[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 144 (Tuesday, September 17, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5255-H5257]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  IMPROVING SOCIAL SECURITY'S SERVICE TO VICTIMS OF IDENTITY THEFT ACT

  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and 
pass the bill (H.R. 3784) to amend title VII of the Social Security Act 
to provide for a single point of contact at the Social Security 
Administration for individuals who are victims of identity theft, as 
amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 3784

       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 ``Improving Social Security's 
     Service to Victims of Identity Theft Act''.

     SEC. 2. SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT FOR IDENTITY THEFT VICTIMS.

       (a) In General.--Title VII of the Social Security Act (42 
     U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following:

     ``SEC. 714. SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT FOR IDENTITY THEFT 
                   VICTIMS.

       ``(a) In General.--The Commissioner of Social Security 
     shall establish and implement procedures to ensure that any 
     individual whose social security account number has been 
     misused (such as to fraudulently obtain benefits under title 
     II, VIII, or XVI of this Act, or in a manner that affects an 
     individual's records at the Social Security Administration, 
     or in a manner that prompts the individual to request a new 
     social security account number) or whose social security card 
     has been lost in the course of transmission to the individual 
     has a single point of contact at the Social Security 
     Administration throughout the resolution of the individual's 
     case. The single point of contact shall track the 
     individual's case to completion and coordinate with other 
     units to resolve issues as quickly as possible.
       ``(b) Single Point of Contact.--
       ``(1) In general.--For purposes of subsection (a), the 
     single point of contact shall consist of a team or subset of 
     specially trained employees who--
       ``(A) have the ability to coordinate with other units to 
     resolve the issues involved in the individual's case, and
       ``(B) shall be accountable for the case until its 
     resolution.
       ``(2) Team or subset.--The employees included within the 
     team or subset described in paragraph (1) may change as 
     required to meet the needs of the Social Security 
     Administration, provided that procedures have been 
     established to--
       ``(A) ensure continuity of records and case history, and
       ``(B) notify the individual when appropriate.''.

[[Page H5256]]

       (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) 
     shall take effect 180 days after the date of enactment of 
     this Act.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Missouri (Mr. Smith) and the gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson) 
each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Connecticut.


                             General Leave

  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Missouri?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3784, the Improving 
Social Security's Service to Victims of Identity Theft Act.
  In 2022 alone, there were over a thousand data breaches which exposed 
the private data, such as names, dates of birth, and Social Security 
numbers of millions of Americans, putting their identities and 
financial well-being at risk.
  We all know someone who has been a been a victim of identity theft, 
and we have seen how difficult and time consuming it is for those 
individuals to take back control of their credit and financial well-
being.
  The longer it takes to resolve an issue like the loss or theft of a 
Social Security number, the longer fraudsters have to compromise or 
exploit an individual's identity.
  This Congress, the Ways and Means Committee held a hearing that 
underlined exactly why this bill is needed. We heard from Margaret, a 
new mother, who testified about her 9-month-old daughter's Social 
Security number being compromised and the stress associated with such a 
situation. She testified that having a single point of contact at the 
Social Security Administration to talk to about her case would have 
made a world of difference. That is exactly what this bill does.
  H.R. 3784 will streamline the process of addressing concerns with 
lost or stolen Social Security numbers by reducing the burdens on 
victims and ensuring a more efficient resolution of their issues.
  I thank my colleagues, Social Security Subcommittee Chairman Drew 
Ferguson and Ranking Member John Larson for their bipartisan work on 
this bill.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I 
may consume.
  I also extend my congratulations to Mr. Ferguson, and I thank Mr. 
Smith for his comments on this very important piece of legislation. I 
think the public is always glad to see bipartisanship at work, and 
there is nobody who exemplifies that more than the chairman of the 
subcommittee, Mr. Ferguson himself.
  Americans are increasingly vulnerable to identity theft, as we all 
know. In 2023, the Federal Trade Commission received over a million 
reports of identity theft.
  Addressing identity theft can be complex and time consuming. 
Currently, a victim could run into incredible red tape when you try to 
go through the current system and get a resolution to what, obviously, 
is a very disturbing incident that has just happened to you.
  We must do everything we can to improve the process for victims. That 
is why we initiated this legislation that will allow that one-stop 
provision and allow the individuals to make sure that they have a point 
of contact and work this way through instead of working their way 
through an entanglement of bureaucracy.
  We must also ensure that the SSA has the necessary funding, however, 
and the resources to carry out its mission. There have been years of 
underfunding. The American public should understand this.
  Social Security manages over 70 million people. What other Federal 
agency do you know of that administers that bureaucracy for under 1 
percent?
  That is a shameful cut. We need to make sure that Social Security is 
funded appropriately and make sure they have all of the latest 
technology to deal with the more than 70 million people now that are 
receiving Social Security.
  Again, I think the Nation is astounded. I come from the insurance 
capital of the world. On average, they administer their insurance 
programs for around 20 percent.
  I think we ought to take a hard look, and I think everybody has to 
take a look into their heart. If we expect to provide people with the 
kind of service they should get from the number one antipoverty program 
for the elderly and the number one antipoverty program for children, 
then we have to make sure that that is appropriately funded.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1530

