02/21/2000 01:47 PM Senate JUD

                                                                                                                                
                    SB 259-THEFT OF IDENTITY                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MR. JIM POUND, staff of Senator Taylor, stated the modification in                                                              
SB 259 will add the words "commit a crime" rather than just using                                                               
the word "defraud," allowing criminal intent for other uses of                                                                  
false identification (ID).  The crime will be a misdemeanor.                                                                    
Criminal activity will include minors trying to buy alcohol and                                                                 
cigarettes with false ID cards and the use of false ID to obtain a                                                              
checking account with the intent of fraud.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
SENATOR HALFORD asked if there is anything the legislature can do                                                               
to help victims clear their record.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR commented the bill was drafted in a hurry and                                                                   
everything has not been included.  The true victim in this type of                                                              
crime is the person whose identity is stolen, and he would like                                                                 
this legislation to motivate credit card companies and credit                                                                   
reporting agencies to work with the victims in clearing their                                                                   
records.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Number 370                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
MS. ANNE CARPENETI, Department of Law (DOL), stated DOL supports                                                                
this legislation.  With a stolen credit card number a person can                                                                
obtain a social security number through a web site.  With this                                                                  
information people can open checking accounts, buy cars, open                                                                   
accounts at department stores, etc. and do serious damage to a                                                                  
persons credit.  It can take years to clear a credit report that                                                                
has been damaged in this way.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
MS. CARPENETI said DOL has been looking at this issue in a bigger                                                               
sense than just identity theft.  The Governor has introduced a bill                                                             
that makes criminal impersonation a class B felony if an                                                                        
identification item has been stolen and fraudulent acts are the                                                                 
result thereby harming the persons financial reputation making this                                                             
person the victim of the crime.  In the past the police have                                                                    
considered the credit card companies, banks, department stores,                                                                 
etc. the victims, rather than the individual with the problem.  The                                                             
Governor's bill makes it a class B felony to harm someone's                                                                     
reputation, bringing the current statute down to second degree                                                                  
criminal impersonation which is a class A misdemeanor.  In                                                                      
addition, SB 259 fine tunes the theft and fraud  statute by                                                                     
replacing the term "access device" for a credit card so if a person                                                             
steals an access device, including a phone number, that person can                                                              
be prosecuted for theft of a credit card or fraudulent use of a                                                                 
credit card.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MS. CARPENETI noted the Governor's bill also clarifies the law in                                                               
dealing with technology in regards to child pornography--creating                                                               
child pornography includes making an electronic portrait of a child                                                             
and putting it in a computer network.  It also expands the criminal                                                             
use of a computer, which is a class C felony, by providing that it                                                              
is a violation of a statute to add misleading new information to a                                                              
computer which a person may have access to but they are going                                                                   
beyond their authorization or they are accessing the system without                                                             
authorization.  It prohibits a person without authorization from                                                                
getting proprietary financial information about other people and                                                                
going in and changing information they have no right to change.  It                                                             
also prohibits encrypting (with no authorization to encrypt) and                                                                
decrypting information.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
Number 662                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR thanked Ms. Carpeneti and asked her to work with                                                                
staff to provide a committee substitute to incorporate some of the                                                              
ideas she discussed.                                                                                                            
MS. CARPENETI responded she would be happy to help.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR introduced Lt. David Hudson, Alaska State Troopers,                                                             
and asked him to work with Ms. Carpeneti and Mr. Pound in writing                                                               
a committee substitute.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR. BLAIR MCCUNE, Deputy Director, the Alaska Public Defender                                                                   
Agency, stated this is a difficult area of the law and the bill                                                                 
will need some care in the drafting process.  Banking and credit                                                                
law practices have changed a lot in the last few years because of                                                               
internet access and because of increases in credit card use.  His                                                               
main concern is that the law should be drafted narrowly  so that                                                                
minors purchasing alcohol and using false ID cards are not treated                                                              
on the same level as someone who is using someone else's identity                                                               
in a fraudulent way.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR asked Mr. McCune to assist in the drafting process                                                              
to help develop a more comprehensive bill.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
MR. GLENN HACKNEY, AARP, stated that theft of identity is a real                                                                
concern for the senior community of Alaska.  Many members of the                                                                
senior population have a long standing credit history and they are                                                              
concerned that nothing happen to that history.  There are seniors                                                               
who will not use credit cards or the internet because of this                                                                   
concern.  Mr. Hackney stated he supports SB 259.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN TAYLOR stated the bill will be held in committee until a                                                               
committee substitute has been drafted.