01/19/2018 03:15 PM House LABOR & COMMERCE

              SB 93-CREDIT REPORT SECURITY FREEZE                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
3:19:42 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR KITO  announced that the  first order of business  would be                                                               
SENATE BILL NO.  93, "An Act relating to security  freezes on the                                                               
credit reports  or records of  incapacitated persons  and certain                                                               
minors."                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
3:20:23 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
RYNNIEVA  MOSS,   Staff,  Senator  John  Coghill,   Alaska  State                                                               
Legislature, presented SB 93 on  behalf of Senator Coghill, prime                                                               
sponsor.   She said the bill  was introduced last year  and would                                                               
set up  a process to  create a  credit record/report for  a minor                                                               
under 16  or an  incapacitated person, both  of which  are called                                                               
"protected consumers."   The proposed legislation would  set up a                                                               
system  for  applying  for  a   credit  freeze  for  a  minor  or                                                               
incapacitated  person, as  well  as a  provision  for stopping  a                                                               
credit  freeze.   Under  SB  93, there  would  be exceptions  for                                                               
people with court orders or  warrants, government agencies trying                                                               
to collect taxes, and the investigation of fraud.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
MS. MOSS  explained there are two  types of credit freezes:   one                                                               
for adults who  have already established a credit  record and one                                                               
for  minors and  incapacitated people  who do  not have  a credit                                                               
record.   She related  that there  are approximately  1.3 million                                                               
cases of  identity theft involving  minors in the U.S.  and about                                                               
half of  those minors are under  six years of age.   The identify                                                               
thieves can get social security  numbers of children still in the                                                               
hospital and  use that  credit until  the child  turns 18  or, in                                                               
most cases 16,  which is the age at which  many apply to purchase                                                               
a vehicle or buy a cell phone.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MS. MOSS stated that the primary  purpose for a credit report for                                                               
an  adult  is  to  prevent   lending  institutions,  credit  card                                                               
companies,  and  utilities,  et cetera,  from  giving  credit  to                                                               
someone who does  not pay his/her bills.  The  primary purpose of                                                               
SB  93,   she  advised,   is  to   allow  parents   and  personal                                                               
representatives to create  a credit record with  the three credit                                                               
reporting agencies and then freeze  that record so someone cannot                                                               
steal  the information.   She  said there  are various  ways that                                                               
people  steal credit  information,  including stealing  someone's                                                               
purse,   stealing   school   records,    or   breaking   into   a                                                               
pediatrician's  office  to  obtain  medical records.    She  said                                                               
identity  theft is  a  big business.    The proposed  legislation                                                               
would establish a  process in state law that  would allow parents                                                               
and  personal  representatives  to  "protect  their  people  from                                                               
identity theft."                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
3:23:31 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE SULLIVAN-LEONARD  asked Ms.  Moss to  expound upon                                                               
her  statement  that  records  can  be  stolen  from  infants  in                                                               
hospitals.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
MS. MOSS confirmed  that reports have shown  that the information                                                               
is  obtained  at  the  hospital from  medical  records,  and  the                                                               
information is  used until the  identity theft victim  first asks                                                               
for credit.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE  SULLIVAN-LEONARD  said  she   used  to  do  vital                                                               
statistics, and an infant does  not have a social security number                                                               
at birth;  therefore, she asked if  Ms. Moss meant that  theft is                                                               
of  records of  children  who  come back  to  visit the  hospital                                                               
later.                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
MS. MOSS  offered her  understanding that  one example  is babies                                                               
that are in the hospital under intensive care.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
CHAIR KITO offered  his understanding that there  are some people                                                               
who will  take the  birth record  and then try  to gain  a social                                                               
security number (SSN) and use it as an identity.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
3:25:26 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE WOOL  offered his understanding that  under SB 93,                                                               
a  parent could  request a  freeze on  his/her child's  credit to                                                               
prevent theft of  the child's identity, and when the  child is of                                                               
a certain  age and needing to  get credit, the credit  would need                                                               
to be unfrozen.                                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MS. MOSS responded that SB 93 sets  up a process for removal of a                                                               
security freeze, which  is under AS 45.48.360.   That information                                                               
is found  on page 3,  line 28, and  onto page 4,  of SB 94.   She                                                               
said  the  removal  process  is similar  to  getting  a  security                                                               
freeze; a  person must submit  a request to the  credit reporting                                                               
agency,  provide sufficient  proof of  the identification  of the                                                               
minor or  protected consumer, and  provide proof of  parentage or                                                               
status as personal representative.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE WOOL asked if a child  could set up a bank account                                                               
for  a  college savings  fund,  for  example,  at the  same  time                                                               
his/her credit is frozen.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
MS. MOSS answered that is correct.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
3:27:52 PM                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
REPRESENTATIVE WOOL moved  to report SB 93 out  of committee with                                                               
individual  recommendations and  the  accompanying fiscal  notes.                                                               
There  being no  objection, SB  93  was reported  from the  House                                                               
Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.