  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may 
consume to the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Ferguson), the chairman of 
the Subcommittee on Social Security.
  Mr. FERGUSON. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for his support, and 
I thank Mr. Larson for his engagement on this issue.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 3784, a bill I 
introduced called the Improving Social Security's Service to Victims of 
Identity Theft Act.
  In 2021, roughly 1.5 million children were the victims of identity 
fraud. That is 1 in nearly 50 children. The numbers are staggering.
  Now, I as chairman, along with Ranking Member Larson, held a 
subcommittee hearing to discuss ways the Social Security Administration 
could responsibly do more to protect America's Social Security numbers 
from identity theft.
  The hearing also highlighted the government's failure to help 
individuals whose Social Security numbers had been compromised.
  During the hearing, we heard from Mrs. Hayward, who testified her 
family had been forced to navigate the Social Security Administration's 
bureaucratic maze to protect her daughter's financial future.
  Mr. Speaker, she told the subcommittee that after giving birth to her 
third child, she promptly submitted the proper paperwork for a new 
birth certificate and a Social Security card. While the birth 
certificate arrived without issue, the Social Security card did not.
  By the time her daughter was 7 weeks old, and having not received the 
card, she grew concerned and contacted the Social Security 
Administration about the fact that the website said that it had been 
sent and received when, in fact, it had not.
  She initially assumed the card might have been misplaced, but after 
thoroughly checking her mail and contacting the Social Security 
Administration, she learned that the card had been issued but not 
received. The Social Security Administration advised patience, but 
concerns about identity theft were dismissed.
  When she requested information about whether the card had been 
received or issued, she was simply told she could apply for a 
replacement card, but not a new number, nor could she get the old 
number directly.
  Mr. Speaker, Mrs. Hayward eventually went to the Social Security 
office. She stated that other employees provided inconsistent 
information, dismissed the need for a new number, and even suggested 
that a remedy was contacting the post office to locate the missing 
card. It was only after she sought help from her U.S. Senator that they 
were able to request a new card. When a replacement card finally 
arrived, the original card was still unaccounted for and potentially 
compromised.
  The process to monitor and protect her daughter's identity was really 
much too cumbersome and stressful, and having to re-explain the 
situation to multiple Social Security Administration employees about 
navigating this complex system and the issues that she had faced is 
simply unacceptable.
  Preventing identity theft must be a top priority, yet Mrs. Hayward's 
family and countless others across the Nation have faced serious 
bureaucratic obstacles that extend the time that fraudsters have to 
misuse the personal information of their victims.

[[Page H5257]]

  This underscores the need for a system that proactively prevents 
identity theft and provides clear, consistent support for American 
families.
  Mr. Speaker, my bill addresses this by streamlining the process to a 
single point of contact at the Social Security Administration so that 
they can get their issues resolved more efficiently. I am proud to 
offer this bill along with my colleague, Mr. Larson, and ask that 
Members support this bill.
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of 
my time.
  Mr. Speaker, let me compliment the chairman, Mr. Ferguson, and thank 
him for his incredible work in this area. I also thank Commissioner 
O'Malley, who doesn't get the credit I believe he richly deserves, 
especially dealing with less resources and a larger and growing 
problem. Imagine, if you will, for I think most viewers don't know, 
that 10,000 baby boomers a day become eligible for Social Security, and 
it is growing rapidly.
  I am glad that Republicans support this bill to improve customer 
service for victims of identity theft, but they must also support 
giving SSA the resources it needs to implement it. I think that is 
pretty clear and straightforward.
  Mr. Speaker, I also believe that, as was pointed out by Mr. Smith and 
also by Mr. Ferguson, the unfortunate experience people go through is a 
crime, identity theft, and even more of a crime when you can't get 
service.
  Yet, what is really criminal about Social Security is that Congress 
has not taken on the responsibility of enhancing a program that was 
last improved when Richard Nixon was President of the United States--53 
years. Every single district, every single individual, everyone who is 
retiring is stuck at the same benefit level they were in 1971.

  There are 5 million Americans who get below-poverty-level checks 
because Congress hasn't acted. For over 40 percent of Social Security 
recipients, which is 28 million people, all they have is Social 
Security. The only body that can resolve that problem for them is the 
United States Congress.
  We took a baby step here as it relates to making sure about identity 
theft. We need to take a major step and vote for enhancements for 
people who richly deserve them. They are counting on us. It is the 
Nation's insurance program, and we have not done our job as a Congress.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. SMITH of Missouri. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. Speaker, a Social Security number is the gateway to taking 
control of an American's identity and finances. Congress owes it to the 
American people to do everything that we can to ensure their identities 
are protected and that the process for taking back control of their 
identity when their Social Security number is compromised is 
streamlined and easy. We especially owe it to the almost 1 million 
children who were victims of identity fraud in 2022 through no fault of 
their own.
  H.R. 3784 is a long-overdue step forward in streamlining the Social 
Security Administration's process and alleviating the burden on 
victims.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Smith) that the House suspend the rules 
and pass the bill, H.R. 3784, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________