I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3306 

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 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 23, 2009 

Mr. TANNER (for himself and Mr. SAM JOHNSON of Texas) introduced the 

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Ways and Means 

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 2009’’. 


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

2 as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Restrictions on the sale or display to the general public of social security account numbers by governmental entities. 

Sec. 3. Prohibition of display of social security account numbers on checks 

issued for payment by governmental entities. 

Sec. 4. Prohibition of the display of social security account numbers on certain 

government identification cards or tags. 

Sec. 5. Prohibition of inmate access to social security account numbers. 

Sec. 6. Measures to preclude unauthorized disclosure by governmental entities 

of social security account numbers and protect the confidentiality of such numbers. 

Sec. 7. Uniform standards for truncation of the social security account number. 

Sec. 8. Prohibition of the sale, purchase, and display to the general public of 

the social security account number in the private sector. 

Sec. 9. New criminal penalties for misuse of social security account numbers. 

Sec. 10. Extension of civil monetary penalty authority. 

Sec. 11. Criminal penalties for employees of the Social Security Administration 

who knowingly and fraudulently issue social security cards or 

social security account numbers. 

Sec. 12. Enhanced penalties in cases of terrorism, drug trafficking, crimes of 

violence, or prior offenses. 

Sec. 13. Regulatory and enforcement authority with respect to misuse of the social security account number. 

Sec. 14. Study on feasibility of banning social security account number as an 

authenticator. 

3 SEC. 2. RESTRICTIONS ON THE SALE OR DISPLAY TO THE 

4 GENERAL PUBLIC OF SOCIAL SECURITY AC5 COUNT NUMBERS BY GOVERNMENTAL ENTI6 TIES. 

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

8 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 405(c)(2)(C)) is amended by add9 ing at the end the following new clause: 

10 ‘‘(x)(I) A governmental entity (as defined in sub11 clause (X)) may not sell or display to the general public 

12 any social security account number if such number has 

13 been disclosed to such governmental entity pursuant to the 

14 assertion by such governmental entity to any person that 


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1 disclosure of such number is a statutory or regulatory re2 quirement. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, such 

3 number may be sold or displayed to the general public in 

4 accordance with the exceptions specified in subclauses (II), 

5 (III), (IV), (V), (VI), (VII), and (VIII) (and for no other 

6 purpose). 

7 ‘‘(II) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a social security 

8 account number may be sold by a governmental entity to 

9 the extent that such sale is specifically authorized by this 

10 Act or the Privacy Act of 1974. 

11 ‘‘(III) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a social secu12 rity account number may be sold by a governmental entity 

13 to the extent that is necessary or appropriate for law en14 forcement or national security purposes, as determined 

15 under regulations which shall be issued as provided in sec16 tion 1129C. 

17 ‘‘(IV) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a social security 

18 account number may be sold by a governmental entity to 

19 the extent that such sale is required to comply with a tax 

20 law of the United States or of any State (or political sub21 division thereof). 

22 ‘‘(V) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a social security 

23 account number may be sold by a State department of 

24 motor vehicles as authorized under subsection (b) of sec25 tion 2721 of title 18, United States Code, if such number 


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1 is to be used pursuant to such sale solely for purposes 

2 permitted under paragraph (1), (6), or (9) of such sub3 section. 

4 ‘‘(VI) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a social security 

5 account number may be sold or otherwise made available 

6 by a governmental entity 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 a governmental entity 

13 to the extent necessary for research (other than market 

14 research) conducted by any governmental entity for the 

15 purpose of advancing the public good, on the condition 

16 that the researcher provides adequate assurances that the 

17 social security account numbers will not be used to harass, 

18 target, or publicly reveal information concerning any iden19 tifiable individuals, that information about identifiable in20 dividuals obtained from the research will not be used to 

21 make decisions that directly affect the rights, benefits, or 

22 privileges of specific individuals, and that the researcher 

23 has in place appropriate safeguards to protect the privacy 

24 and confidentiality of any information about identifiable 

25 individuals, including procedures to ensure that the social 


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1 security account numbers will be encrypted or otherwise 

2 appropriately secured from unauthorized disclosure. In the 

3 case of medical research, the Commissioner of Social Secu4 rity shall maintain ongoing consultation with the Office 

5 for Civil Rights of the Department of Health and Human 

6 Services to ensure that the sale or purchase of social secu7 rity account numbers which constitute personally identifi8 able medical information is permitted only in compliance 

9 with existing Federal rules and regulations prescribed by 

10 the Secretary of Health and Human Services pursuant to 

11 section 264(c) of the Health Insurance Portability and Ac12 countability Act of 1996 (110 Stat. 2033). 

13 ‘‘(VIII) Notwithstanding subclause (I), a social secu14 rity account number may be sold or displayed to the gen15 eral public by a governmental entity under such other cir16 cumstances as may be specified in regulations issued as 

17 provided in section 1129C. 

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

19 social security account number of a deceased individual. 

20 ‘‘(X) For purposes of this clause, the term ‘govern21 mental entity’ means an executive, legislative, or judicial 

22 agency or instrumentality of the Federal Government or 

23 of a State or political subdivision thereof, a federally rec24 ognized Indian tribe, or a trustee appointed in a case 

25 under title 11, United States Code. Such term includes 


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1 a person acting as an agent of such an agency or instru2 mentality, Indian tribe, or trustee. For purposes of this 

3 subclause, the term ‘State’ has the meaning provided in 

4 subparagraph (D)(iii)(II). 

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

6 means, in connection with a social security account, to ob7 tain, directly or indirectly, anything of value in exchange 

8 for such number. Such term does not include the submis9 sion of such number as part of the process for applying 

10 for any type of Government benefits or programs (such 

11 as grants, loans, or welfare or other public assistance pro12 grams) or as part of the administration of, or provision 

13 of benefits under, an employee benefit plan. 

14 ‘‘(XII) For purposes of this clause, the term ‘display 

15 to the general public’ shall have the meaning provided 

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

17 a governmental entity requires transmittal to such govern18 mental entity of an individual’s social security account 

19 number by means of the Internet without ensuring that 

20 such number is encrypted or otherwise appropriately se21 cured from disclosure, any such transmittal of such num22 ber as so required shall be treated, for purposes of this 

23 clause, as a ‘display to the general public’ of such number 

24 by such governmental entity for purposes of this clause. 


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1 ‘‘(XIII) For purposes of this clause, the term ‘social 

2 security account number’ includes any derivative of such 

3 number. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence, any ex4 pression, contained in or on any item sold or displayed 

5 to the general public, shall not be treated as a social secu6 rity account number solely because such expression sets 

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

8 the remainder of such number cannot be determined based 

9 solely on such expression or any other matter presented 

10 in or on such item. 

