Legislature(2007 - 2008)BELTZ 211

03/18/2008 01:30 PM Senate LABOR & COMMERCE


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* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
*+ SB 179 DEPENDENT HEALTH INSURANCE; AGE LIMIT TELECONFERENCED
Heard & Held
*+ SB 263 ARCHITECTS, ENGRS, SURVEYORS BD/EXEMPTION TELECONFERENCED
Heard & Held
Bills Previously Heard/Scheduled
+= SB 297 NONUNION PUBLIC EMPLOYEE SALARY & BENEFIT TELECONFERENCED
Moved CSSB 297(L&C) Out of Committee
+= HB 65 PERSONAL INFORMATION & CONSUMER CREDIT TELECONFERENCED
Moved SCS CSHB 65(L&C) Out of Committee
      CSHB  65(FIN)-PERSONAL INFORMATION & CONSUMER CREDIT                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
2:09:48 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR ELLIS  announced CSHB 65(FIN)  to be up  for consideration;                                                               
version SCS  CSHB 65(L&C), 25-LS0311\N was  before the committee.                                                               
He noted  the committee received  some correspondence  from Yahoo                                                               
relating   to  the   notification   section  of   the  bill   and                                                               
Representative Coghill  thought that  concern had  been addressed                                                               
in  the CS;  he had  been  informed that  was not  the case.  Ms.                                                               
Bannister, the legislative drafter,  was working on language, but                                                               
it wouldn't  be ready for  this committee.  So once it  was done,                                                               
that would "be punted on" to the Judiciary Committee.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
KAREN LIDSTER,  staff to Representative John  Coghill, co-sponsor                                                               
of  HB 65,  said that  the sponsor  wanted to  address the  Yahoo                                                               
notification issues.  She went  on to  the sectional  analysis of                                                               
version N. On page 15, line  17, under the subject of exemptions,                                                               
"consumer  credit reporting  agency" was  deleted and  "a person"                                                               
was inserted to correct a technical reference.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
2:13:18 PM                                                                                                                    
On page 16, line 17,  "security freeze" language was clarified so                                                               
that if  a consumer decides to  freeze his credit report,  all of                                                               
it is frozen, not just a  part. On page 17, lines 21-22, language                                                               
was  inserted at  the request  of the  Recorder's Office  that it                                                               
could accept  documents for recording  and could give  out copies                                                               
of  documents that  had previously  been recorded.  They did  not                                                               
want to be in a position  of providing information this bill says                                                               
they can't. So "request or  collect" was deleted and "communicate                                                               
or otherwise make available to  the general public" was inserted.                                                               
Language on page  17, line 23, just clarifies  the employees' job                                                               
duties   relating   to   a   recorded   document   by   inserting                                                               
"communicating or otherwise making available".                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
2:14:55 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR  ELLIS  said DNR  requested  this  and the  private  sector                                                               
people were concerned that the  amended language would apply more                                                               
broadly than just to the DNR. He asked if that was correct.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MS. LIDSTER  replied that this  language could probably  apply to                                                               
other divisions,  but DNR specifically  requested it so  it could                                                               
disclose  previously recorded  information.  Everyone thought  it                                                               
would  be tighter  to insert  it in  the use  of social  security                                                               
number section as well. DNR is happy with this language.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MS. LIDSTER referred to section  45.48.410 on page 18 where lines                                                               
11-15 were  inserted into the  social security number  section to                                                               
allay  vendor concerns  that wording  in the  bill would  prevent                                                               
them from  providing information  they believe they  were allowed                                                               
to provide under  the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA)  and the Fair                                                               
Credit  Reporting Act  (FCRA). This  language  tries to  regulate                                                               
them  to protect  Alaska  residents, but  vendors  are still  not                                                               
totally happy with  it. The sponsor said he  had made significant                                                               
concessions in this area. A  couple of words concerning those who                                                               
are  not regulated  by the  GLBA  or the  FCRA still  need to  be                                                               
worked out.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR ELLIS asked if this language strikes a balance.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MS. LIDSTER answered that according  to the sponsor, it strikes a                                                               
balance.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR ELLIS  asked if  Mr. Sniffen  helped Terry  Bannister draft                                                               
this language.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MS. LIDSTER answered yes. She continued  on to page 18, lines 29-                                                               
31, where  a new section was  added - subsection (2)  talks about                                                               
people regulated  by the GLBA  "for a purpose authorized  by that                                                               
act"  and on  page 19,  line 1,  a new  subsection (3)  refers to                                                               
people regulated  by the  FCRA. Under  the disclosure  section of                                                               
the social security numbers on page  19, it talks about the third                                                               
party that is regulated by the  FCRA; the GLBA was not added here                                                               
because that was in subparagraph (3).                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MAEGAN  FOSTER, staff  to Representative  Gara, co-sponsor  of HB
65, said her office is comfortable with the changes.                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
