II 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 2801 

To amend the Social Security Act to enhance Social Security account number 

privacy protections, to prevent fraudulent misuse of the Social Security 

account number, and to otherwise enhance protection against identity 

theft, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 14, 2004 

Mrs. FEINSTEIN introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 

referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To amend the Social Security Act to enhance Social Security 

account number privacy protections, to prevent fraudulent misuse of the Social Security account number, and 

to otherwise enhance protection against identity theft, 

and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Social Security Number Privacy and Identity Theft Pre6 vention Act of 2004’’. 
2 

•S 2801 IS 

1 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents is 

2 as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 

TITLE I—PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE SOCIAL SECURITY 

ACCOUNT NUMBER IN THE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTORS 

Sec. 101. Restrictions on the sale or display to the general public of Social Security account numbers by governmental agencies. 

Sec. 102. Regulatory authority. 

Sec. 103. Prohibition of display of Social Security account numbers on checks 

issued for payment by governmental agencies. 

Sec. 104. Prohibition of the display of Social Security account numbers on driver’s licenses or motor vehicle registrations. 

Sec. 105. Prohibition of the display of personal identification numbers on government employee identification cards or tags. 

Sec. 106. Prohibition of inmate access to Social Security account numbers. 

Sec. 107. Measures to preclude unauthorized disclosure of Social Security account numbers and protect the confidentiality of such numbers. 

Sec. 108. Prohibition of sale, purchase, and display to the general public of the 

Social Security account number in the private sector. 

Sec. 109. Confidential treatment of credit header information. 

Sec. 110. Refusal to do business without receipt of Social Security account 

number considered unfair or deceptive Act or practice. 

TITLE II—MEASURES TO ENSURE THE INTEGRITY OF APPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS AND REPLACEMENT SOCIAL SECURITY CARDS 

Sec. 201. Independent verification of birth records provided in support of applications for Social Security account numbers. 

Sec. 202. Enumeration at birth. 

Sec. 203. Study relating to use of photographic identification in connection with 

applications for benefits, Social Security account numbers, and 

Social Security cards. 

Sec. 204. Restrictions on issuance of multiple replacement Social Security 

cards. 

Sec. 205. Study relating to modification of the Social Security account numbering system to show work authorization status. 

TITLE III—ENFORCEMENT 

Sec. 301. New criminal penalties for misuse of Social Security account numbers. 

Sec. 302. Extension of civil monetary penalty authority. 

Sec. 303. Criminal penalties for employees of the Social Security Administration who knowingly and fraudulently issue Social Security 

cards or Social Security account numbers. 

Sec. 304. Enhanced penalties in cases of terrorism, drug trafficking, crimes of 

violence, or prior offenses. 
3 

•S 2801 IS 

1 TITLE I—PROVISIONS RELATING 

2 TO THE SOCIAL SECURITY AC3 COUNT NUMBER IN THE PUB4 LIC AND PRIVATE SECTORS 

5 SEC. 101. RESTRICTIONS ON THE SALE OR DISPLAY TO THE 

6 GENERAL PUBLIC OF SOCIAL SECURITY AC7 COUNT NUMBERS BY GOVERNMENTAL AGEN8 CIES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C) of the Social 

10 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) is amended by add11 ing at the end the following new clause: 

12 ‘‘(x)(I) An executive, legislative, or judicial agency or 

13 instrumentality of the Federal Government or of a State 

14 or a political subdivision thereof or a trustee appointed 

15 in a case under title 11, United States Code (or person 

16 acting as an agent of such an agency or instrumentality 

17 or trustee) may not sell or display to the general public 

18 any Social Security account number if such number has 

19 been disclosed to such agency, instrumentality, trustee, or 

20 agent pursuant to the assertion by such an agency, instru21 mentality, trustee, or agent to any person that disclosure 

22 of such number is mandatory. Notwithstanding the pre23 ceding sentence, such number may be sold or displayed 

24 to the general public in accordance with the exceptions 
4 

•S 2801 IS 

1 specified in subclauses (II), (III), (IV), (V), (VI), (VII), 

2 and (VIII) (and for no other purpose). 

3 ‘‘(II) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a Social Secu4 rity account number may be sold by an agency, instrumen5 tality, trustee, or agent referred to in subclause (I) to the 

6 extent that such sale is specifically authorized by this Act. 

7 ‘‘(III) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a Social Secu8 rity account number may be sold by an agency, instrumen9 tality, trustee, or agent referred to in subclause (I) to the 

10 extent that is necessary or appropriate for law enforce11 ment or national security purposes, as determined under 

12 regulations which shall be issued as provided in subpara13 graph (I) of this paragraph. 

14 ‘‘(IV) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a Social Secu15 rity account number may be sold by an agency, instrumen16 tality, trustee, or agent referred to in subclause (I) to the 

17 extent that such sale is required to comply with a tax law 

18 of the United States or of any State (or political subdivi19 sion thereof). 

20 ‘‘(V) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a Social Security 

21 account number may be sold by a State department of 

22 motor vehicles as authorized under subsection (b) of sec23 tion 2721 of title 18, United States Code, if such number 

24 is to be used pursuant to such sale solely for purposes 
5 

•S 2801 IS 

1 permitted under paragraph (1), (6), or (9) of such sub2 section. 

3 ‘‘(VI) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a Social Secu4 rity account number may be sold or otherwise made avail5 able by an agency, instrumentality, trustee, or agent re6 ferred to in subclause (I) to a consumer reporting agency 

7 (as defined in section 603(f) of the Fair Credit Reporting 

8 Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a(f))) for use or disclosure solely for 

9 permissible purposes described in section 604(a) of such 

10 Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b(a)). 

11 ‘‘(VII) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a Social Secu12 rity account number may be sold by an agency, instrumen13 tality, trustee, or agent referred to in subclause (I) to the 

14 extent necessary for research (other than market research) 

15 conducted by any agency or instrumentality referred to in 

16 subclause (I) (or an agent of such an agency or instrumen17 tality) for the purpose of advancing the public good, on 

18 the condition that the researcher provides adequate assur19 ances that the Social Security account numbers will not 

20 be used to harass, target, or publicly reveal information 

21 concerning any identifiable individuals, that information 

22 about identifiable individuals obtained from the research 

23 will not be used to make decisions that directly affect the 

24 rights, benefits, or privileges of specific individuals, and 

25 that the researcher has in place appropriate safeguards 
6 

•S 2801 IS 

1 to protect the privacy and confidentiality of any informa2 tion about identifiable individuals, including procedures to 

3 ensure that the Social Security account numbers will be 

4 encrypted or otherwise appropriately secured from unau5 thorized disclosure. In the case of Social Security account 

6 numbers which constitute personally identifiable medical 

7 information, the Commissioner of Social Security, with re8 spect to medical research referred to in the preceding sen9 tence, and the Attorney General of the United States, with 

10 respect to any medical research not referred to in the pre11 ceding sentence but which is treated in regulations of the 

12 Attorney General issued pursuant to subclause (VIII), 

13 shall maintain ongoing consultation with the Office for 

14 Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human 

15 Services to ensure that the sale or purchase of such Social 

16 Security account numbers is permitted only in compliance 

17 with existing Federal rules and regulations prescribed by 

18 the Secretary of Health and Human Services pursuant to 

19 section 264(c) of the Health Insurance Portability and Ac20 countability Act of 1996 (110 Stat. 2033). 