11 ‘‘(XIV) Nothing in the preceding subclauses of this 

12 clause shall be construed as superseding, altering, or af13 fecting any statute, regulation, order, or interpretation in 

14 effect under any other Federal or State law, except to the 

15 extent that such statute, regulation, order, or interpreta16 tion is inconsistent with such subclauses, and then only 

17 to the extent of the inconsistency. For purposes of this 

18 subclause, a statue, regulation, order, or interpretation is 

19 not inconsistent with the preceding subclauses of this 

20 clause if the protection such statute, regulation, order, or 

21 interpretation affords any person is greater than the pro22 tection provided under such subclauses.’’. 

23 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE AND RELATED RULES.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Initial final regulations pre25 scribed to carry out the provisions of section 


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1 205(c)(2)(C)(x) of the Social Security Act (added by 

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

3 date of the 18th calendar month following the date 

4 of the enactment of this Act. Such provisions shall 

5 take effect, with respect to matters governed by such 

6 regulations issued by the Commissioner of Social Se7 curity or any other agency or instrumentality of the 

8 United States, 1 year after the date of the issuance 

9 of such regulations by the Commissioner or such 

10 other agency or instrumentality, respectively. Such 

11 provisions shall apply in the case of displays to the 

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

13 such Act (added by section 8 of this Act), to such 

14 displays originally occurring after such 1-year pe15 riod. Such provisions shall not apply with respect to 

16 any display of a record (containing a social security 

17 account number (or any derivative thereof)) gen18 erated prior to the close of such 1-year period. 

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

20 of subclause (XIII) of section 205(c)(2)(C)(x) of the 

21 Social Security Act (added by this section) shall 

22 cease to be effective with respect to sales or displays 

23 to the general public occurring after 2 years after 

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1 scribed to carry out the provisions of such section 

2 205(c)(2)(C)(x). 

3 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION OF DISPLAY OF SOCIAL SECURITY AC4 COUNT NUMBERS ON CHECKS ISSUED FOR 

5 PAYMENT BY GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES. 

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

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

8 section 2 of this Act) is amended further by adding at 

9 the end the following new clause: 

10 ‘‘(xi) No governmental entity (as defined in clause 

11 (x)(X)) may include the social security account number 

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

13 any check issued for any payment by such governmental 

14 entity or on any document attached to or accompanying 

15 such a check.’’. 

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

17 this section shall apply with respect to checks (and docu18 ments attached to or accompanying such checks) issued 

19 after 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

20 SEC. 4. PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAY OF SOCIAL SECU21 RITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS ON CERTAIN GOV22 ERNMENT IDENTIFICATION CARDS OR TAGS. 

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

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


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1 preceding provisions of this Act) is amended further by 

2 adding at the end the following new clause: 

3 ‘‘(xii) No governmental entity (as defined in clause 

4 (x)(X)), and no other person offering benefits in connec5 tion with an employee benefit plan maintained by such 

6 governmental entity, may display a social security account 

7 number (or any derivative thereof) on any card or tag that 

8 is commonly provided— 

9 ‘‘(I) to employees of such governmental entity, 

10 ‘‘(II) in the case of a governmental entity which 

11 is an educational institution, to its students, or 

12 ‘‘(III) in the case of a governmental entity 

13 which is a medical institution, to its patients, 

14 (or to their family members) for purposes of identification 

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

16 or other means of communication which conveys such 

17 number (or derivative thereof). The requirements of this 

18 clause shall also apply to the Medicare card issued by the 

19 Department of Health and Human Services.’’. 

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

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

22 after 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 

23 except that the last sentence of section 205(c)(2)(C)(xii) 

24 (as added by this section) shall take effect 2 and one-half 

25 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 5. PROHIBITION OF INMATE ACCESS TO SOCIAL SECU2 RITY 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 Act) is amended further by 

6 adding at the end the following new clause: 

7 ‘‘(xiii) No governmental entity (as defined in clause 

8 (x)(X)) may employ, or enter into a contract for the use 

9 or employment of, prisoners in any capacity that would 

10 allow such prisoners access to the social security account 

11 numbers of other individuals (or any derivatives of such 

12 numbers). For purposes of this clause, the term ‘prisoner’ 

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

14 penal institution or correctional facility.’’. 

15 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para17 graph (2), the amendment made by this section shall 

18 apply with respect to employment of prisoners, or 

19 entry into contract for the use or employment of 

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

21 this Act. 

22 (2) TREATMENT OF CURRENT ARRANGE23 MENTS.—In the case of— 

24 (A) prisoners employed as described in 

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1 cial Security Act (as added by this section) on 

2 the date of the enactment of this Act, and 

3 (B) contracts described in such clause in 

4 effect on such date, 

5 the amendment made by this section shall take ef6 fect 90 days after the date of the enactment of this 

7 Act. 

8 SEC. 6. MEASURES TO PRECLUDE UNAUTHORIZED DISCLO9 SURE BY GOVERNMENTAL ENTITIES OF SO10 CIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS AND 

11 PROTECT THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF SUCH 

12 NUMBERS. 

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

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

15 preceding provisions of this Act) is amended further by 

16 adding at the end the following new clause: 

17 ‘‘(xiv) Except as otherwise provided in this para18 graph, in the case of any governmental entity (as defined 

19 in clause (x)(X)) having access to an individual’s social 

20 security account number— 

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

22 access to such number for any purpose other than 

23 the effective administration of the statutory provi24 sions governing its functions, 


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1 ‘‘(II) such governmental entity shall restrict, to 

2 the satisfaction of the Commissioner of Social Secu3 rity, access to social security account numbers ob4 tained thereby to officers and employees thereof 

5 whose duties or responsibilities require access for the 

6 administration or enforcement of such provisions, 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(III) such governmental entity shall provide 

9 such other safeguards as the Commissioner deter10 mines to be necessary or appropriate to preclude un11 authorized access to the social security account num12 ber and to otherwise protect the confidentiality of 

13 such number. 

14 For purposes of this clause the term ‘social security ac15 count number’ includes any derivative thereof.’’. 

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

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

18 enactment of this Act. 

19 SEC. 7. UNIFORM STANDARDS FOR TRUNCATION OF THE 

20 SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER. 

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

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

23 preceding provisions of this Act) is amended further by 

24 adding at the end the following new clause: 


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1 ‘‘(xv) The truncation by any governmental entity (as 

2 defined in clause (x)(X)) or by any person in the private 

3 sector of an individual’s social security account number 

4 which is used by such governmental entity or person other5 wise in accordance with the requirements of this Act shall 

6 be in accordance with a uniform truncation standard 

7 which shall be specified in regulations prescribed by the 

8 Commissioner of Social Security. Under such standard, 

9 the number as truncated shall set forth not more than the 

10 last 4 digits of the number. Nothing in this clause shall 

11 be construed to authorize any use of the social security 

12 account number which is not otherwise authorized by this 

13 title or regulations prescribed thereunder.’’. 

