
would like to thank the ranking member, my old friend, Mr. Filner from 
San Diego.
  Let me just say, sincerely, I think this is what America wants, this 
is what our veterans need. I think it is a great bipartisan cooperative 
effort.
  The fact is that there are challenges under today's new technology 
opportunities we have that can be used or abused, and hopefully this 
bill will be able to tighten up the procedures to make sure we reflect 
those new realities.
  Mr. Speaker, I in no little way want to praise both sides of the 
aisle for doing what is right for our veterans. Hopefully, we have been 
able to avoid a major problem in the past and with this legislation 
will make sure that no major problem occurs.
  The identity and the personal records of our veterans are cherished 
possessions that we hold in the Federal Government, and we want to 
maintain those for the veterans and not allow it to leak out.
  I thank very much both the ranking member but, most importantly, the 
chairman of the full committee.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker, again, I think this is an incredibly good 
bill. It shows the way we ought to work as a Congress and as a 
committee. Again, I thank one more time Mr. Buyer for his leadership 
and urge passage of the bill.
  I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank you for allotting the time 
for us to bring this bill to the floor. This is bipartisan legislation. 
It reflects proposals introduced in this Chamber over the past months. 
I thank the Members and staff who contributed to this legislation. I am 
especially grateful for the support of Lane Evans and Bob Filner in 
moving this bill through the committee and to the floor.
  I want to thank Chairman Davis and Ranking Member Waxman of the 
Government Reform Committee in our work on the FISMA component of the 
bill. I also would like to thank Chairman Oxley and Ranking Member 
Frank of the Financial Services Committee for their assistance in 
moving this bill to the floor, as well as the Appropriations 
Subcommittee on Military Quality of Life and Veterans Affairs Chairman 
Walsh and Ranking Member Edwards, and to recognize again that 
information security is crucial to our veterans and have provided 
valuable support for this legislation.
  I also commend Mr. Bilirakis and Mr. Strickland, the chairman and 
ranking member of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, for 
their oversight of IT at the VA. I am indebted to the chairmen and 
ranking members of the committee's Subcommittees on Health, Disability 
Assistance and Memorial Affairs and Economic Opportunity for their help 
in reviewing the VA's data security and coming up with this 
legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, several Members introduced legislation after the May 3 
loss, including Representatives Hooley, Salazar, and Bilbray from the 
Committee on Veterans Affairs. Representatives Blackburn, Andrews, 
Drake, Capito, and Granger also introduced legislation, and all of this 
legislation was taken into account to create this product that has come 
to the floor. So this is a pretty good work product, to also include 
that of the gentleman from Pennsylvania.
  I also want to thank the Subcommittee on Oversight and 
Investigations; the staff director, Art Wu; and minority staff 
director, Lynn Sistek, for their work on this legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support our veterans by passing 
H.R. 5835, the Veterans Identity and Credit Security Act of 2006. This 
legislation will safeguard the sensitive personal information of 
veterans, and help lay the groundwork for a national solution
  Ms. WATERS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5835, the Veterans 
Identity and Credit Security Act.
  Earlier this year, millions of veterans saw their economic security 
threatened when several VA computers were stolen from a Veterans 
Administration (VA) employee's home. While it appears that no veteran 
was a victim of ID theft, the VA was ill-prepared to deal with the lost 
of this highly personal and confidential information.
  While I am pleased to support this bill, which will help safeguard 
veterans' personal information in the future, I urge this Congress to 
immediately pass legislation that will protect all Americans from ID 
theft, not just our veterans. The threat of ID theft is too important 
to ignore any longer.
  Data security is an issue that we have labored over for months, and 
while this will protect America's veterans from breaches of data 
security, the American public wants Congress to act to protect its 
private information as well.