21 ‘‘(VIII) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a Social Secu22 rity account number may be sold or displayed to the gen23 eral public by an agency, instrumentality, trustee, or agent 

24 referred to in subclause (I) under such other cir-
7 

•S 2801 IS 

1 cumstances as may be specified in regulations issued as 

2 provided in subparagraph (I) of this paragraph. 

3 ‘‘(IX) This clause does not apply with respect to a 

4 Social Security account number of a deceased individual. 

5 ‘‘(X) For purposes of this clause, the term ‘sell’ 

6 means, in connection with a Social Security account num7 ber, to accept an item of material value in exchange for 

8 such number. 

9 ‘‘(XI) For purposes of this clause, the term ‘display 

10 to the general public’ shall have the meaning provided 

11 such term in section 208A(a)(3)(A). In any case in which 

12 an agency, instrumentality, trustee, or agent referred to 

13 in subclause (I) requires transmittal to such agency, in14 strumentality, trustee, or agent of an individual’s Social 

15 Security account number by means of the Internet without 

16 reasonable provisions to ensure that such number is 

17 encrypted or otherwise appropriately secured from disclo18 sure, any such transmittal of such number as so required 

19 shall be treated, for purposes of this clause, as a ‘display 

20 to the general public’ of such number by such agency, in21 strumentality, trustee, or agent for purposes of this clause. 

22 ‘‘(XII) For purposes of this clause, the term Social 

23 Security account number includes any derivative of such 

24 number. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, any ex25 pression, contained in or on any item sold or displayed 
8 

•S 2801 IS 

1 to the general public, shall not be treated as a Social Secu2 rity account number solely because such expression sets 

3 forth not more than the last 4 digits of such number if 

4 the remainder of such number cannot be determined based 

5 solely on such expression or any other matter presented 

6 in such material. 

7 ‘‘(XIII) Nothing in this clause shall be construed to 

8 supersede, alter, or affect any restriction or limitation on 

9 the sale or display to the general public of Social Security 

10 account numbers, provided in any Federal statute, regula11 tion, order, or interpretation, if the restriction or limita12 tion is greater than that provided under this clause, as 

13 determined under applicable regulations issued by the 

14 Commissioner of Social Security or by the Attorney Gen15 eral of the United States or another agency or instrumen16 tality of the United States as provided in subparagraph 

17 (I) of this paragraph.’’. 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE AND RELATED RULES.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Initial final regulations pre20 scribed to carry out the provisions of section 

21 205(c)(2)(C)(x) of the Social Security Act (added by 

22 this section) shall be issued not later than the last 

23 date of the 18th calendar month following the date 

24 of the enactment of this Act. Such provisions shall 

25 take effect, with respect to matters governed by such 
9 

•S 2801 IS 

1 regulations issued by the Commissioner of Social Se2 curity, or (pursuant to section 205(c)(2)(I) of such 

3 Act (added by section 102)) by the Attorney General 

4 of the United States or any other agency or instru5 mentality of the United States, 1 year after the date 

6 of the issuance of such regulations by the Commis7 sioner, the Attorney General, or such other agency 

8 or instrumentality, respectively. Such amendment 

9 shall apply in the case of displays to the general 

10 public, as defined in section 208A(a)(3) of such Act 

11 (added by section 108), to such displays originally 

12 occurring after such 1-year period. Such provisions 

13 shall not apply with respect to any display of a 

14 record (containing a Social Security account number 

15 (or any derivative thereof)) generated prior to the 

16 close of such 1-year period. 

17 (2) SUNSET OF EXCEPTION.—The last sentence 

18 of subclause (XI) of section 205(c)(2)(C)(x) of the 

19 Social Security Act (added by this section) shall 

20 cease to be effective with respect to sales, purchases, 

21 or displays to the general public occurring after 6 

22 years after the 18th calendar month referred to in 

23 paragraph (1). 
10 

•S 2801 IS 

1 SEC. 102. REGULATORY AUTHORITY. 

2 Section 205(c)(2) of the Social Security Act (42 

3 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)) is amended by adding at the end the 

4 following new subparagraph: 

5 ‘‘(I)(i) The Attorney General of the United States 

6 shall prescribe regulations to carry out the provisions of 

7 subclauses (III) and (VIII) of subparagraph (C)(x) of this 

8 paragraph, subparagraphs (A) and (B) of section 

9 208A(b)(2), section 208A(b)(3)(B), and section 

10 208A(c)(2). In issuing such regulations, the Attorney Gen11 eral shall consult with the Commissioner of Social Secu12 rity, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, the 

13 Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of the 

14 Treasury, the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal 

15 banking agencies (as defined in section 3 of the Federal 

16 Deposit Insurance Act), the National Credit Union Ad17 ministration, the Securities and Exchange Commission, 

18 State attorneys general, and such representatives of the 

19 State insurance commissioners as may be designated by 

20 the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. 

21 Any agency or instrumentality of the United States may 

22 exercise the authority of the Attorney General under this 

23 subparagraph, with respect to matters otherwise subject 

24 to regulation by such agency or instrumentality, to the ex25 tent determined appropriate in regulations of the Attorney 

26 General. 
11 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(ii) In issuing the regulations described in clause (i) 

2 pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph (C)(x)(III), 

3 paragraph (A) or (B) of section 208A(b)(2), or section 

4 208A(c)(2) (relating to law enforcement and national se5 curity), the Attorney General may authorize the sale or 

6 purchase of Social Security account numbers only if the 

7 Attorney General determines that— 

8 ‘‘(I) such sale or purchase would serve a com9 pelling public interest that cannot reasonably be 

10 served through alternative measures, and 

11 ‘‘(II) such sale or purchase will not pose an un12 reasonable risk of identity theft, or bodily, emo13 tional, or financial harm to an individual (taking 

14 into account any restrictions and conditions that the 

15 Attorney General imposes on the sale, purchase, or 

16 disclosure). 

17 ‘‘(iii) In issuing the regulations described in clause 

18 (i) pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph 

19 (C)(x)(VIII) of this paragraph or section 208A(b)(3)(B), 

20 the Attorney General may authorize the sale, purchase, 

21 or display to the general public of Social Security account 

22 numbers only after considering, among other relevant fac23 tors— 

24 ‘‘(I) the associated cost or burden to the gen25 eral public, businesses, commercial enterprises, non- 
12 

•S 2801 IS 

1 profit organizations, and Federal, State, and local 

2 governments; and 

3 ‘‘(II) the associated benefit to the general pub4 lic, businesses, commercial enterprises, non-profit as5 sociations, and Federal, State, and local govern6 ments. 

7 ‘‘(iv) If, after considering the factors in clause (iii), 

8 the Attorney General authorizes, in regulations referred 

9 to in clause (iii), the sale, purchase, or display to the gen10 eral public of Social Security account numbers, the Attor11 ney General shall impose restrictions and conditions on 

12 the sale, purchase, or display to the general public to the 

13 extent necessary— 

14 ‘‘(I) to provide reasonable assurances that So15 cial Security account numbers will not be used to 

16 commit or facilitate fraud, deceptions, or crime, and 

17 ‘‘(II) to prevent an unreasonable risk of identity 

18 theft or bodily, emotional, or financial harm to any 

19 individual, considering the nature, likelihood, and se20 verity of the anticipated harm that could result from 

21 the sale, purchase, or display to the general public 

22 of Social Security account numbers, together with 

23 the nature, likelihood, and extent of any benefits 

24 that could be realized. 
13 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(v) In the issuance of regulations pursuant to this 

2 subparagraph, notice shall be provided as described in 

3 paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) of section 553(b) of title 5, 

4 United States Code, and opportunity to participate in the 

5 rule making shall be provided in accordance with section 

6 553(c) of such title. 