14 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Initial final regulations pre15 scribed to carry out the provisions of section 

16 205(c)(2)(C)(xv) of the Social Security Act (added by this 

17 section) shall be issued not later than the last date of the 

18 18th calendar month following the date of the enactment 

19 of this Act. Such provisions shall take effect, with respect 

20 to matters governed by such regulations issued by the 

21 Commissioner or any other agency or instrumentality of 

22 the United States, 1 year after the date of the issuance 

23 of such regulations by the Commissioner or such other 

24 agency or instrumentality, respectively. 


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1 SEC. 8. 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: 

8 ‘‘PROHIBITION OF THE SALE, PURCHASE, AND DISPLAY

9 TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY

10 ACCOUNT NUMBER IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR

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

12 section: 

13 ‘‘(1) PERSON.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara15 graph (B), the term ‘person’ means any indi16 vidual, partnership, corporation, trust, estate, 

17 cooperative, association, or any other entity. 

18 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION OF GOVERNMENTAL EN19 TITIES.—Such term does not include a govern20 mental entity. Nothing in this subparagraph 

21 shall be construed to authorize, in connection 

22 with a governmental entity, an act or practice 

23 otherwise prohibited under this section or sec24 tion 205(c)(2)(C). 

25 ‘‘(2) SELLING AND PURCHASING.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara2 graph (B)— 

3 ‘‘(i) SELL.—The term ‘sell’ in connec4 tion with a social security account number 

5 means to obtain, directly or indirectly, any6 thing of value in exchange for such num7 ber. 

8 ‘‘(ii) PURCHASE.—The term ‘pur9 chase’ in connection with a social security 

10 account number means to provide, directly 

11 or indirectly, anything of value in exchange 

12 for such number. 

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

14 ‘purchase’ in connection with a social security 

15 account number do not include the submission 

16 of such number as part of— 

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

18 type of Government benefits or programs 

19 (such as grants or loans or welfare or 

20 other public assistance programs), 

21 ‘‘(ii) the administration of, or provi22 sion of benefits under, an employee benefit 

23 plan, or 

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

25 or exchange of a trade or business. 


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1 ‘‘(3) DISPLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.— 

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

3 the general public’ means, in connection with a 

4 social security account number, to intentionally 

5 place such number in a viewable manner on an 

6 Internet site that is available to the general 

7 public or to make such number available in any 

8 other manner intended to provide access to such 

9 number by the general public. 

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

11 case in which a person requires transmittal to 

12 such person of an individual’s social security ac13 count number by means of the Internet without 

14 ensuring that such number is encrypted or oth15 erwise well-secured from disclosure, any such 

16 transmittal of such number as so required shall 

17 be treated as a ‘display to the general public’ 

18 of such number by such person. 

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

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘social secu21 rity account number’ has the meaning given 

22 such term in section 208(e), except that such 

23 term includes any derivative of such number. 

24 ‘‘(B) 4-DIGIT EXPRESSION.—Notwith25 standing the preceding sentence, for purposes of 


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1 subsection (b)(1)(A), any expression, contained 

2 in or on any item sold or displayed to the gen3 eral public, shall not be treated as a social secu4 rity account number solely because such expres5 sion sets forth not more than the last 4 digits 

6 of such number, if the remainder of such num7 ber cannot be determined based solely on such 

8 expression or any other matter presented in or 

9 on such item. 

10 ‘‘(5) GOVERNMENTAL ENTITY.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘govern12 mental entity’ means an executive, legislative, 

13 or judicial agency or instrumentality of the 

14 Federal Government, a State or political sub15 division thereof, a federally recognized Indian 

16 tribe, or a trustee appointed in a case under 

17 title 11, United States Code. Such term in18 cludes a person acting as an agent of such an 

19 agency or instrumentality, Indian tribe, or 

20 trustee. 

21 ‘‘(B) STATE.—The term ‘State’ includes 

22 the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of 

23 Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, the 

24 Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, and 

25 the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. 


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1 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION OF SALE, PURCHASE, AND DIS2 PLAY TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para4 graph (2), it shall be unlawful for any person to— 

5 ‘‘(A) sell or purchase a social security ac6 count number or display to the general public 

7 a social security account number, or 

8 ‘‘(B) obtain or use any individual’s social 

9 security account number for the purpose of lo10 cating or identifying such individual with the 

11 intent to harass, harm, or physically injure such 

12 individual or using the identity of such indi13 vidual for any illegal purpose. 

14 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding para16 graph (1), and subject to paragraph (3), a so17 cial security account number may be sold or 

18 purchased by any person to the extent provided 

19 in this subsection (and for no other purpose) as 

20 follows: 

21 ‘‘(i) to the extent necessary for law 

22 enforcement, including (but not limited to) 

23 the enforcement of a child support obliga24 tion, as determined under regulations 

25 issued as provided in section 1129C; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) to the extent necessary for na2 tional security purposes, as determined 

3 under regulations issued as provided in 

4 section 1129C; 

5 ‘‘(iii) to the extent necessary for pub6 lic health purposes; 

7 ‘‘(iv) to the extent necessary in emer8 gency situations to protect the health or 

9 safety of 1 or more individuals; 

10 ‘‘(v) to the extent that the sale or pur11 chase is required to comply with a tax law 

12 of the United States or of any State (or 

13 political subdivision thereof); 

14 ‘‘(vi) to the extent that the sale or 

15 purchase is to or by a consumer reporting 

16 agency (as defined in section 603(f) of the 

17 Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 

18 1681a(f))) for use or disclosure solely for 

19 permissible purposes described in section 

20 604(a) of such Act (15 U.S.C. 1681b(a)); 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(vii) to the extent necessary for re23 search (other than market research) con24 ducted by an agency or instrumentality of 

25 the United States or of a State or political 


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1 subdivision thereof (or a person acting as 

2 an agent of such an agency or instrumen3 tality) for the purpose of advancing the 

4 public good, on the condition that the re5 searcher provides adequate assurances 

6 that— 

7 ‘‘(I) the social security account 

8 numbers will not be used to harass, 

9 target, or publicly reveal information 

10 concerning any identifiable individ11 uals; 

12 ‘‘(II) information about identifi13 able individuals obtained from the re14 search will not be used to make deci15 sions that directly affect the rights, 

16 benefits, or privileges of specific indi17 viduals; and 

18 ‘‘(III) the researcher has in place 

19 appropriate safeguards to protect the 

20 privacy and confidentiality of any in21 formation about identifiable individ22 uals, including procedures to ensure 

23 that the social security account num24 bers will be encrypted or otherwise apVerDate Nov 24 2008 03:46 Jul 24, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3306.IH H3306

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1 propriately secured from unauthorized 

2 disclosure. 