ED SNIFFEN, Assistant Attorney General,  Department of Law (DOL),                                                               
supported the changes in version N.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
AUDREY  ROBINSON, Reed  Elsevier, parent  company of  LexisNexis,                                                               
appreciated the  work the  committee and  sponsors had  done, but                                                               
said  the  new language  still  doesn't  address their  concerns.                                                               
Unfortunately it might  be just a one to two  word issue, but the                                                               
assumptions  don't quite  get to  their  uses. Unfortunately  the                                                               
GLBA refers  to financial institutions  and that  is particularly                                                               
who  is regulated  by the  act;  however use  of social  security                                                               
numbers falls  within the purview  of that act.  While LexisNexis                                                               
is compliant  with GLBA, they aren't  technically regulated under                                                               
it  (their uses  are).   LexisNexis'  misuse  of social  security                                                               
numbers  would still  fall within  the boundaries  of the  FCC to                                                               
prosecute.  The conjunction  language saying  both "be  regulated                                                               
by" and "purposes regulated by" are  the rub. A fix could be made                                                               
simply  by changing  an "and"  to an  "or" for  them to  continue                                                               
serving  Alaskans  (for  asset   location,  location  of  missing                                                               
children, checking to  make sure a person opening  a bank account                                                               
isn't a terrorist).                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
2:25:28 PM                                                                                                                    
MS. ROBINSON  also mentioned on page  19, line 28, of  version N,                                                               
subparagraph (3)  has the former  GLBA language that  was changed                                                               
in 45.48.410 and 45.48.420 and  she asked for conformity purposes                                                               
that be changed to reflect the newer language.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR ELLIS asked if the  sponsors thought that updating was wise                                                               
to do.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
MS. LIDSTER replied it would be no problem.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
2:27:05 PM                                                                                                                    
JON  BURTON,  ChoicePoint,  echoed LexisNexis  comments.  He  was                                                               
encouraged that  the sponsors recognized the  federal issues. The                                                               
other issue  that remains outstanding is  "expressly" versus "not                                                               
expressly".  He promised  to do  everything  on his  end to  work                                                               
within  the  framework  the  sponsors  have set  up  to  reach  a                                                               
solution.                                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
GAIL  HILLEBRAND, Consumer's  Union, supported  the CS.  She said                                                               
the change  on page 19  was purely  technical and the  concept of                                                               
the broader  exemptions retain  the integrity  of saying  this is                                                               
not  a free  pass from  federal  law because  federal law  really                                                               
doesn't  govern conduct.  Instead,  it's when  federal law,  both                                                               
authorizes  conduct and  regulates the  people who  engage in  it                                                               
that  the state  law would  defer to  federal law  and that  is a                                                               
reasonable place to draw the line.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
2:29:59 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR  STEVENS moved  to  adopt SCS  CSHB  65(L&C), version  N.                                                               
There were no objections and it was so ordered.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR ELLIS announced Amendment 1 to be up for consideration.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
                                               25-LS0311\N.1                                                                    
                                                   Bannister                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
                          AMENDMENT 1                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
     OFFERED IN THE SENATE                                                                                                      
          TO: SCS CSHB 65( ), Draft Version "N"                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
     Page 3, line 4, following "if":                                                                                            
          Insert "the information collector's primary                                                                           
     method of communication with the state resident is by                                                                      
     electronic means, or if"                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
DANA  OWEN,  staff  to  Senator  Ellis,  explained  that  Yahoo's                                                               
concern was that some vendors  communicate strictly through email                                                               
and  this language  would allow  them  to notify  customers of  a                                                               
breach of confidentiality  by email if that is  their primary way                                                               
of communication.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
MS. LIDSTER said Representative Coghill supported the amendment.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR ELLIS moved to adopt  Amendment 1. There were no objections                                                               
and it was adopted.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR ELLIS  announced consideration  of conceptual  Amendment 2,                                                               
the technical update on page 19 suggested by Ms. Robinson.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR ELLIS moved to adopt  Amendment 2. There were no objections                                                               
and it was so ordered.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
2:34:29 PM                                                                                                                    
SENATOR STEVENS moved  to report SCS CSHB  65(L&C) from committee                                                               
with individual recommendations and  attached fiscal notes. There                                                               
were no objections and it was so ordered.                                                                                       

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