7 ‘‘(vi) Each agency and instrumentality exercising au8 thority to issue regulations under this subparagraph shall 

9 consult and coordinate with the other such agencies and 

10 instrumentalities for the purposes of assuring, to the ex11 tent possible, that the regulations prescribed by each such 

12 agency or instrumentality are consistent and comparable, 

13 as appropriate, with the regulations prescribed by the 

14 other such agencies and instrumentalities. The Attorney 

15 General shall undertake to facilitate such consultation and 

16 coordination. 

17 ‘‘(vii) For purposes of this subparagraph, the terms 

18 ‘sell’, ‘purchase’, and ‘display to the general public’ shall 

19 have the meanings provided such terms under subpara20 graph (C)(x) of this paragraph or under section 208A(a), 

21 as applicable. 

22 ‘‘(viii) For purposes of this subparagraph, subpara23 graph (C)(x)(XI) shall apply.’’. 
14 

•S 2801 IS 

1 SEC. 103. PROHIBITION OF DISPLAY OF SOCIAL SECURITY 

2 ACCOUNT NUMBERS ON CHECKS ISSUED FOR 

3 PAYMENT BY GOVERNMENTAL AGENCIES. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C) of the Social 

5 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) (as amended by 

6 section 101) is amended further by adding at the end the 

7 following new clause: 

8 ‘‘(xi) No executive, legislative, or judicial agency or 

9 instrumentality of the Federal Government or of a State 

10 or a political subdivision thereof or trustee appointed in 

11 a case under title 11, United States Code (or person act12 ing as an agent of such an agency or instrumentality or 

13 trustee) may include the Social Security account number 

14 of any individual (or any derivative of such number) on 

15 any check issued for any payment by the Federal Govern16 ment, any State or political subdivision thereof, or any 

17 agency or instrumentality thereof, or such trustee or on 

18 any document attached to or accompanying such a 

19 check.’’. 

20 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

21 this section shall apply with respect to checks (and docu22 ments attached to or accompanying such checks) issued 

23 after 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
15 

•S 2801 IS 

1 SEC. 104. PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAY OF SOCIAL SECU2 RITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS ON DRIVER’S LI3 CENSES OR MOTOR VEHICLE REGISTRA4 TIONS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C)(vi) of the 

6 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)(vi)) is 

7 amended— 

8 (1) by inserting ‘‘(I)’’ after ‘‘(vi)’’; and 

9 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub10 clause: 

11 ‘‘(II) Any State or political subdivision thereof (and 

12 any person acting as an agent of such an agency or instru13 mentality), in the administration of any driver’s license or 

14 motor vehicle registration law within its jurisdiction, may 

15 not display a Social Security account number issued by 

16 the Commissioner of Social Security (or any derivative of 

17 such number) on any driver’s license or motor vehicle reg18 istration or any other document issued by such State or 

19 political subdivision to an individual for purposes of identi20 fication of such individual or include on any such license, 

21 registration, or other document a magnetic strip, bar code, 

22 or other means of communication which conveys such 

23 number (or derivative thereof).’’. 

24 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

25 this section shall apply with respect to licenses, registra-
16 

•S 2801 IS 

1 tions, and other documents issued or reissued after 1 year 

2 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

3 SEC. 105. PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAY OF PERSONAL 

4 IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS ON GOVERN5 MENT EMPLOYEE IDENTIFICATION CARDS OR 

6 TAGS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C) of the Social 

8 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) (as amended by the 

9 preceding provisions of this title) is amended further by 

10 adding at the end the following new clause: 

11 ‘‘(xii) No executive, legislative, or judicial agency or 

12 instrumentality of the Federal Government or of a State 

13 or political subdivision thereof, and no other person offer14 ing benefits in connection with an employee benefit plan 

15 maintained by such agency or instrumentality or acting 

16 as an agent of such agency or instrumentality, may display 

17 a Social Security account number (or any derivative there18 of) on any card or tag that is commonly provided to em19 ployees of such agency or instrumentality (or to their fam20 ily members) for purposes of identification or include on 

21 such card or tag a magnetic strip, bar code, or other 

22 means of communication which conveys such number.’’. 

23 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

24 this section shall apply with respect to cards or tags issued 

25 after 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 
17 

•S 2801 IS 

1 SEC. 106. PROHIBITION OF INMATE ACCESS TO SOCIAL SE2 CURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C) of the Social 

4 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) (as amended by the 

5 preceding provisions of this title) is amended further by 

6 adding at the end the following new clause: 

7 ‘‘(xiii) No executive, legislative, or judicial agency or 

8 instrumentality of the Federal Government or of a State 

9 or political subdivision thereof (or person acting as an 

10 agent of such an agency or instrumentality) may employ, 

11 or enter into a contract for the use or employment of, pris12 oners in any capacity that would allow such prisoners ac13 cess to the Social Security account numbers of other indi14 viduals. For purposes of this clause, the term ‘prisoner’ 

15 means an individual confined in a jail, prison, or other 

16 penal institution or correctional facility.’’. 

17 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para19 graph (2), the amendment made by this section shall 

20 apply with respect to employment of prisoners, or 

21 entry into contract for the use or employment of 

22 prisoners, on or after the date of the enactment of 

23 this Act. 

24 (2) TREATMENT OF CURRENT ARRANGE25 MENTS.—In the case of— 
18 

•S 2801 IS 

1 (A) prisoners employed as described in 

2 clause (xiii) of section 205(c)(2)(C) of the So3 cial Security Act (as added by this section) on 

4 the date of the enactment of this Act, and 

5 (B) contracts described in such clause in 

6 effect on such date, 

7 the amendment made by this section shall take ef8 fect 90 days after the date of the enactment of this 

9 Act. 

10 SEC. 107. MEASURES TO PRECLUDE UNAUTHORIZED DIS11 CLOSURE OF SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT 

12 NUMBERS AND PROTECT THE CONFIDEN13 TIALITY OF SUCH NUMBERS. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(C) of the Social 

15 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) (as amended by the 

16 preceding provisions of this title) is amended further by 

17 adding at the end the following new clause: 

18 ‘‘(xiv) Except as otherwise provided in this para19 graph, in the case of any executive, legislative, or judicial 

20 agency or instrumentality of the Federal Government or 

21 of a State or political subdivision thereof and any trustee 

22 appointed in a case under title 11, United States Code 

23 (and any agent of such agency, instrumentality, or trust24 ee) having in its possession an individual’s Social Security 

25 account number— 
19 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(I) no officer or employee thereof shall have 

2 access to such number for any purpose other than 

3 the effective administration of the statutory provi4 sions governing its functions, 

5 ‘‘(II) such agency, instrumentality, trustee, or 

6 agent shall restrict, to the satisfaction of the Com7 missioner of Social Security, access to Social Secu8 rity account numbers obtained thereby to officers 

9 and employees thereof whose duties or responsibil10 ities require access for the administration or enforce11 ment of such provisions, and 

12 ‘‘(III) such agency, instrumentality, trustee, or 

13 agent shall provide such other safeguards as the 

14 Commissioner of Social Security determines to be 

15 necessary or appropriate to preclude unauthorized 

16 access to the Social Security account number and to 

17 otherwise protect the confidentiality of such number. 