3 ‘‘(B) MEDICAL RESEARCH.—In the case of 

4 research referred to in subparagraph (A)(vii) 

5 consisting of medical research, the Commis6 sioner of Social Security shall maintain ongoing 

7 consultation with the Office for Civil Rights of 

8 the Department of Health and Human Services 

9 to ensure that the sale or purchase of social se10 curity account numbers which constitute per11 sonally identifiable medical information is per12 mitted only in compliance with existing Federal 

13 rules and regulations prescribed by the Sec14 retary of Health and Human Services pursuant 

15 to section 264(c) of the Health Insurance Port16 ability and Accountability Act of 1996 (110 

17 Stat. 2033). 

18 ‘‘(3) CONSENT AND OTHER CIRCUMSTANCES

19 DETERMINED BY REGULATION.—Notwithstanding 

20 paragraph (1), a social security account number as21 signed to an individual may be sold or purchased by 

22 any person— 

23 ‘‘(A) to the extent consistent with such in24 dividual’s voluntary and affirmative written 

25 consent to the sale or purchase, but only if— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the terms of the consent and the 

2 right to refuse consent are presented to the 

3 individual in a clear, conspicuous, and un4 derstandable manner, 

5 ‘‘(ii) the individual is placed under no 

6 obligation to provide consent to any such 

7 sale or purchase, and 

8 ‘‘(iii) the terms of the consent author9 ize the individual to limit the sale or pur10 chase to purposes directly associated with 

11 the transaction with respect to which the 

12 consent is sought, and 

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

14 deemed appropriate in regulations issued as 

15 provided under section 1129C. 

16 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION OF DISPLAY ON CHECKS.—It shall 

17 be unlawful for any person to include the social security 

18 account number of any other individual on any check 

19 issued for any payment by such person or on any docu20 ment attached to or accompanying such a check. 

21 ‘‘(d) PROHIBITION OF UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE

22 TO GOVERNMENT AGENCIES OR INSTRUMENTALITIES.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any 

24 person to communicate by any means to any agency 

25 or instrumentality of the United States or of any 


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1 State or political subdivision thereof the social secu2 rity account number of any individual other than 

3 such person without the written permission of such 

4 individual, unless the number was requested by the 

5 agency or instrumentality. In the case of an indi6 vidual who is legally incompetent, permission pro7 vided by the individual’s legal representatives shall 

8 be deemed to be permission provided by such indi9 vidual. 

10 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

11 apply to the extent necessary— 

12 ‘‘(A) for law enforcement, including (but 

13 not limited to) the enforcement of a child sup14 port obligation, or 

15 ‘‘(B) for national security purposes, 

16 as determined under regulations issued as provided 

17 under section 1129C. 

18 ‘‘(e) PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAYS ON CARDS OR

19 TAGS REQUIRED FOR ACCESS TO GOODS, SERVICES, OR

20 BENEFITS.—No person may display a social security ac21 count number on any card or tag issued to any other per22 son for the purpose of providing such other person access 

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

24 or tag a magnetic strip, bar code, or other means of com25 munication which conveys such number. 


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1 ‘‘(f) PROHIBITION OF THE DISPLAYS ON EMPLOYEE

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

3 employer, and no other person offering benefits in connec4 tion with an employee benefit plan maintained by such em5 ployer or acting as an agent of such employer, may display 

6 a social security account number on any card or tag that 

7 is commonly provided to employees of such employer (or 

8 to their family members) for purposes of identification or 

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

10 or other means of communication which conveys such 

11 number. 

12 ‘‘(g) MEASURES TO PRECLUDE UNAUTHORIZED DIS13 CLOSURE OF SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS AND

14 PROTECT THE CONFIDENTIALITY OF SUCH NUMBERS.— 

15 Subject to the preceding provisions of this section, any 

16 person having access to the social security account number 

17 of any individual other than such person shall, to the ex18 tent that such access is maintained for the conduct of such 

19 person’s trade or business— 

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

21 has access to such number for any purpose other 

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

23 trade or business, 

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

25 the Commissioner of Social Security, access to social 


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1 security account numbers obtained thereby to offi2 cers and employees thereof whose duties or respon3 sibilities require access for the conduct of such per4 son’s trade or business, and 

5 ‘‘(3) provide such safeguards as may be speci6 fied, in regulations of the Commissioner of Social 

7 Security, to be necessary or appropriate to preclude 

8 unauthorized access to the social security account 

9 number and to otherwise protect the confidentiality 

10 of such number. 

11 ‘‘(h) DECEASED INDIVIDUALS.—This section does 

12 not apply with respect to the social security account num13 ber of a deceased individual. 

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

15 Nothing in the preceding subsections of this section shall 

16 be construed as superseding, altering, or affecting any 

17 statutory provision, regulation, order, or interpretation in 

18 effect under any other Federal or State law, except to the 

19 extent that such statutory provision, regulation, order, or 

20 interpretation is inconsistent with such subsections, and 

21 then only to the extent of the inconsistency. For purposes 

22 of this subclause, a statutory provision, regulation, order, 

23 or interpretation is not inconsistent with the preceding 

24 subsections of this section if the protection such statutory 

25 provision, regulation, order, or interpretation affords any 


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1 person is greater than the protection provided under such 

2 subsections.’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE AND RELATED RULES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Initial final regulations pre5 scribed to carry out the provisions of section 208A 

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

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

8 18th calendar month following the date of the enact9 ment of this Act. Such provisions shall take effect, 

10 with respect to matters governed by such regulations 

11 issued by the Commissioner of Social Security or 

12 any other agency or instrumentality of the United 

13 States, 1 year after the date of the issuance of such 

14 regulations by the Commissioner of Social Security 

15 or such other agency or instrumentality, respectively. 

16 Section 208A(b) of such Act shall apply in the case 

17 of displays to the general public (as defined in sec18 tion 208A(a)(3) of such Act) to such displays to the 

19 general public originally occurring after such 1-year 

20 period. Such provisions shall not apply with respect 

21 to any such display to the general public of a record 

22 (containing a social security account number (or any 

23 derivative thereof)) generated prior to the close of 

24 such 1-year period. 


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1 (2) SUNSET OF EXCEPTION.—Section 

2 208A(a)(4)(B) of the Social Security Act (added by 

3 this section) shall cease to be effective with respect 

4 to sales, purchases, or displays to the general public 

5 occurring after 2 years after the effective date of the 

6 initial final regulations prescribed to carry out the 

7 provisions of section 208A of such Act. 

8 SEC. 9. NEW CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR MISUSE OF SOCIAL 

9 SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 208 of the Social Security 

11 Act (42 U.S.C. 408) is amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘or’’ at the 

13 end of paragraph (8) and by inserting after para14 graph (8) the following new paragraph: 

15 ‘‘(9) willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause 

16 a violation of section 208A(b)(1)(B);’’. 