  As many of my colleagues have outlined during the debate today, this 
bill takes several steps to empower the VA to combat ID theft. It 
creates a new Office of the Under Secretary for Information Services 
within the Department. The bill also requires the VA to notify affected 
individuals when sensitive, personal information held by VA is lost, 
stolen, or otherwise compromised. In addition, the bill requires the VA 
to provide services to alleviate any loss those individuals might 
suffer, if the Secretary of VA determines there is a risk that the 
compromised information could be used in a criminal manner. Another 
important provision in the bill requires contractors to pay damages to 
VA if the compromised information was under the contractors' control. 
The combination of these provisions represents a well thought through 
piece of legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, having ones identity stolen can unleash a lifetime of 
problems for its victims. It can impair buying a home, applying for 
jobs and loans as well as a host of other problems.
  I am pleased to support this bill to help protect our veterans from 
these personal and economic pitfalls. I urge my colleagues to support 
this bill.
   Mr. STEARNS. Mr. Speaker, I rise to support H.R. 5835, the Veterans 
Identity and Credit Security Act of 2006. I was deeply concerned that 
nearly 27 million veterans may have been affected by a data security 
breach of record proportions, that could have compromised sensitive, 
personal information. Twenty-six-and-a-half million veterans, and 2.2 
million Guards, Reservists, and active duty servicemembers, were at 
risk. Fortunately, we recovered the stolen laptop and forensic analysis 
revealed the data was uncompromised. While it turned out that no 
veterans' information was jeopardized, it was a lesson in carelessness 
that cannot be repeated. We have learned from this incident what steps 
we must take to (a) change the organizational structure

[[Page H7477]]

and requirements at the VA, and (b) design a meaningful package of 
action items we will deliver for veterans should a breach ever occur 
again. Now we must implement them.
  Unfortunately, data breaches like this highlight the need for 
legislation I have authored: H.R. 4127, the Data Accountability and 
Trust Act (DATA). This bill, which the Energy and Commerce Committee 
has passed, goes to the heart of this problem of the critical need to 
protect consumers' personal information. Let's fix this.
  I thought, and Chairman Buyer agreed, that while we are instructing 
the VA when they must notify veterans, let's not limit ourselves to 
notification by ``snail mail''. I appreciate the Chairman's 
incorporating my language into H.R. 5835. The standard of business 
practice is--if a consumer or veteran in this case prefers--to 
communicate in writing by e-mail, because it is immediate and portable. 
What if a veteran is now in the Florida National Guard, serving in 
Iraq, and suffers a breach? We would not want him or her to wait for a 
hard copy letter to make its way. Secondary to providing better service 
to the veteran, this would save tremendous money to the VA, money 
better spent on veterans health care and services: I understand the May 
2006 notification mailing cost the VA about $7 million.
  Through both of my Committee seats, I will continue to take an active 
role in ensuring that veterans, and all consumers, feel confident and 
secure about their financial and personal information. And, thank you, 
Chairman Buyer, for your steadfast leadership on this issue for years.
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to revise and 
extend my remarks.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 5835, the Veterans 
Identity and Credit Security Act of 2006, as amended, and thank 
Chairman Buyer for his leadership in bringing this legislation to the 
floor. I also want to thank my colleagues from other Committees and 
across the aisle for the bipartisan effort that brought this bill to 
the floor. This is an important piece of legislation that aims to 
improve information security at the Department of Veterans Affairs 
(VA), and may set VA as an example for other federal departments and 
agencies.
  H.R. 5835, as amended, provides the tools for VA to improve 
information security and strengthens the role of the Chief Information 
Officer (CIO). The legislation, requires the Secretary to provide the 
CIO with the authority over VA information technology (IT) to include 
information security, personnel, resources, and infrastructure. These 
authorities include oversight of the activities, policies, processes, 
and systems of VA IT.