18 For purposes of this clause the term Social Security ac19 count number includes any derivative thereof. ’’. 

20 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

21 this section shall take effect 1 year after the date of the 

22 enactment of this Act. 
20 

•S 2801 IS 

1 SEC. 108. PROHIBITION OF THE SALE, PURCHASE, AND DIS2 PLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC OF THE SO3 CIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER IN THE 

4 PRIVATE SECTOR. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title II of the Social Security Act 

6 is amended by inserting after section 208 (42 U.S.C. 408) 

7 the following new section: ‘‘Prohibition of the sale, pur8 chase, and display to the general public of the Social Secu9 rity account number in the private sector. 

10 ‘‘SEC. 208A. (a) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 

11 section: 

12 ‘‘(1) PERSON.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara14 graph (B), the term ‘person’ means any indi15 vidual, partnership, corporation, trust, estate, 

16 cooperative, association, or any other entity. 

17 ‘‘(B) GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES.—Such 

18 term does not include a governmental entity. 

19 Nothing in this subparagraph shall be con20 strued to authorize, in connection with a gov21 ernmental entity, an act or practice otherwise 

22 prohibited under this section or section 

23 205(c)(2)(C). 

24 ‘‘(2) SELLING AND PURCHASING.— 

25 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara26 graph (B)— 
21 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(i) SELL.—The term ‘sell’ in connec2 tion with a Social Security account number 

3 means to obtain, directly or indirectly, any4 thing of value in exchange for such num5 ber. 

6 ‘‘(ii) PURCHASE.—The term ‘pur7 chase’ in connection with a Social Security 

8 account number means to provide, directly 

9 or indirectly, anything of value in exchange 

10 for such number. 

11 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—The terms ‘sell’ and 

12 ‘purchase’ in connection with a Social Security 

13 account number do not include the submission 

14 of such number as part of— 

15 ‘‘(i) the process for applying for any 

16 type of Government benefits or programs 

17 (such as grants or loans or welfare or 

18 other public assistance programs), 

19 ‘‘(ii) the administration of, or provi20 sion of benefits under, an employee benefit 

21 plan, or 

22 ‘‘(iii) the sale, lease, merger, transfer, 

23 or exchange of a trade or business. 

24 ‘‘(3) DISPLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.— 
22 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘display to 

2 the general public’ means, in connection with a 

3 Social Security account number, to intentionally 

4 place such number in a viewable manner on an 

5 Internet site that is available to the general 

6 public or to make such number available in any 

7 other manner intended to provide access to such 

8 number by the general public. 

9 ‘‘(B) INTERNET TRANSMISSIONS.—In any 

10 case in which a person requires, as a condition 

11 of doing business with such person, transmittal 

12 to such person of an individual’s Social Security 

13 account number by means of the Internet with14 out reasonable provisions to ensure that such 

15 number is encrypted or otherwise secured from 

16 disclosure, any such transmittal of such number 

17 as so required shall be treated as a ‘display to 

18 the general public’ of such number by such per19 son. 

20 ‘‘(4) SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER.— 

21 The term ‘Social Security account number’ has the 

22 meaning given such term in section 208(c), except 

23 that such term includes any derivative of such num24 ber. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, any ex25 pression, contained in or on any item sold or dis-
23 

•S 2801 IS 

1 played to the general public, shall not be treated as 

2 a Social Security account number solely because 

3 such expression sets forth not more than the last 4 

4 digits of such number, if the remainder of such 

5 number cannot be determined based solely on such 

6 expression or any other matter presented in or on 

7 such item. 

8 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION OF SALE, PURCHASE, AND DIS9 PLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.—(1) Except as provided 

10 in paragraph (2), it shall be unlawful for any person to— 

11 ‘‘(A) sell or purchase a Social Security account 

12 number or display to the general public a Social Se13 curity account number, or 

14 ‘‘(B) obtain or use any individual’s Social Secu15 rity account number for the purpose of locating or 

16 identifying such individual with the intent to phys17 ically injure or harm such individual or using the 

18 identity of such individual for any illegal purpose. 

19 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), and subject to 

20 paragraph (3), a Social Security account number may be 

21 sold or purchased by any person to the extent provided 

22 in this subsection (and for no other purpose) as follows: 

23 ‘‘(A) to the extent necessary for law enforce24 ment, including (but not limited to) the enforcement 
24 

•S 2801 IS 

1 of a child support obligation, as determined under 

2 regulations issued as provided in section 205(c)(2)(I); 

3 ‘‘(B) to the extent necessary for national secu4 rity purposes, as determined under regulations 

5 issued as provided in section 205(c)(2)(I); 

6 ‘‘(C) to the extent necessary for public health 

7 purposes; 

8 ‘‘(D) to the extent necessary in emergency situ9 ations to protect the health or safety of 1 or more 

10 individuals; 

11 ‘‘(E) to the extent that the sale or purchase is 

12 required to comply with a tax law of the United 

13 States or of any State (or political subdivision there14 of); 

15 ‘‘(F) to the extent that the sale or purchase is 

16 to or by a consumer reporting agency (as defined in 

17 section 603(f) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 

18 U.S.C. 1681a(f))) for use or disclosure solely for 

19 permissible purposes described in section 604(a) of 

20 such Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b(a)); and 

21 ‘‘(G) to the extent necessary for research (other 

22 than market research) conducted by an agency or in23 strumentality of the United States or of a State or 

24 political subdivision thereof (or an agent of such an 

25 agency or instrumentality) for the purpose of ad-
25 

•S 2801 IS 

1 vancing the public good, on the condition that the 

2 researcher provides adequate assurances that— 

3 ‘‘(i) the Social Security account numbers 

4 will not be used to harass, target, or publicly 

5 reveal information concerning any identifiable 

6 individuals; 

7 ‘‘(ii) information about identifiable individ8 uals obtained from the research will not be used 

9 to make decisions that directly affect the rights, 

10 benefits, or privileges of specific individuals; 

11 and 

12 ‘‘(iii) the researcher has in place appro13 priate safeguards to protect the privacy and 

14 confidentiality of any information about identi15 fiable individuals, including procedures to en16 sure that the Social Security account numbers 

17 will be encrypted or otherwise appropriately se18 cured from unauthorized disclosure. 

19 ‘‘(3) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a Social Secu20 rity account number assigned to an individual may be sold, 

21 purchased, or displayed to the general public by any per22 son— 

23 ‘‘(A) to the extent consistent with such individ24 ual’s voluntary and affirmative written consent to 
26 

•S 2801 IS 

1 the sale, purchase, or display of the Social Security 

2 account number, but only if— 

3 ‘‘(i) the terms of the consent and the right 

4 to refuse consent are presented to the individual 

5 in a clear, conspicuous, and understandable 

6 manner, 

7 ‘‘(ii) the individual is placed under no obli8 gation to provide consent to any such sale, pur9 chase, or display, and 

10 ‘‘(iii) the terms of the consent authorize 

11 the individual to limit the sale, purchase, or dis12 play to purposes directly associated with the 

13 transaction with respect to which the consent is 

14 sought, and 

15 ‘‘(B) under such circumstances as may be 

16 deemed appropriate in regulations issued as provided 

17 under section 205(c)(2)(I). 