17 (2) by redesignating subsections (b) through (e) 

18 as subsections (c) through (f), respectively; 

19 (3) in subsection (c)(1) (as so redesignated), by 

20 inserting ‘‘or (b)’’ after ‘‘subsection (a)’’; and 

21 (4) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol22 lowing new subsection: 

23 ‘‘(b)(1) Whoever— 

24 ‘‘(A) knowingly, and with intent to commit, or 

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1 tion of Federal law, or a violation of any applicable 

2 law of a State or political subdivision thereof if the 

3 maximum penalty of such applicable law includes 

4 imprisonment for 5 years or more— 

5 ‘‘(i) possesses the social security account 

6 number of another person without lawful au7 thority, or 

8 ‘‘(ii) possesses a social security card, know9 ing that the social security account number or 

10 other identifying information displayed on the 

11 card has been altered, counterfeited, or forged 

12 or that the card was falsely made, stolen, or ob13 tained from the Social Security Administration 

14 by use of false information; 

15 if such activity is committed, or aided or abetted, 

16 with intent to use such social security account num17 ber, social security card, or other identifying infor18 mation displayed on such card in furtherance of 

19 such violation; 

20 ‘‘(B) being— 

21 ‘‘(i) an officer or employee of any govern22 mental entity (as defined in section 

23 205(c)(2)(C)(x)(X)), or 

24 ‘‘(ii) a person acting as an agent of a gov25 ernmental entity (as so defined), 


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

2 of clause (vi)(II), (xi), (xii), or (xv) of section 

3 205(c)(2)(C); 

4 ‘‘(C) being a trustee appointed in a case under 

5 title 11, United States Code (or an officer or em6 ployee thereof or a person acting as an agent there7 of), willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a vio8 lation of clause (xi) or (xv) of section 205(c)(2)(C); 

9 or 

10 ‘‘(D) willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause 

11 a violation of subsection (c), (d), (e), or (f) of sec12 tion 208A or, as a person in the private sector, will13 fully acts or fails to act so as to cause a violation 

14 of section 205(c)(2)(C)(xv); 

15 shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction 

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

17 or imprisoned for not more than 1 year, or both. 

18 ‘‘(2)(A) Whoever— 

19 ‘‘(i) with intent to deceive, discloses, sells, or 

20 transfers his own social security account number, as21 signed to him by the Commissioner of Social Secu22 rity (in the exercise of the Commissioner’s authority 

23 under section 205(c)(2) to establish and maintain 

24 records), to any person; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) without lawful authority, offers, for a fee, 

2 to acquire for any individual, or to assist in acquir3 ing for any individual, an additional social security 

4 account number or a number that is purported to be 

5 a social security account number; 

6 ‘‘(iii) being— 

7 ‘‘(I) an officer or employee of any govern8 mental entity (as defined in section 

9 205(c)(2)(C)(x)(X)), or 

10 ‘‘(II) a person acting as an agent of a gov11 ernmental entity (as so defined), 

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

13 of clause (x), (xiii), or (xiv) of section 205(c)(2)(C); 

14 ‘‘(iv) being a trustee appointed in a case under 

15 title 11, United States Code (or an officer or em16 ployee thereof or a person acting as an agent there17 of), willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a vio18 lation of clause (x) or (xiv) of section 205(c)(2)(C); 

19 or 

20 ‘‘(v) willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause 

21 a violation of subsection (b)(1)(A) or (g) of section 

22 208A; 

23 shall be fined, imprisoned, or both, as provided in 

24 subparagraph (B). 


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1 ‘‘(B) A person convicted of a violation described 

2 in subparagraph (A) shall— 

3 ‘‘(i) be fined under title 18, United States 

4 Code, imprisoned not more than 1 year, or both; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) if the offense is committed under false pre6 tenses or for commercial advantage, personal gain, 

7 or malicious harm, be fined under title 18, United 

8 States Code, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or 

9 both.’’. 

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

11 this section shall apply with respect to each violation oc12 curring after the date of the enactment of this Act, except 

13 that subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D) of section 208(b)(1) 

14 of such Act and clauses (iii), (iv), and (v) of section 

15 208(b)(2)(A) of such Act (added by subsection (a)(3)) 

16 shall apply, in connection with violations of clause (x), (xi), 

17 (xii), (xiii), (xiv), or (xv) of section 205(c)(2)(C) or section 

18 208A, with respect to each violation occurring on or after 

19 the effective date applicable with respect to such violation 

20 under section 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8. 

21 SEC. 10. EXTENSION OF CIVIL MONETARY PENALTY AU22 THORITY. 

23 (a) APPLICATION OF CIVIL MONEY PENALTIES TO

24 ELEMENTS OF CRIMINAL VIOLATIONS.—Section 1129(a) 


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

2 amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as 

4 paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; 

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 that 

14 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; 


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1 ‘‘(C) with intent to deceive, alters a social secu2 rity card that the person knows or should know was 

3 issued by the Commissioner of Social Security, or 

4 possesses such a card with intent to alter it; 

5 ‘‘(D) buys or sells a card that such person 

6 knows or should know is, or is purported to be, a 

7 card issued by the Commissioner of Social Security, 

8 or possesses such a card with intent to buy or sell 

9 it; 

10 ‘‘(E) counterfeits a social security card, or pos11 sesses a counterfeit social security card with intent 

12 to buy or sell it; 

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

14 or knowingly sells or purchases the social security 

15 account number of any person in violation of the 

16 laws of the United States; 

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

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

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

20 causes to be furnished false information to the Com21 missioner with respect to any information required 

22 by the Commissioner in connection with the estab23 lishment and maintenance of the records provided 

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


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

2 to acquire for any individual, or to assist in acquir3 ing for any individual, an additional social security 

4 account number or a number which is purported to 

5 be a social security account number; 

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

7 transfers his own social security account number, as8 signed to him by the Commissioner of Social Secu9 rity under section 205(c)(2)(B), to any person; 

10 ‘‘(J) knowingly, and with intent to commit, or 

11 to aid or abet, any activity that constitutes a viola12 tion of Federal law, or a violation of any applicable 

13 law of a State or political subdivision thereof if the 

14 maximum penalty of such applicable law includes 

15 imprisonment for 5 years or more— 

16 ‘‘(i) possesses a social security account 

17 number of another individual without lawful au18 thority, or 

19 ‘‘(ii) possesses a social security card, know20 ing that the social security account number or 

21 other identifying information displayed on the 

22 card has been altered, counterfeited, or forged 

23 or that the card was falsely made, stolen, or ob24 tained from the Social Security Administration 

25 by use of false information, 


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1 if such activity is committed, or aided or abetted, 

2 with intent to use such social security account num3 ber, social security card, or other identifying infor4 mation displayed on such card in furtherance of 

5 such violation; 

6 ‘‘(K) being— 

7 ‘‘(i) an officer or employee of a govern8 mental entity (as defined in section 

9 205(c)(2)(C)(x)(X)), or 

10 ‘‘(ii) a person acting as an agent of a gov11 ernmental entity (as so defined), 

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

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

14 of section 205(c)(2)(C); 

15 ‘‘(L) being a trustee appointed in a case under 

16 title 11, United States Code (or an officer or em17 ployee thereof or a person acting as an agent there18 of), willfully acts or fails to act so as to cause a vio19 lation of clause (x), (xi), (xiv), or (xv) of section 

