Bill Text: MI HR0191 | 2009-2010 | 95th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: A resolution to urge the United States Department of State to fulfill its legal obligation to respond to Freedom of Information requests for records related to breaches in passport record security and to provide complete information to the states regarding how Enhanced Driver’s License information is being protected, housed, and shared.
Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Republican 26-3)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2009-12-17 - Referred To Committee On Judiciary [HR0191 Detail]
Download: Michigan-2009-HR0191-Introduced.html
Reps. Opsommer, Paul Scott, Amash, Booher, Calley, Caul, Crawford, Daley, Dean, Green, Haines, Haveman, Horn, Knollenberg, Kowall, Kurtz, LeBlanc, Lori, Lund, Proos, Tlaib, Tyler, Ball, Marleau, McMillin, Meekhof, Pearce, Rogers and Walsh offered the following resolution:
House Resolution No. 191. 191.
A resolution to urge the United States Department of State to fulfill its legal obligation to respond to Freedom of Information requests for records related to breaches in passport record security and to provide complete information to the states regarding how Enhanced Driver’s License information is being protected, housed, and shared.
Whereas, The integrity and security of personal identification information must be a top priority of governmental agencies and offices. Identity theft in our age of instant and international communications is a crime with ramifications we are only beginning to fully comprehend. This crime threatens not only every individual, business, and family, but also our national security; and
Whereas, The American public's faith in the treatment of personal information was shaken by recurring reports in the 2008 presidential campaign that passport records of major candidates had been inappropriately accessed. Information on even Hilary Clinton, John McCain, and Barack Obama was accessed improperly, leaving citizens to wonder whether their records would even be held to the same standard. In addition, news reports from last year showed security breaches in passport components being produced overseas, including the theft or loss of blank radio frequency identification chips. Numerous reports issued by the Governmental Accountability Office have been critical as well. The fact the federal government would now like states to issue state driver’s license federal passport hybrids known as Enhanced Driver’s Licenses (EDLs) means that states have an even more vested interest in knowing if the breaches are truly being fixed, who is maintaining the databases, and what kinds of personal or biometric data is being shared with foreign governments; and
Whereas, In response to this serious situation, Freedom of Information requests were submitted in an effort to determine whether the federal government is taking steps necessary to improve the situation and so that states can determine if the citizen data they are entrusting to the federal government is being adequately safeguarded. However, the records ultimately released by the United States Department of State included a report that was highly redacted, and even state elected officials are having difficulty getting information. Although the report of the State Department's Office of the Inspector General showed extensive evidence that many files had been compromised, the amount of withheld information raised additional concerns. Only 6 of the report's 22 recommendations were not completely redacted. This has led to questions over whether protocols are being followed and additional requests for more complete information, as well as a lawsuit after the request was denied; and
Whereas, The issues at stake in this situation have far more significance than isolated violations of security policies related to certain passport files. The issues include the increasing use of nongovernmental employees, portable laptops, and foreign contractors from countries actively involved in espionage against the United States; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives, That we urge the United States Department of State to fulfill its legal obligation to respond to Freedom of Information requests for records related to breaches in passport record security and, additionally, to provide complete information to the states regarding how Enhanced Driver’s License (EDL) information is being protected, housed, and shared; and be it further
Resolved, That copies of this resolution be transmitted to the Secretary of the Untied States Department of State.