18 ‘‘(4) In the case of Social Security account numbers 

19 which constitute personally identifiable medical informa20 tion— 

21 ‘‘(A) the Commissioner of Social Security, with 

22 respect to medical research referred to in paragraph 

23 (3)(A), and 

24 ‘‘(B) the Attorney General of the United States, 

25 with respect to any medical research not referred to 
27 

•S 2801 IS 

1 in paragraph (3)(A) but which is treated in regula2 tions of the Attorney General issued pursuant to 

3 paragraph (3)(B), 

4 shall maintain ongoing consultation with the Office for 

5 Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human 

6 Services to ensure that the sale or purchase of such Social 

7 Security account numbers is permitted only in compliance 

8 with existing Federal rules and regulations prescribed by 

9 the Secretary of Health and Human Services pursuant to 

10 section 264(c) of the Health Insurance Portability and Ac11 countability Act of 1996 (110 Stat. 2033). 

12 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION OF UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE

13 TO GOVERNMENT AGENCIES OR INSTRUMENTALITIES.— 

14 (1) It shall be unlawful for any person to communicate 

15 by any means to any agency or instrumentality of the 

16 United States or of any State or political subdivision 

17 thereof the Social Security account number of any indi18 vidual other than such person without the written permis19 sion of such individual, unless the number was requested 

20 by the agency or instrumentality. In the case of an indi21 vidual who is legally incompetent, permission provided by 

22 the individual’s legal representatives shall be deemed to 

23 be permission provided by such individual. 

24 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) shall not apply to the extent nec25 essary— 
28 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(A) for law enforcement, including (but not 

2 limited to) the enforcement of a child support obliga3 tion, or 

4 ‘‘(B) for national security purposes, 

5 as determined under regulations issued as provided under 

6 section 205(c)(2)(I). 

7 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAYS ON CARDS OR

8 TAGS REQUIRED FOR ACCESS TO GOODS, SERVICES, OR

9 BENEFITS.—No person may display a Social Security ac10 count number on any card or tag issued to any other per11 son for the purpose of providing such other person access 

12 to any goods, services, or benefits or include on such card 

13 or tag a magnetic strip, bar code, or other means of com14 munication which conveys such number. 

15 ‘‘(e) PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAYS ON EMPLOYEE

16 IDENTIFICATION CARDS OR TAGS.—No person that is an 

17 employer, and no other person offering benefits in connec18 tion with an employee benefit plan maintained by such em19 ployer or acting as an agent of such employer, may display 

20 a Social Security account number on any card or tag that 

21 is commonly provided to employees of such employer (or 

22 to their family members) for purposes of identification or 

23 include on such card or tag a magnetic strip, bar code, 

24 or other means of communication which conveys such 

25 number. 
29 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(f) MEASURES TO PRECLUDE UNAUTHORIZED DIS2 CLOSURE OF SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS AND

3 PROTECT THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF SUCH NUMBERS.— 

4 Subject to the preceding provisions of this section, any 

5 person having in such person’s records the Social Security 

6 account number of any individual other than such person 

7 shall, to the extent that such records are maintained for 

8 the conduct of such person’s trade or business— 

9 ‘‘(1) ensure that no officer or employee thereof 

10 has access to such number for any purpose other 

11 than as necessary for the conduct of such person’s 

12 trade or business, 

13 ‘‘(2) restrict, in accordance with regulations of 

14 the Commissioner, access to Social Security account 

15 numbers obtained thereby to officers and employees 

16 thereof whose duties or responsibilities require ac17 cess for the conduct of such person’s trade or busi18 ness, and 

19 ‘‘(3) provide such safeguards as may be speci20 fied, in regulations of the Commissioner, to be nec21 essary or appropriate to preclude unauthorized ac22 cess to the Social Security account number and to 

23 otherwise protect the confidentiality of such number. 
30 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(g) DECEASED INDIVIDUALS.—This section does 

2 not apply with respect to the Social Security account num3 ber of a deceased individual. 

4 ‘‘(h) CRIMINAL PENALTY.—Any person who violates 

5 this section shall be guilty of a felony and upon conviction 

6 thereof shall be fined under title 18, United States Code, 

7 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both. 

8 ‘‘(i) APPLICABILITY OF OTHER PROTECTIONS.— 

9 Nothing in this section shall be construed to supersede, 

10 alter, or affect any restriction or limitation on the sale, 

11 purchase, display to the general public, or other disclosure 

12 of Social Security account numbers, provided in any Fed13 eral statute, regulation, order, or interpretation, if the re14 striction or limitation is greater than that provided under 

15 this section, as determined under applicable regulations 

16 issued by the Commissioner of Social Security or by the 

17 Attorney General of the United States or another agency 

18 or instrumentality of the United States as provided in sec19 tion 205(c)(2)(I).’’. 

20 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE AND RELATED RULES.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Initial final regulations pre22 scribed to carry out the provisions of section 208A 

23 of the Social Security Act (added by this section) 

24 shall be issued not later than the last date of the 

25 18th calendar month following the date of the enact-
31 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ment of this Act. Such provisions shall take effect, 

2 with respect to matters governed by such regulations 

3 issued by the Commissioner of Social Security, or 

4 (pursuant to section 205(c)(2)(I) of such Act (added 

5 by section 102)) by the Attorney General of the 

6 United States or any other agency or instrumen7 tality of the United States, 1 year after the date of 

8 the issuance of such regulations by the Commis9 sioner, the Attorney General, or such other agency 

10 or instrumentality, respectively. Section 208A(b) of 

11 such Act shall apply in the case of displays to the 

12 general public (as defined in section 208A(a)(3) of 

13 such Act) to such displays to the general public 

14 originally occurring after such 1-year period. Such 

15 provisions shall not apply with respect to any such 

16 display to the general public of a record (containing 

17 a Social Security account number (or any derivative 

18 thereof)) generated prior to the close of such 1-year 

19 period. 

20 (2) SUNSET OF EXCEPTION.—The last sentence 

21 of section 208A(a)(4) of the Social Security Act 

22 (added by this section) shall cease to be effective 

23 with respect to sales, purchases, or displays to the 

24 general public occurring after 6 years after the 18th 

25 calendar month referred to in paragraph (1). 
32 

•S 2801 IS 

1 SEC. 109. CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT OF CREDIT HEADER 

2 INFORMATION. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 603 of the Fair Credit 

4 Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a) is amended by adding 

5 at the end the following new subsection: 

6 ‘‘(q) CONFIDENTIAL TREATMENT OF CREDIT HEAD7 ER INFORMATION.—Information regarding the Social Se8 curity account number of the consumer, or any derivative 

9 thereof, may not be furnished to any person by a consumer 

10 reporting agency other than in a full consumer report fur11 nished in accordance with section 604 and other require12 ments of this title.’’. 

13 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

14 this section shall take effect 90 days after the date of the 

15 enactment of this Act. 

16 SEC. 110. REFUSAL TO DO BUSINESS WITHOUT RECEIPT OF 

17 SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER CON18 SIDERED UNFAIR OR DECEPTIVE ACT OR 

19 PRACTICE. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Any person who refuses to do 

21 business with an individual because the individual will not 

22 consent to the receipt by such person of the Social Secu23 rity account number of such individual shall be considered 

24 to have committed an unfair or deceptive act or practice 

25 in violation of section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission 
33 

•S 2801 IS 

1 Act (15 U.S.C. 45). Action may be taken under such sec2 tion 5 against such a person. 

3 (b) EXCEPTION.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to 

4 any person in any case in which such person is expressly 

5 required under Federal law, in connection with doing busi6 ness with an individual, to submit to the Federal Govern7 ment such individual’s Social Security account number. 

8 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The preceding provisions of 

9 this section shall apply with respect to acts or practices 

10 committed after 180 days after the date of the enactment 

11 of this Act. 