  Last October, as Chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and 
Investigations, I joined Chairman Buyer, Ranking Member Evans, 
Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations Ranking Member Strickland 
and other distinguished Members to introduce H.R. 4061, the Department 
of Veterans Affairs Information Technology Management Improvement Act, 
to centralize the authority of the CIO. Last November, the House 
unanimously passed H.R. 4061 with a vote of 408-0. I remember Chairman 
Buyer standing on this floor, sharing the failures of VA IT projects 
and the millions of dollars spent on major IT programs that have failed 
to assist in making the delivery of benefits to veterans faster, safer, 
and more efficient. I stand here today because of another VA failure in 
IT, with another piece of legislation to reform VA IT and ask members 
to unite and show support for our veterans by passing H.R. 5835, as 
amended.
  Since 2000, there have been 16 hearings of the House Committee on 
Veterans' Affairs and its Subcommittees on VA IT. This summer alone the 
Committee on Veterans' Affairs held eight hearings on IT and 
information security, two of which were at the Subcommittee level. The 
House Committee on Veterans Affairs has been anything but lax in its 
review of VA IT, and I am confident that oversight of VA IT will 
continue following my retirement.
  It has been an honor to serve in this body and as a member of the 
House Committee on Veterans' Affairs for the past 24 years, and passing 
H.R. 5835, would be another way for me to honor and protect the 
veterans I have served during my time in Congress. I urge my colleagues 
to vote in favor of H.R. 5835, as amended.
  Mr. MICHAUD. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 
5835, the Veterans Identity and Credit Security Act.
  Earlier this year, VA experienced a major breach in the data security 
of millions of veterans. Their very identities and financial lives were 
put at risk. Thanks to the efforts of law enforcement, and a great deal 
of luck, this breach did not turn into a disaster.
  While for many, this breach came as a surprise, the reality is that 
VA leadership has been warned repeatedly that VA's information security 
program is weak and could be compromised. The Veterans Affairs 
Committee has been calling on the VA to make changes. The VA's 
Inspector General and the GAO have issued report after report raising 
significant concerns about weaknesses in the security of VA's data and 
information systems. The sad reality is that this data breach, while 
larger than any other, was not unique.
  We do a disservice to the men and women who have served our Nation 
and their families if we allow VA's information security policies and 
practices to continue as the status quo.
  H.R. 5835 moves the VA toward greater IT security. It will create a 
clear line of responsibility through the Office of the Under Secretary 
for Information Security. It will put in place policies to improve IT 
security, notification and remediation. In cases of identity theft, 
this bill will help veterans recover their identities and their lives.
  I also believe that the provisions in this bill supporting further 
education in IT security are innovative and extremely important for 
addressing this challenge in the future.
  I want to congratulate the members of the Veterans Affairs Committee, 
especially Chairman Buyer and Mr. Filner, for working quickly to move 
this important legislation forward.
  I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
  Mr. SWEENEY. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Managers 
Amendment to H.R. 5835, the Veterans Identity and Credit Security Act 
of 2006.
  Over the past 5 months, data security incidents at the Department of 
Veterans Affairs, State Department and Census Bureau have raised 
concern over the use of secure data at these and other Federal 
agencies.
  The VA learned that an employee took home electronic records of 26.5 
million veterans and 2.2 active-duty soldiers from the VA, which he was 
not authorized to do.
  A hacker at the State Department gave thieves access to a finite 
amount of information, access to data and passwords.
  The census bureau lost track of over 1,000 laptops, some of which 
contained sensitive personal information.
  Americans secure information was put at extreme risk and raised 
concerns about data security in the Federal Government to a whole new 
level.
  GAO reports released in July 2005 and again in March of 2006, 
revealed despite progress in implementing Federal requirements to 
protect information and systems, the 24 major Federal agencies' 
experienced continued pervasive weaknesses in information security 
policies and practices. Their flaws put Federal operations, citizens 
personal financial data and assets at risk of fraud, misuse, disclosure 
and destruction.
  That is why I introduced H.R. 5820, the Federal Agency Data Privacy 
Protection Act, legislation that adds security measures to all Federal 
agencies data usage and administration. This manager's amendment 
includes a number of provisions included in my legislation.
  It is important that we protect the sensitive information Americans 
provide to us so that we can assist them and we must provide the best 
possible responses to personal information being placed at risk. It is 
critical that we provide proper protections to individuals who may be 
affected by these thefts.
