Child support is an area that has been given a lot of power to collect outstanding monies, says one insurance company executive. If the same types of laws are passed for other types of obligations, we would have no choice but to participate. Meanwhile, other government agencies are already itching to gain access to the new hires database. Some insiders believe the Education Department was just the beginning. The new hires database is just too substantial a resource for the government not to use it for other purposes, explains Bernstein.
Education is just the first to get on board.
There will be more. Bernstein cites a 1998 report issued by the federal government s inspectors general that said the database should be available to every federal agency. That concerns Bernstein, whose job at OMB required her to ensure the compliance of agencies with the 1974 Privacy Act, which establishes the government s responsibilities in safeguarding data about citizens. There is a principle built into the Privacy Act that information collected for one purpose shouldn t be used for another purpose without the person s consent, she notes. That s a primary reason Michigan Secretary of State Candice S. Miller, a Republican, decided to sue the federal government last year to avoid implementing the 1996 Personal Responsibility Act requirement that orders states to collect Social Security numbers from applicants for any state license.