Widening the Lane: An Argument for Broader Interpretation of Permissible Uses under the Driver's Privacy Protection Act

The Driver's Privacy Protection Act of 1994 (DPPA) was passed as part of an omnibus crime bill to protect the privacy of individuals from the violent stalking crimes that had been perpetrated through access to the automated records of state departments of motor vehicles. Congress generally prohibited the release of personal information contained in the records. However, Congress also recognized that the general prohibition needed to contain certain limits to allow for the legitimate needs of business and government to have access to the personal information. In order to accomplish this balance of interests, Congress included in the statute various permissible uses that accounted for a wide range of legitimate disclosures. This Note argues that the recent judicial interpretations of the DPPA by the Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit have improperly limited the scope of permissible uses. The imposition of reasonableness limitations on disclosure, and the judicial analysis of disclosure to determine the exclusive predominant purpose, were novel judicial interpretations of a longstanding and established statute. Courts' narrow interpretations of the permissible uses of the DPPA are contrary to the text of the statute and do not advance the statute's central goals. The courts' approaches are also likely to have significant practical effect contrary to general policy aims. Such changes are better considered by Congress than in the courts. Part I of this Note details the origins of the DPPA and identifies the congressional intent underlying the text of the statute. Part II provides a brief history of the constitutional challenges to the DPPA and notes the past treatment of the statute's permissible uses in various circuits. Parts III and IV give a detailed account of two recent court cases that have imposed new limits on permissible uses of personal information. Part V argues against these interpretations and explores their likely practical implications. The argument highlights the plain language of the statute and its relationship with the Act's legislative history and purpose, while remarking on the implications of civil liability, the role of the rule of lenity, and the need to ensure proper notice of violations falling under the statute. The Note concludes that if new constraints are to be placed onto the scope of permissible uses under the DPPA, the limitations should arise from congressional action and should not be imposed through judicial usurpation of the lawmaking role. I. THE DRIVER'S PRIVACY PROTECTION ACT OF 1994 The Driver's Privacy Protection Act of (1994) regulates the disclosure of personal information found within the records of state departments of motor vehicle (DMV). (1) With a stated purpose "to protect the personal privacy and safety of licensed drivers consistent with the legitimate needs of business and government," (2) the Act is a general prohibition on knowingly disclosing, obtaining, and using personal information or highly restricted personal information from a motor vehicle record. (3) The Act's sponsors sought to respond to the violence connected to incidents of stalking in which the perpetrator obtained the victim's address through DMV records. (4) In one high-profile incident, television actress Rebecca Schaeffer was shot and killed outside of her apartment by a man who had obtained the address of her private residence by hiring a private investigator who purchased the information from the California DMV. (5) At the time of the Act's introduction to Congress, there were thirty-four states that allowed any member of the public to go to a DMV office and pay a fee to obtain the personal information of any individual. (6) Many of these states also allowed for the mass sale of personal information to direct marketers. (7) Throughout congressional debate over the bill, members of Congress highlighted the need for the Act by describing numerous incidents of violence that had been accomplished through the use of DMV records. …