20 205(c)(2)(C); 

21 ‘‘(M) violates section 208A (relating to prohibi22 tion of the sale, purchase, or display of the social se23 curity account number in the private sector) or, as 

24 a person in the private sector, violates section 

25 205(c)(2)(C)(xv); or 


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1 ‘‘(N) violates section 208(g) (relating to fraud 

2 by 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 of the provisions 

16 of clause (x), (xi), (xii), (xiii), (xiv), or (xv) of section 

17 205(c)(2)(C) or section 208A occurring on or after the 

18 applicable effective date provided in connection with such 

19 provisions under section 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8 of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 11. CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR EMPLOYEES OF THE 

2 SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION WHO 

3 KNOWINGLY AND FRAUDULENTLY ISSUE SO4 CIAL SECURITY CARDS OR SOCIAL SECURITY 

5 ACCOUNT NUMBERS. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 208 of the Social Security 

7 Act (as amended by section 9) is amended further by add8 ing at the end the following new subsection: 

9 ‘‘(g)(1) Whoever is an employee of the Social Security 

10 Administration and knowingly and fraudulently sells or 

11 transfers one or more social security account numbers or 

12 social security cards shall, upon conviction, be guilty of 

13 a felony and fined under title 18, United States Code, im14 prisoned as provided in paragraph (2), or both. 

15 ‘‘(2) Imprisonment for a violation described in para16 graph (1) shall be for— 

17 ‘‘(A) not more than 5 years, in the case of an 

18 employee of the Social Security Administration who 

19 has fraudulently sold or transferred not more than 

20 50 social security account numbers or social security 

21 cards, 

22 ‘‘(B) not more than 10 years, in the case of an 

23 employee of the Social Security Administration who 

24 has fraudulently sold or transferred more than 50, 

25 but not more than 100, social security account num26 bers or social security cards, or 


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1 ‘‘(C) not more than 20 years, in the case of an 

2 employee of the Social Security Administration who 

3 has fraudulently sold or transferred more than 100 

4 social security account numbers or social security 

5 cards. 

6 ‘‘(3) For purposes of this subsection— 

7 ‘‘(A) The term ‘social security employee’ means 

8 any State employee of a State disability determina9 tion service, any officer, employee, or contractor of 

10 the Social Security Administration, any employee of 

11 such a contractor, or any volunteer providing serv12 ices or assistance in any facility of the Social Secu13 rity Administration. 

14 ‘‘(B) The term ‘social security account number’ 

15 means a social security account number assigned by 

16 the Commissioner of Social Security under section 

17 205(c)(2)(B) or another number that has not been 

18 so assigned but is purported to have been so as19 signed. 

20 ‘‘(C) The term ‘social security card’ means a 

21 card issued by the Commissioner of Social Security 

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

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

24 issued, and banknote paper of the type described in 

25 section 205(c)(2)(G) prepared for the entry of social 


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1 security account numbers, whether fully completed 

2 or not.’’. 

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

4 this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 

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

6 SEC. 12. ENHANCED PENALTIES IN CASES OF TERRORISM, 

7 DRUG TRAFFICKING, CRIMES OF VIOLENCE, 

8 OR PRIOR OFFENSES. 

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

10 Social Security Act (as amended by the preceding provi11 sions of this Act) is amended further— 

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

13 fined’’ and all that follows and inserting the fol14 lowing: ‘‘shall be fined, imprisoned, or both, as pro15 vided in subsection (c).’’; 

16 (2) in subsection (b)(2)(B)(ii) (as added by sec17 tion 9), by striking ‘‘be fined’’ and all that follows 

18 and inserting the following: ‘‘be fined, imprisoned, or 

19 both, as provided in subsection (c).’’; 

20 (3) by striking subsection (d); 

21 (4) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub22 section (d); and 

23 (5) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol24 lowing new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(c) A person convicted of a violation described in 

2 subsection (a) or a violation described in subsection 

3 (b)(2)(A) which is subject to subsection (b)(2)(B)(ii) shall 

4 be— 

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

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

7 in the case of an initial violation, subject to para8 graphs (3) and (4), 

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

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

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

12 conviction for another offense under subsection (a) 

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

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

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

16 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

17 a drug trafficking crime (as defined in section 

18 929(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code) or in con19 nection with a crime of violence (as defined in sec20 tion 924(c)(3) of title 18, United States Code) in21 volving force against the person of another, subject 

22 to paragraph (4), and 

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

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

25 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 


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1 an act of international or domestic terrorism (as de2 fined in paragraphs (1) and (5), respectively, of sec3 tion 2331 of title 18, United States Code).’’. 

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

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

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

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

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

9 (b).’’; 

10 (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub11 section (c); and 

12 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol13 lowing new subsection: 

14 ‘‘(b) PUNISHMENT.—A person convicted of a viola15 tion described in subsection (a) shall be— 

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

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

18 in the case of an initial violation, subject to para19 graphs (3) and (4), 

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

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

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

23 conviction for another offense under subsection (a) 

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


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

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

3 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

4 a drug trafficking crime (as defined in section 

5 929(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code) or in con6 nection with a crime of violence (as defined in sec7 tion 924(c)(3) of title 18, United States Code) in8 volving force against the person of another, subject 

9 to paragraph (4), and 

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

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

12 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

13 an act of international or domestic terrorism (as de14 fined in paragraphs (1) and (5), respectively, of sec15 tion 2331 of title 18, United States Code).’’. 

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

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

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

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

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

21 (b).’’; 

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

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

24 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol25 lowing new subsection: 


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

2 subsection (a) shall be— 

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

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

5 in the case of an initial violation, subject to para6 graphs (3) and (4), 

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

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

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

10 conviction for another offense under subsection (a) 

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

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

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

14 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

15 a drug trafficking crime (as defined in section 

16 929(a)(2) of title 18, United States Code) or in con17 nection with a crime of violence (as defined in sec18 tion 924(c)(3) of title 18, United States Code) in19 volving force against the person of another, subject 

20 to paragraph (4), and 

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

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

23 case of a violation which is committed to facilitate 

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1 fined in paragraphs (1) and (5), respectively, of sec2 tion 2331 of title 18, United States Code).’’. 