  This amendment also extends the definition of what constitutes secure 
data so that we can provide the best protection for all personal 
information used by Federal agencies.
  Americans place their trust in the Federal Government to protect the 
information they provide. In this age of technology, we have an 
obligation to protect that information and serve the people of this 
Nation. I urge my colleagues support on this amendment.
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support H.R. 
5835, to amend Title 38, United States Code 106-348, to improve 
information management within the Department of Veterans Affairs, and 
for other purposes.
  In June, the Defense Department revealed that the personal 
information of about 2.2 million National Guard and Reserve troops was 
stolen from a government employee's house. In August of this year, the 
Department of Veterans Affairs reported that a subcontractor's missing 
laptop contained personal information of some 16,000 veterans and their 
families who were treated in VA medical centers in Pittsburgh and 
Philadelphia.
  Even more astonishing is the fact that earlier this month, the 
Commerce Department reported that 1,100 of its laptops were missing 
from the last five years, some containing personal data from the U.S. 
Census Bureau.
  These incidences of missing sensitive personal data are no small 
matters of concern. All of us as citizens of this great country expect 
to enjoy the privilege of privacy when it comes to our often sensitive 
personal data. As we are all well aware, such information can be easily 
mishandled and misused to the detriment of anyone who becomes so-
victimized.
  This reason alone is why it is crucial to provide sufficient 
safeguards to prevent or at the very least minimize the degree to which 
the privacy of sensitive personal data of our veterans as well as all 
the citizens of this country may become compromised.

[[Page H7478]]

  H.R. 5835 provides safeguards to: Amend FISMA (Federal Information 
Security Management Act) to authorize the Director of OMB to establish 
data breach policies for agencies to follow in the event of a breach of 
data security involving the disclosure of sensitive personal 
information and which harm to an individual could reasonably be 
expected to result; Amend FISMA to clarify authority of Chief 
Information Officer to enforce data breach policies and develop and 
maintain IT inventories; Amend FISMA to define sensitive personal 
information as ``any information about an individual maintained by an 
agency, including: education, financial transactions, medical history, 
criminal or employment history; information that can be used to 
distinguish or trace the individual's identity, including name, Social 
Security number, date and place of birth, mother's maiden name, or 
biometric records; or any other personal information that is linked or 
linkable to the individual;

  Create the position of Under Secretary for Information Services in 
the VA and mandates that this individual serve as the VA's CIO;
  Mandate that the office of the Under Secretary for Information 
Services shall consist of the three Deputy Under Secretaries (at least 
one of whom is to be a career employee);
  Call for the VA to ensure that the CIO has the authority and control 
necessary to execute responsibilities under FISMA and requires an 
annual FISMA compliance report to be submitted to the Committees on 
Veterans' Affairs of the House and Senate, the House Government Reform 
Committee, and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 
Committee; it also requires a monthly report from the VA CIO to the VA 
Secretary regarding compliance deficiencies; and to require immediate 
notification by the CIO to the VA Secretary of any data breach, and 
notice by the VA to the Director of OMB, VA IG, and if appropriate, to 
the FTC and Secret Service;
  Require quarterly reports from the VA to the Committees on Veterans' 
Affairs of the House and Senate on any data breach that occurred in the 
previous quarter and to also require prompt notice in the event of a 
significant data breach;
  Require the VA to undertake, as soon as possible after a data breach, 
an independent risk analysis (conducted by a non-VA entity). The 
Secretary shall then make a determination, based upon this analysis, if 
there exists a reasonable risk for potential misuse of the compromised 
data. If the Secretary does determine that this potential exists, then 
the VA is required to provide credit protection services. In the event 
of any data breach, the VA shall notify all affected individuals of the 
breach and inform them that they may request, at no charge, a fraud 
alert and a credit security freeze for a period of one year. 
