SB 293-ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION DEVICES  2:11:12 PM CHAIR ELLIS announced SB 293 to be up for consideration. TREVOR FULTON, staff for Senator McGuire, sponsor of SB 293, said this measure would regulate the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) in the state of Alaska. SB 293 is really a consumer, personal and privacy protection bill that aims to nip the potential for identify theft in the bud. MR. FULTON informed them that RFID is a wireless technology that typically includes three elements - a tag which has an antenna and is capable of transmitting data, a reader which receives data transmitted by the tag and a database that stores the data. Examples are employee access passes like the cards we use to get into the capitol, passes on a toll way, and implanted dog IDs. He said a less obvious use of RFIDs is implanting ones in humans that contain patient records for use in hospitals. He said that many uses are very beneficial to businesses and people. The convenience of using RFIDs could come at the cost of security, however. Private information - like bank account numbers, social security numbers and health records - transmitted by RFID tags and stored in databases can leave consumers vulnerable to identify theft. SB 293 aims to minimize that vulnerability and protect personal and consumer privacy by regulating the use of RFID technology in Alaska. MR. FULTON said as RFID use becomes more widespread, it will become increasingly important that consumers know what products carry RFID tags and what businesses are using RFID technology in order to obtain consumer consent and adopt minimum security standards for RFID use like prohibiting scanning or remote reading of an RFID tag without consent. It will become increasingly important that enforcement measures for the misuse of RFID devices are established. He said SB 293 accomplishes all of these things and he urged that it's important to help the regulations to keep pace with this useful growing technology. 2:16:04 PM SENATOR BUNDE asked if Alaska has actual problems or are they being proactive. MR. FULTON answered that he wasn't aware of a current problem, but evidence in other states shows that RFIDs have been hacked and information has been stolen. SENATOR BUNDE said the cell phone industry said this would be a problem. MR. FULTON responded that he had been talking to one of the cell phone providers here who is encouraging that dialogue with their engineers to make sure this bill doesn't needlessly impact whatever plans they have for RFID use in the future. SENATOR BUNDE said current passports have RFIDs and asked if SB 293 would somehow affect those. MR. FULTON replied that he wasn't a lawyer, but there are no federal regulations on RFID devices. He would look into how it would affect passport use in Alaska. 2:18:08 PM ED SNIFFEN, Assistant Attorney General, Consumer and Anti-trust Protection, Department of Law (DOL), Anchorage, responded to the question about problems in Alaska by saying he doesn't get any direct complaints about this technology, but he wouldn't be surprised if some identity theft victims in Alaska have had their identity stolen as a result of new technology that is able to remotely scan and get information. He said he supports consumer protection bills like this that will inform the consumer about the issue as well. 2:20:01 PM ALLISON FLEMING, EPC Global, said EPC is a not-for-profit standards organization working on international standards for radio frequency identification applications. Industries that participate in the standards development process include aerospace, retail, entertainment, defense, health care, chemical, pharmaceutical, transportation and logistics. These industries use something called the electronic product code, which as an RFID application. The EPC is a unique number that is used to identify a specific item in a supply chain similar to a string of numbers on a bar code. This unique number is stored on an RFID tag which combines a silicon chip and an antenna. Once the EPC is read from the tag it can be associated with data stored in a secure database where other information can be found like the date of its production or where it originated. EPC RFID tags don't carry an individual's personal identifiable information. MS. FLEMING said RFID technology is in its infancy now. In the short term it will be at the container, case, and pallet level. In a retail supply chain it is used to mechanically read the EPC on items as diverse as computer printers or a case of diapers. An EPC gives more information about a product than a typical bar code and in the future could expedite supply chain applications. It can help reduce counterfeiting in a variety of product categories from toys to electronics. It has the potential to save lives to help prevent counterfeit drugs from reaching consumers by tracking products from their source. 2:23:01 PM She said consumer privacy and trust are very important to the adoption of any new technology. She noted further that their consumer guidelines include giving consumers clear notice of the presence of an EPC on a product and informing them of the choices they have to discard or remove or disable an EPC tag from a product. They will have access to information about EPC and its applications as well as the companies that use, maintain and protect records generated through the EPC in compliance with all applicable laws. These guidelines are flexible and allow for enhancements and modifications as the technology continues to evolve. The next years will be crucial for this technology and laws should not stifle innovation or delay the potential benefits for consumers and businesses in Alaska. She urged them to be prudent and pragmatic in considering measures to regulate EPC or RFID technology. 2:24:03 PM SENATOR BUNDE asked her if this bill was prudent. MS. FLEMING answered no, not at this point. Requiring the specific type of notice, written consent and deactivation at the point of sale could hurt the technology as it's currently evolving. CHAIR ELLIS asked the status in other state with regards to statutes along this line. MS. FLEMING answered that Washington State has a bill that would just affect the illegal use or scanning of an RFID tag for fraud. SB 293 is comprehensive, and she hasn't seen anything like it adopted. 2:25:29 PM BEN ADERSON, American Electronics Association (AEA), echoed EPC's testimony. Their concerns about SB 293 are very similar; it goes well beyond banning bad behavior and restricts a very beneficial technology. It provides enormous security. Hacking hasn't happened even though there are claims it has. MR. ADERSON said this would be landmark legislation, but the reason other states have not enacted it is the detrimental affect it can have on small businesses. Generally information is used from warehouse to warehouse. 2:29:18 PM TERRY BANNISTER, Department of Law, was available to answer questions. CHAIR ELLIS said he would hold SB 293 for further work. 2:30:06 PM