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

4 this section shall apply with respect to violations occurring 

5 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 13. REGULATORY AND ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY 

7 WITH RESPECT TO MISUSE OF THE SOCIAL 

8 SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER. 

9 Title XI of the Social Security Act is amended by 

10 inserting after section 1129B (42 U.S.C. 1320a–7b) the 

11 following new section: 

12 ‘‘REGULATORY AND ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY WITH RE13 SPECT TO MISUSE OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY AC14 COUNT NUMBER

15 ‘‘SEC. 1129C. (a) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner of So17 cial Security shall prescribe regulations to carry out 

18 the provisions of clauses (vi)(II), (x), (xi), (xii), 

19 (xiii), (xiv), and (xv) of section 205(c)(2)(C) and 

20 section 208A. Such regulations shall be issued in 

21 consultation with the Federal Trade Commission, 

22 the Attorney General of the United States, the Sec23 retary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of 

24 Health and Human Services, the Secretary of the 

25 Treasury, the Federal banking agencies (as defined 

26 in section 3 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act), 


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1 the National Credit Union Administration, the Secu2 rities and Exchange Commission, State attorneys 

3 general, and such representatives of the State insur4 ance commissioners as may be designated by the 

5 National Association of Insurance Commissioners. 

6 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT OF MATTERS RELATING TO

7 LAW ENFORCEMENT AND NATIONAL SECURITY.—In 

8 issuing the regulations described in paragraph (1) 

9 with respect to the provisions of 

10 205(c)(2)(C)(x)(III), paragraph (A) or (B) of sec11 tion 208A(b)(2), or section 208A(c)(2) (relating to 

12 law enforcement and national security), the sale or 

13 purchase of social security account numbers may be 

14 authorized only if the Commissioner (or the agency 

15 or instrumentality delegated authority to issue such 

16 regulations under paragraph (5)) determines that— 

17 ‘‘(A) such sale or purchase would serve a 

18 compelling public interest that cannot reason19 ably be served through alternative measures, 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(B) such sale or purchase will not pose an 

22 unreasonable risk of identity theft, or bodily, 

23 emotional, or financial harm to an individual 

24 (taking into account any restrictions and condi25 tions that the agency or instrumentality issuing 


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1 the regulations imposes on the sale, purchase, 

2 or disclosure). 

3 ‘‘(3) TREATMENT OF OTHER MATTERS IN GEN4 ERAL DISCRETION OF THE COMMISSIONER.— 

5 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In issuing the regula6 tions described in paragraph (1) with respect to 

7 the provisions of section 205(c)(2)(C)(x)(VIII) 

8 or section 208A(b)(3)(B), the sale, purchase, or 

9 display to the general public of social security 

10 account numbers may be authorized only after 

11 considering, among other relevant factors— 

12 ‘‘(i) the extent to which the authoriza13 tion of the sale, purchase, or display of the 

14 social security account number would serve 

15 a compelling public interest that cannot 

16 reasonably be served through alternative 

17 measures, 

18 ‘‘(ii) the associated cost or burden of 

19 the authorization to the general public, 

20 businesses, commercial enterprises, non21 profit organizations, and Federal, State, 

22 and local governments, and 

23 ‘‘(iii) the associated benefit of the au24 thorization to the general public, busi25 nesses, commercial enterprises, non-profit 


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1 associations, and Federal, State, and local 

2 governments. 

3 ‘‘(B) RESTRICTIONS AND CONDITIONS.—If, 

4 after considering the factors in subparagraph 

5 (A), the sale, purchase, or display to the gen6 eral public of social security account numbers is 

7 authorized under regulations referred to in sub8 paragraph (A), the Commissioner (or the agen9 cy or instrumentality delegated authority to 

10 issue such regulations under paragraph (5)) 

11 shall impose restrictions and conditions on the 

12 sale, purchase, or display to the general public 

13 to the extent necessary— 

14 ‘‘(i) to provide reasonable assurances 

15 that social security account numbers will 

16 not be used to commit or facilitate fraud, 

17 deceptions, or crime, and 

18 ‘‘(ii) to prevent an unreasonable risk 

19 of identity theft or bodily, emotional, or fi20 nancial harm to any individual, considering 

21 the nature, likelihood, and severity of the 

22 anticipated harm that could result from 

23 the sale, purchase, or display to the gen24 eral public of social security account num25 bers, together with the nature, likelihood, 


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1 and extent of any benefits that could be re2 alized. 

3 ‘‘(C) 5-YEAR EXPIRATION DATE FOR REGU4 LATIONS.—At the end of the 5-year period be5 ginning on the effective date of any final regu6 lations issued pursuant to this paragraph— 

7 ‘‘(i) such regulations shall expire, and 

8 ‘‘(ii) new regulations may be issued 

9 pursuant to this paragraph. 

10 ‘‘(4) ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE.—In the 

11 issuance of regulations pursuant to this subsection, 

12 notice shall be provided as described in paragraphs 

13 (1), (2), and (3) of section 553(b) of title 5, United 

14 States Code, and opportunity to participate in the 

15 rule making shall be provided in accordance with 

16 section 553(c) of such title. 

17 ‘‘(5) DELEGATION TO OTHER AGENCIES.—Any 

18 agency or instrumentality of the United States may 

19 exercise the authority of the Commissioner under 

20 this subsection, with respect to matters otherwise 

21 subject to regulation by such agency or instrumen22 tality, to the extent determined appropriate in regu23 lations of the Commissioner. 

24 ‘‘(6) CONSULTATION AND COORDINATION.— 

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1 ity to issue regulations under this subsection shall 

2 consult and coordinate with the other such agencies 

3 and instrumentalities for the purposes of assuring, 

4 to the extent possible, that the regulations pre5 scribed by each such agency or instrumentality are 

6 consistent and comparable, as appropriate, with the 

7 regulations prescribed by the other such agencies 

8 and instrumentalities. The Commissioner shall un9 dertake to facilitate such consultation and coordina10 tion. 

11 ‘‘(7) DEFINITIONS AND SPECIAL RULES.— 

12 ‘‘(A) For purposes of this subsection, the 

13 terms ‘sell’, ‘purchase’, and ‘display to the gen14 eral public’ shall have the meanings provided 

15 such terms under section 205(c)(2)(C)(x) or 

16 section 208A(a), as applicable. 

17 ‘‘(B) For purposes of this subsection, sec18 tion 205(c)(2)(C)(x)(XI) shall apply. 

19 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION OF ENFORCEMENT WITH

20 OTHER AGENCIES.—The Commissioner may provide, by 

21 regulation, for enforcement by any other agency or instru22 mentality of the United States of the provisions of section 

23 208A and regulations prescribed pursuant to subsection 

24 (a)(1) with respect to section 208A. 


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1 ‘‘(c) ACTIONS BY STATES WITH RESPECT TO MISUSE

2 IN PRIVATE SECTOR OR BY STATE AND LOCAL GOVERN3 MENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) CIVIL ACTIONS.—In any case in which the 

5 attorney general of a State (as defined in section 

6 205(c)(2)(C)(x)(X)) has reason to believe that an in7 terest of the residents of that State has been or is 

8 threatened or adversely affected by an act or prac9 tice described in paragraph (2), the State, as parens 

10 patriae, may bring a civil action on behalf of the 

11 residents of the State in a district court of the 

12 United States of appropriate jurisdiction, to— 

13 ‘‘(A) enjoin that act or practice; 

14 ‘‘(B) enforce compliance with the regula15 tion; 

16 ‘‘(C) obtain civil penalties in an amount of 

17 $11,000 per violation not to exceed a total of 

18 $5,000,000; or 

19 ‘‘(D) obtain such other legal and equitable 

20 relief as the district court may consider to be 

21 appropriate. 

