Federal law protects the data collected by Federal programs. In Texas information is public unless it is explicitly private. So that means the data we incidentally collect or that we don't inquire or seek permission of the legislature to collect is public data. We have a special responsibility as we move forward on this project and we must be very cautious about how we use people's information. Austin The goal of government information services is to make government visible and responsive to the citizens not vise versa.
Technologies currently exist which can provide secure provision of services without identification.
The government collects a wealth of information such as occupational licenses, court records, police records, political contributions, address records, vital statistics, drivers records, motor vehicle registration and so on. This is a major shift in social power. The collection of personal data is a shift in social power from individuals to organizations. I think that is the main privacy issue facing us. A smart card could be programmed in such a way that the user determines what kind of information would release.