HCS HB 1809 & 2173 -- IDENTITY THEFT PREVENTION ACT

SPONSOR:  Cunningham, 145 (Ruzicka)

COMMITTEE ACTION:  Voted "do pass" by the Special Committee on
Financial Institutions by a vote of 10 to 0.

This substitute establishes the Identity Theft Prevention Act
which specifies the procedures for a person to place a security
freeze on his or her consumer report.  A consumer reporting
agency will remove or temporarily lift a freeze upon the
consumer's request or if the consumer report was frozen due to a
material misrepresentation of fact by the consumer.

A consumer credit reporting agency must disclose in writing to
the consumer a summary of his or her rights under Missouri law.
Any person violating the requirements of the substitute may be
liable for any actual damages sustained by the consumer as a
result of his or her negligence and the costs and attorney fees
associated with any lawsuit.

FISCAL NOTE:  No impact on state funds in FY 2009, FY 2010, and
FY 2011.

PROPONENTS:  Supporters say that the bill will offer added
protections to consumers by giving them another tool to use in
protecting their identity from theft.

Testifying for the bill were Representative Ruzicka; Bill Trimm,
Silver Haired Legislature; and Consumer Data Industry
Association.

OPPONENTS:  There was no opposition voiced to the committee.

OTHERS:  Others testifying on the bill say that a security freeze
is not for everyone.  If you are younger and need to get
utilities turned on, rent an apartment, or get a credit card and
you have a security freeze on your credit report, it could cost
you a lot of money each time you temporarily remove the freeze.

Testifying on the bill was Missouri Bankers Association.

Missouri House of Representatives
94th General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session
Last Updated October 15, 2008 at 3:11 pm