22 Before filing an action under this subsection, the at23 torney general of the State involved shall provide to 

24 the Commissioner of Social Security and the Attor25 ney General of the United States a written notice of 


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1 that action and a copy of the complaint for that ac2 tion. If the State attorney general determines that 

3 it is not feasible to provide the notice described in 

4 this subparagraph before the filing of the action, the 

5 State attorney general shall provide the written no6 tice and the copy of the complaint as soon after the 

7 filing of the complaint as practicable. Any reference 

8 in this subsection to the attorney general of a State 

9 shall be deemed also to be a reference to any equiva10 lent official of such State. 

11 ‘‘(2) ACTS OR PRACTICES SUBJECT TO EN12 FORCEMENT.—An act or practice described in this 

13 paragraph is— 

14 ‘‘(A) an act or practice by an executive, 

15 legislative, or judicial agency or instrumentality 

16 of the State involved or a political subdivision 

17 thereof, a person acting as an agent thereof, or 

18 any officer or employee of the foregoing or per19 son acting as an agent of the foregoing that 

20 violates clause (vi)(II), (x), (xi), (xii), (xiii), 

21 (xiv), or (xv) of section 205(c)(2)(C) or any 

22 regulation promulgated thereunder, or 

23 ‘‘(B) an act or practice by any person that 

24 violates section 208A or any regulation promul25 gated thereunder. 


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1 ‘‘(3) ATTORNEY GENERAL AUTHORITY.—On re2 ceiving notice under paragraph (1), the Attorney 

3 General of the United States shall have the right— 

4 ‘‘(A) to move to stay the action, pending 

5 the final disposition of a pending Federal mat6 ter as described in paragraph (4); 

7 ‘‘(B) to intervene in an action under para8 graph (1); 

9 ‘‘(C) upon so intervening, to be heard on 

10 all matters arising therein; and 

11 ‘‘(D) to file petitions for appeal. 

12 ‘‘(4) PENDING CRIMINAL PROCEEDINGS.—If the 

13 Attorney General of the United States has instituted 

14 a criminal proceeding under section 208 alleging an 

15 act or practice described in paragraph (2) in connec16 tion with any State, such State may not, during the 

17 pendency of such proceeding or action, bring an ac18 tion under this subsection against any defendant 

19 named in the criminal proceeding. 

20 ‘‘(5) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—For purposes 

21 of bringing any civil action under paragraph (1), 

22 nothing in this subsection shall be construed to pre23 vent an attorney general of a State from exercising 

24 the powers conferred on the attorney general by the 

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1 ister oaths and affirmations, or compel the attend2 ance of witnesses or the production of documentary 

3 and other evidence. 

4 ‘‘(6) VENUE; SERVICE OF PROCESS.—Any ac5 tion brought under paragraph (1) may be brought in 

6 any district court of the United States that meets 

7 applicable requirements relating to venue under sec8 tion 1391 of title 28, United States Code. In an ac9 tion brought under paragraph (1), process may be 

10 served in any district in which the defendant is an 

11 inhabitant or may be found. 

12 ‘‘(d) REMEDIES TO INDIVIDUALS FOR VIOLATIONS

13 BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT OF REQUIREMENTS RE14 LATING TO SOCIAL SECURITY ACCOUNT NUMBERS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) CIVIL ACTIONS.—Any individual who is ag16 grieved by an act or practice by any person acting 

17 as an officer, employee, or agent of an agency or in18 strumentality of the Federal Government in violation 

19 of the requirements of clause (vi)(II), (x), (xi), (xii), 

20 (xiii), (xiv), or (xv) of subsection (c)(2)(C) with re21 spect to the social security account number assigned 

22 to such individual under subsection (c)(2)(B) may 

23 commence a civil action for appropriate equitable re24 lief or actual damages. 


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1 ‘‘(2) VENUE; SERVICE OF PROCESS.—An action 

2 under this subsection action may be brought in the 

3 district court of the United States for the judicial 

4 district in which the plaintiff resides, or has his 

5 principal place of business, in which the violation 

6 took place, or in which the defendant resides or may 

7 be found, and process may be served in any other 

8 district in which a defendant resides or may be 

9 found. 

10 ‘‘(3) JURISDICTION.—The district courts of the 

11 United States shall have jurisdiction, without respect 

12 to the amount in controversy or the citizenship of 

13 the parties, to grant the relief provided for in para14 graph (1). 

15 ‘‘(4) ATTORNEY’S FEES.—In any action under 

16 this subsection, the court in its discretion may allow 

17 a reasonable attorney’s fee and costs of action to ei18 ther party. 

19 ‘‘(e) ONGOING GAO REVIEW ON EFFICACY OF REGU20 LATIONS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General of 

22 the United States shall conduct an ongoing review of 

23 the efficacy of the regulations prescribed by any 

24 agency or instrumentality of the United States pur25 suant to this section. Such review shall consider the 


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1 extent to which such regulations are consistent with, 

2 and in furtherance of the purposes of, the amend3 ments made by the Social Security Number Privacy 

4 and Identity Theft Prevention Act of 2009. 

5 ‘‘(2) REPORT.—Not later than 4 years after the 

6 effective date of any final regulations issued by any 

7 agency or instrumentality of the United States pur8 suant to this section, the Comptroller General shall 

9 report to each House of the Congress regarding the 

10 results of the review of such regulations conducted 

11 under this paragraph. Such report shall include the 

12 Comptroller General’s recommendations for such 

13 statutory or regulatory changes as the Comptroller 

14 General considers appropriate.’’. 

15 SEC. 14. STUDY ON FEASIBILITY OF BANNING SOCIAL SE16 CURITY ACCOUNT NUMBER AS AN AUTHEN17 TICATOR. 

18 (a) STUDY.—As soon as practicable after the date of 

19 the enactment of this Act, the Commissioner of Social Se20 curity shall enter into an arrangement with the National 

21 Research Council under which the Council shall carry out 

22 a study to determine— 

23 (1) the extent of the use of social security ac24 count numbers as a primary means of authenticating 

25 identity; 


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1 (2) the extent of the use of social security ac2 count numbers for verification in commercial trans3 actions; and 

4 (3) the feasibility of a prohibition on such use. 

5 The study shall also examine possible alternatives to social 

6 security account numbers for verification purposes and 

7 uses in authenticating identity. 

8 (b) REPORT.—The arrangement entered into with the 

9 Council under this section shall provide for submission by 

10 the Council to the Commissioner and to each House of 

11 the Congress of a report setting forth the results of the 

12 Council’s study under this section, together with the Coun13 cil’s findings and recommendations, no later than 1 year 

14 after the effective date of the initial final regulations 

15 issued by the Commissioner pursuant to the amendments 

16 made by section 2 of this Act. 

Æ 


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