12 TITLE II—MEASURES TO EN13 SURE THE INTEGRITY OF AP14 PLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL SE15 CURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS 

16 AND REPLACEMENT SOCIAL 

17 SECURITY CARDS 

18 SEC. 201. INDEPENDENT VERIFICATION OF BIRTH 

19 RECORDS PROVIDED IN SUPPORT OF APPLI20 CATIONS FOR SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT 

21 NUMBERS. 

22 (a) APPLICATIONS FOR SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT

23 NUMBERS.—Section 205(c)(2)(B)(ii) of the Social Secu24 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(B)(ii)) is amended— 

25 (1) by inserting ‘‘(I)’’ after ‘‘(ii)’’; and 
34 

•S 2801 IS 

1 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub2 clause: 

3 ‘‘(II) With respect to an application for a Social Secu4 rity account number for an individual, other than for pur5 poses of enumeration at birth, the Commissioner shall re6 quire independent verification of any birth record provided 

7 by the applicant in support of the application. The Com8 missioner may provide by regulation for reasonable excep9 tions from the requirement for independent verification 

10 under this subclause in any case in which the Commis11 sioner determines there is minimal opportunity for 

12 fraud.’’. 

13 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

14 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to applications filed 

15 after 270 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

16 (c) STUDY REGARDING APPLICATIONS FOR RE17 PLACEMENT SOCIAL SECURITY CARDS.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after 

19 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis20 sioner of Social Security shall undertake a study to 

21 test the feasibility and cost effectiveness of verifying 

22 all identification documents submitted by an appli23 cant for a replacement Social Security card. As part 

24 of such study, the Commissioner shall determine the 

25 feasibility of, and the costs associated with, the de-
35 

•S 2801 IS 

1 velopment of appropriate electronic processes for 

2 third party verification of any such identification 

3 documents which are issued by agencies and instru4 mentalities of the Federal Government and of the 

5 States (and political subdivisions thereof). 

6 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the 

7 date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner 

8 shall report to the Committee on Ways and Means 

9 of the House of Representatives and the Committee 

10 on Finance of the Senate regarding the results of 

11 the study undertaken under paragraph (1). Such re12 port shall contain such recommendations for legisla13 tive changes as the Commissioner considers nec14 essary to implement needed improvements in the 

15 process for verifying identification documents sub16 mitted by applicants for replacement Social Security 

17 cards. 

18 SEC. 202. ENUMERATION AT BIRTH. 

19 (a) IMPROVEMENT OF APPLICATION PROCESS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after 

21 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis22 sioner of Social Security shall undertake to make 

23 improvements to the enumeration at birth program 

24 for the issuance of Social Security account numbers 
36 

•S 2801 IS 

1 to newborns. Such improvements shall be designed 

2 to prevent— 

3 (A) the assignment of Social Security ac4 count numbers to unnamed children; 

5 (B) the issuance of more than 1 Social Se6 curity account number to the same child; and 

7 (C) other opportunities for fraudulently ob8 taining a Social Security account number. 

9 (2) REPORT TO THE CONGRESS.—Not later 

10 than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this 

11 Act, the Commissioner shall transmit to each House 

12 of the Congress a report specifying in detail the ex13 tent to which the improvements required under 

14 paragraph (1) have been made. 

15 (b) STUDY REGARDING PROCESS FOR ENUMERATION

16 AT BIRTH.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after 

18 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis19 sioner of Social Security shall undertake a study to 

20 determine the most efficient options for ensuring the 

21 integrity of the process for enumeration at birth. 

22 Such study shall include an examination of available 

23 methods for reconciling hospital birth records with 

24 birth registrations submitted to agencies of States 

25 and political subdivisions thereof and with informa-
37 

•S 2801 IS 

1 tion provided to the Commissioner as part of the 

2 process for enumeration at birth. 

3 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after 

4 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commis5 sioner shall report to the Committee on Ways and 

6 Means of the House of Representatives and the 

7 Committee on Finance of the Senate regarding the 

8 results of the study undertaken under paragraph 

9 (1). Such report shall contain such recommendations 

10 for legislative changes as the Commissioner con11 siders necessary to implement needed improvements 

12 in the process for enumeration at birth. 

13 SEC. 203. STUDY RELATING TO USE OF PHOTOGRAPHIC 

14 IDENTIFICATION IN CONNECTION WITH AP15 PLICATIONS FOR BENEFITS, SOCIAL SECU16 RITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS, AND SOCIAL SECU17 RITY CARDS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of 

20 Social Security shall undertake a study to— 

21 (1) determine the best method of requiring and 

22 obtaining photographic identification of applicants 

23 for old-age, survivors, and disability insurance bene24 fits under title II of the Social Security Act, for a 

25 Social Security account number, or for a replace-
38 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ment Social Security card, and of providing for rea2 sonable exceptions to any requirement for photo3 graphic identification of such applicants that may be 

4 necessary to promote efficient and effective adminis5 tration of this title, and 

6 (2) evaluate the benefits and costs of instituting 

7 such a requirement for photographic identification, 

8 including the degree to which the security and integ9 rity of the old-age, survivors, and disability insur10 ance program would be enhanced. 

11 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after the 

12 date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner shall 

13 report to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House 

14 of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the 

15 Senate regarding the results of the study undertaken 

16 under paragraph (1). Such report shall contain such rec17 ommendations for legislative changes as the Commissioner 

18 considers necessary relating to requirements for photo19 graphic identification of applicants described in subsection 

20 (a). 

21 SEC. 204. RESTRICTIONS ON ISSUANCE OF MULTIPLE RE22 PLACEMENT SOCIAL SECURITY CARDS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 205(c)(2)(G) of the Social 

24 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(G)) is amended by add25 ing at the end the following new sentence: ‘‘The Commis-
39 

•S 2801 IS 

1 sioner shall restrict the issuance of multiple replacement 

2 Social Security cards to any individual to 3 per year and 

3 to 10 for the life of the individual, except in any case in 

4 which the Commissioner determines there is minimal op5 portunity for fraud.’’. 

6 (b) REGULATIONS AND EFFECTIVE DATE.—The 

7 Commissioner of Social Security shall issue regulations 

8 under the amendment made by subsection (a) not later 

9 than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

10 Systems controls developed by the Commissioner pursuant 

11 to such amendment shall take effect upon the earlier of 

12 the issuance of such regulations or the end of such 1-year 

13 period. 

14 SEC. 205. STUDY RELATING TO MODIFICATION OF THE SO15 CIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERING SYS16 TEM TO SHOW WORK AUTHORIZATION STA17 TUS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after the 

19 date of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of 

20 Social Security, in consultation with the Secretary of 

21 Homeland Security, shall undertake a study to examine 

22 the best method of modifying the Social Security account 

23 number assigned to individuals who— 

24 (1) are not citizens of the United States, 
40 

•S 2801 IS 

1 (2) have not been admitted for permanent resi2 dence, and 

3 (3) are not authorized by the Secretary of 

4 Homeland Security to work in the United States, or 

5 are so authorized subject to one or more restrictions, 

6 so as to include an indication of such lack of authorization 

7 to work or such restrictions on such an authorization. 

8 (b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

9 of the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner shall re10 port to the Committee on Ways and Means of the House 

11 of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of the 

12 Senate regarding the results of the study undertaken 

13 under this section. Such report shall include the Commis14 sioner’s recommendations of feasible options for modifying 

15 the Social Security account number in the manner de16 scribed in subsection (a). 