The notification is to clearly spell out the advantages and 
disadvantages to requesting these actions;

  Require the VA to provide credit protection services, including data 
breach analysis, credit monitoring services and identity theft 
insurance, to covered individuals (defined as individuals whose 
sensitive personal information is involved in a data breach, on or 
after August 1, 2005 for which the Secretary determines a reasonable 
risk exists for the potential misuse of the sensitive personal 
information). Authorizes the VA to contract with other government 
agencies and credit reporting agencies to provide these services;
  Require that when the VA enters into a contract that the contractor 
shall not compromise any sensitive personal information. In the event 
of a breach, the contractor shall pay liquidated damages (which will 
then be used by the VA to provide credit protection services);
  Require the VA to submit a report not later than 180 days after 
enactment concerning the feasibility of using Personal Identification 
Numbers for identification purposes in lieu of Social Security numbers;
  Require the President to nominate the Under Secretary for Information 
Services and the VA to appoint the Deputy Under Secretaries within 180 
days of enactment. Requires a report on the progress of the nomination 
and appointments every 30 days.
  All of these measures are essential pieces to ensuring that the 
privacy of personal sensitive data of all of our citizens is not 
compromised. We are far behind in taking action to ensure that 
integrity of information in this nation. This bill is an important 
first step.
  I urge my colleagues to support this resolution.
  Mr. WAXMAN. Mr. Speaker, I support the goal of H.R. 5835 to 
strengthen security of personal data held by the Government, but 
believe that more should be done. For the Department of Veterans 
Affairs, this bill provides more training for employees on privacy 
issues, independent risk analysis of data breaches, credit freezes for 
persons whose data has been compromised, and more. This is an important 
step in light of recent data losses at the VA.
  But the detailed requirements in this bill only apply to the 
Department of Veterans Affairs. For the rest of the Government, none of 
this is required, even though our committee's inquiries have uncovered 
serious breaches in other Federal agencies. For example, the Department 
of Commerce recently reported the loss of more than 1,000 laptop 
computers, some containing census information. To protect the privacy 
of personal information, we should require increased training, 
accountability, and reporting in all Federal agencies, not just the VA.
  I am also concerned about the procedures under which this bill has 
come to the floor. Although primarily a VA bill, this bill also 
includes amendments to the Federal Information Security Management Act, 
FISMA, a government-wide law, in the jurisdiction of the Committee on 
Government Reform. Some of these provisions were in the reported 
version of this bill, and some were just added by amendment today from 
a bill introduced yesterday. None of these government-wide provisions 
were considered in the Committee of Government Reform.
  H.R. 5835 now includes 2 different definitions of ``sensitive 
personal information''--one applying to the entire government under 
FISMA, and another applying to the Department of Veterans Affairs. Had 
this bill proceeded through the regular committee process, 
inconsistencies like this could have been resolved and a clearer, more 
comprehensive bill reported to the floor. I hope that Congress will 
consider additional legislation to clarify the patchwork of laws and 
regulations currently in place and extend stronger data security 
requirements to the entire Federal Government.
  Mrs. JO ANN DAVIS of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, although the Rules of the 
House of Representatives do not allow me to co-sponsor H.R. 5835, the 
Veterans Identity and Security Act of 2006, I wish to express my full 
support for this bill. My district is home to tens of thousands of 
veterans from every branch of the military, and this legislation will 
be extremely helpful to my constituents. The recent loss of data 
affecting over 26.5 million current and former service members was 
extremely unfortunate, and it became clear that the Department's data 
security and notification practices needed an overhaul. I believe this 
legislation will enable the Department of Veterans Affairs to better 
protect the personal identification data of those who have served and 
are serving our country, and I am pleased that we are taking steps to 
prevent these incidents in the future.
  As our country increasingly relies on electronic information storage 
and communication, it is imperative that our Government amend our 
information security laws accordingly. This legislation will help in 
this effort, and I am wholeheartedly supportive.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time and urge 
all Members to support this legislation.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Bishop of Utah). The question is on the 
motion offered by the gentleman from Indiana (Mr. Buyer) that the House 
suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5835, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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