17 TITLE III—ENFORCEMENT 

18 SEC. 301. NEW CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR MISUSE OF SO19 CIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 208(a) of the Social Secu21 rity Act (42 U.S.C. 408(a)) is amended— 

22 (1) in paragraph (7), by adding after subpara23 graph (C) the following new subparagraph: 

24 ‘‘(D) with intent to deceive, discloses, sells, 

25 or transfers his own Social Security account 
41 

•S 2801 IS 

1 number, assigned to him by the Commissioner 

2 of Social Security (in the exercise of the Com3 missioner’s authority under section 205(c)(2) to 

4 establish and maintain records), to any person; 

5 or’’; 

6 (2) in paragraph (8), by adding ‘‘or’’ at the 

7 end; and 

8 (3) by inserting after paragraph (8) the fol9 lowing new paragraphs: 

10 ‘‘(9) without lawful authority, offers, for a fee, 

11 to acquire for any individual, or to assist in acquir12 ing for any individual, an additional Social Security 

13 account number or a number that purports to be a 

14 Social Security account number; or 

15 ‘‘(10) being an officer or employee of any exec16 utive, legislative, or judicial agency or instrumen17 tality of the Federal Government or of a State or 

18 political subdivision thereof (or a person acting as 

19 an agent of such an agency or instrumentality), will20 fully acts or fails to act so as to cause a violation 

21 of section 205(c)(2)(C)(xi); or 

22 ‘‘(11) being an officer or employee of any exec23 utive, legislative, or judicial agency or instrumen24 tality of the Federal Government or of a State or 

25 political subdivision thereof (or a person acting as 
42 

•S 2801 IS 

1 an agent of such an agency or instrumentality) in 

2 possession of any individual’s Social Security ac3 count number (or an officer or employee thereof or 

4 a person acting as an agent thereof), willfully acts 

5 or fails to act so as to cause a violation of clause 

6 (vi)(II), (x), (xi), (xii), (xiii), or (xiv) of section 

7 205(c)(2)(C); or 

8 ‘‘(12) being a trustee appointed in a case under 

9 title 11, United States Code (or an officer or em10 ployee thereof or a person acting as an agent there11 of), willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a vio12 lation of clause (x), (xi), or (xiv) of section 

13 205(c)(2)(C);’’. 

14 (b) EFFECTIVE DATES.—Paragraphs (7)(D) and (9) 

15 of section 208(a) of the Social Security Act (added by sub16 section (a)(2)) shall apply with respect to each violation 

17 occurring after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

18 Paragraphs (10), (11), and (12) of section 208(a) of such 

19 Act (added by subsection (a)(2)) shall apply with respect 

20 to each violation occurring on or after the effective date 

21 applicable with respect to such violation under title I. 

22 SEC. 302. EXTENSION OF CIVIL MONETARY PENALTY AU23 THORITY. 

24 (a) APPLICATION OF CIVIL MONEY PENALTIES TO

25 ELEMENTS OF CRIMINAL VIOLATIONS.—Section 1129(a) 
43 

•S 2801 IS 

1 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1320a–8(a)) is 

2 amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating paragraph (2) as para4 graph (4); 

5 (2) by designating the last sentence of para6 graph (1) as a new paragraph (2), appearing after 

7 and below paragraph (1); and 

8 (3) by inserting after paragraph (2) (as des9 ignated under paragraph (2) of this subsection) the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘(3) Any person (including an organization, agency, 

12 or other entity) who— 

13 ‘‘(A) uses a Social Security account number 

14 that such person knows or should know has been as15 signed by the Commissioner of Social Security (in an 

16 exercise of authority under section 205(c)(2) to es17 tablish and maintain records) on the basis of false 

18 information furnished to the Commissioner by any 

19 person; 

20 ‘‘(B) falsely represents a number to be the So21 cial Security account number assigned by the Com22 missioner of Social Security to any individual, when 

23 such person knows or should know that such number 

24 is not the Social Security account number assigned 

25 by the Commissioner to such individual; 
44 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(C) knowingly alters a Social Security card 

2 issued by the Commissioner of Social Security, or 

3 possesses such a card with intent to alter it; 

4 ‘‘(D) knowingly buys or sells a card that is, or 

5 purports to be, a card issued by the Commissioner 

6 of Social Security, or possesses such a card with in7 tent to buy or sell it; 

8 ‘‘(E) counterfeits a Social Security card, or pos9 sesses a counterfeit Social Security card with intent 

10 to buy or sell it; 

11 ‘‘(F) discloses, uses, compels the disclosure of, 

12 or knowingly sells or purchases the Social Security 

13 account number of any person in violation of the 

14 laws of the United States; 

15 ‘‘(G) with intent to deceive the Commissioner of 

16 Social Security as to such person’s true identity (or 

17 the true identity of any other person), furnishes or 

18 causes to be furnished false information to the Com19 missioner with respect to any information required 

20 by the Commissioner in connection with the estab21 lishment and maintenance of the records provided 

22 for in section 205(c)(2); 

23 ‘‘(H) without lawful authority, offers, for a fee, 

24 to acquire for any individual, or to assist in acquir25 ing for any individual, an additional Social Security 
45 

•S 2801 IS 

1 account number or a number which purports to be 

2 a Social Security account number; 

3 ‘‘(I) with intent to deceive, discloses, sells, or 

4 transfers his own Social Security account number, 

5 assigned to him by the Commissioner of Social Secu6 rity under section 205(c)(2)(B), to any person; 

7 ‘‘(J) being an officer or employee of any execu8 tive, legislative, or judicial agency or instrumentality 

9 of the Federal Government or of a State or political 

10 subdivision thereof (or a person acting as an agent 

11 of such an agency or instrumentality), in possession 

12 of any individual’s Social Security account number, 

13 willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a violation 

14 of clause (vi)(II), (x), (xi), (xii), (xiii), or (xiv) of 

15 section 205(c)(2)(C); 

16 ‘‘(K) being a trustee appointed in a case under 

17 title 11, United States Code (or an officer or em18 ployee thereof or a person acting as an agent there19 of), willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a vio20 lation of clause (x), (xi), or (xiv) of section 

21 205(c)(2)(C); 

22 ‘‘(L) violates section 208A (relating to prohibi23 tion of the sale, purchase, or display of the Social 

24 Security account number in the private sector); or 
46 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(M) violates section 208B (relating to fraud by 

2 Social Security administration employees); 

3 shall be subject to, in addition to any other penalties that 

4 may be prescribed by law, a civil money penalty of not 

5 more than $5,000 for each violation. Such person shall 

6 also be subject to an assessment, in lieu of damages sus7 tained by the United States resulting from such violation, 

8 of not more than twice the amount of any benefits or pay9 ments paid as a result of such violation.’’. 

10 (b) EFFECTIVE DATES.—The amendments made by 

11 this section shall apply with respect to violations com12 mitted after the date of the enactment of this Act, except 

13 that subparagraphs (J), (K), (L), and (M) of section 

14 1129(a)(3) of the Social Security Act (added by subsection 

15 (a)) shall apply with respect to violations occurring on or 

16 after the effective date provided in connection with such 

17 violations under title I. 

18 SEC. 303. CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR EMPLOYEES OF THE 

19 SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION WHO 

20 KNOWINGLY AND FRAUDULENTLY ISSUE SO21 CIAL SECURITY CARDS OR SOCIAL SECURITY 

22 ACCOUNT NUMBERS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title II of the Social Security Act 

24 (as amended by the preceding provisions of this Act) is 
47 

•S 2801 IS 

1 amended further by inserting after section 208A the fol2 lowing new section: 

3 ‘‘FRAUD BY SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

4 EMPLOYEES

5 ‘‘SEC. 208B. (a) Whoever is an employee of the So6 cial Security Administration and knowingly and fraudu7 lently sells or transfers one or more Social Security ac8 count numbers or Social Security cards shall be guilty of 

9 a felony and upon conviction thereof shall be fined under 

10 title 18, United States Code, imprisoned as provided in 

11 subsection (b), or both. 

12 ‘‘(b) Imprisonment for a violation described in sub13 section (a) shall be for— 

14 ‘‘(1) not less than 1 year and up to 5 years, in 

15 the case of an employee of the Social Security Ad16 ministration who has fraudulently sold or trans17 ferred not more than 50 Social Security account 

18 numbers or Social Security cards, 

19 ‘‘(2) not less than 5 years and up to 10 years, 

20 in the case of an employee of the Social Security Ad21 ministration who has fraudulently sold or trans22 ferred more than 50, but not more than 100, Social 

23 Security account numbers or Social Security cards, 

24 or 

25 ‘‘(3) not less than 10 years and up to 20 years, 

26 in the case of an employee of the Social Security Ad-
48 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ministration who has fraudulently sold or trans2 ferred more than 100 Social Security account num3 bers or Social Security cards. 

4 ‘‘(c) For purposes of this section— 

5 ‘‘(1) The term ‘Social Security employee’ means 

6 any State employee of a State disability determina7 tion service, any officer, employee, or contractor of 

8 the Social Security Administration, any employee of 

9 such a contractor, or any volunteer providing serv10 ices or assistance in any facility of the Social Secu11 rity Administration. 

12 ‘‘(2) The term ‘Social Security account number’ 

13 means a Social Security account number assigned by 

14 the Commissioner of Social Security under section 

15 205(c)(2)(B) or another number that has not been 

16 so assigned but is purported to have been so as17 signed. 

18 ‘‘(3) The term ‘Social Security card’ means a 

19 card issued by the Commissioner of Social Security 

20 under section 205(c)(2)(G), another card which has 

21 not been so issued but is purported to have been so 

22 issued, and banknote paper of the type described in 

23 section 205(c)(2)(G) prepared for the entry of Social 

24 Security account numbers, whether fully completed 

25 or not. 
49 

•S 2801 IS 

1 ‘‘(d) Any employee of the Social Security Administra2 tion who attempts or conspires to commit any violation 

3 of this section shall be subject to the same penalties as 

4 those prescribed for the violation the commission of which 

5 was the object of the attempt or conspiracy.’’. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

7 this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 

8 on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

9 SEC. 304. ENHANCED PENALTIES IN CASES OF TERRORISM, 

10 DRUG TRAFFICKING, CRIMES OF VIOLENCE, 

11 OR PRIOR OFFENSES. 

12 (a) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE II.—Section 208 of the 

13 Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 408) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘shall be 

15 fined’’ and all that follows and inserting the fol16 lowing: ‘‘shall be fined, imprisoned, or both, as pro17 vided in subsection (b).’’; 

18 (2) by redesignating subsections (b), (c), and 

19 (d) as subsections (c), (d), and (e), respectively; and 

20 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol21 lowing new subsection: 

22 ‘‘(b) A person convicted of a violation described in 

23 subsection (a) shall be— 

24 ‘‘(1) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

25 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, 
50 

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1 in the case of an initial violation, subject to para2 graphs (3) and (4), 

3 ‘‘(2) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

4 or imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both, 

5 in the case of a violation which occurs after a prior 

6 conviction for another offense under subsection (a) 

7 becomes final, subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), 

8 ‘‘(3) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

9 or imprisoned for not more than 20 years, in the 

10 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

11 a drug trafficking crime (as defined in section 

12 929(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code) or in con13 nection with a crime of violence (as defined in sec14 tion 924(c)(3) of title 18, United States Code), sub15 ject to paragraph (4), and 

16 ‘‘(4) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

17 or imprisoned for not more than 25 years, in the 

18 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

19 an act of international or domestic terrorism (as de20 fined in paragraphs (1) and (5), respectively, of sec21 tion 2331 of title 18, United States Code).’’; and 

22 (4) in subsection (c) (as redesignated by para23 graph (2))— 

24 (A) by striking the first sentence; and 
51 

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1 (B) in the second sentence, by striking 

2 ‘‘any violation described in the preceding sen3 tence, including a first such violation’’ and in4 serting ‘‘a violation of any of the provisions of 

5 this section committed by any person or other 

6 entity in the role of such person or entity as, 

7 or in applying to become, a certified payee 

8 under section 205(j) on behalf of another indi9 vidual (other than such person’s spouse)’’. 

10 (b) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE VIII.—Section 811 of 

11 such Act (42 U.S.C. 1011) is amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘shall be 

13 fined’’ and all that follows and inserting ‘‘shall be 

14 fined, imprisoned, or both, as provided in subsection 

15 (b).’’; 

16 (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub17 section (c); and 

18 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol19 lowing new subsection: 

20 ‘‘(b) PUNISHMENT.—A person convicted of a viola21 tion described in subsection (a) shall be— 

22 ‘‘(1) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

23 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, 

24 in the case of an initial violation, subject to para25 graphs (3) and (4), 
52 

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1 ‘‘(2) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

2 or imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both, 

3 in the case of a violation which occurs after a prior 

4 conviction for another offense under subsection (a) 

5 becomes final, subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), 

6 ‘‘(3) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

7 or imprisoned for not more than 20 years, in the 

8 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

9 a drug trafficking crime (as defined in section 

10 929(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code) or in con11 nection with a crime of violence (as defined in sec12 tion 924(c)(3) of title 18, United States Code), sub13 ject to paragraph (4), and 

14 ‘‘(4) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

15 or imprisoned for not more than 25 years, in the 

16 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

17 an act of international or domestic terrorism (as de18 fined in paragraphs (1) and (5), respectively, of sec19 tion 2331 of title 18, United States Code).’’. 

20 (c) AMENDMENTS TO TITLE XVI.—Section 1632 of 

21 such Act (42 U.S.C. 1383a) is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘shall be 

23 fined’’ and all that follows and inserting ‘‘shall be 

24 fined, imprisoned, or both, as provided in subsection 

25 (b).’’; 
53 

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1 (2) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as 

2 subsections (c) and (d), respectively; and 

3 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol4 lowing new subsection: 

5 ‘‘(b) A person convicted of a violation described in 

6 subsection (a) shall be— 

7 ‘‘(1) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

8 or imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, 

9 in the case of an initial violation, subject to para10 graphs (3) and (4), 

11 ‘‘(2) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

12 or imprisoned for not more than 10 years, or both, 

13 in the case of a violation which occurs after a prior 

14 conviction for another offense under subsection (a) 

15 becomes final, subject to paragraphs (3) and (4), 

16 ‘‘(3) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

17 or imprisoned for not more than 20 years, in the 

18 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

19 a drug trafficking crime (as defined in section 

20 929(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code) or in con21 nection with a crime of violence (as defined in sec22 tion 924(c)(3) of title 18, United States Code), sub23 ject to paragraph (4), and 

24 ‘‘(4) fined under title 18, United States Code, 

25 or imprisoned for not more than 25 years, in the 
54 

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1 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

2 an act of international or domestic terrorism (as de3 fined in paragraphs (1) and (5), respectively, of sec4 tion 2331 of title 18, United States Code).’’. 

5 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

6 this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 

7 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