Transcript Slide 1

Right to be forgotten
Sorry, due to budget cuts,
we are only open to the public on the
third Wednesday of every other
month.
“NYC is a
closed
jurisdiction
and we are
not public
records.”
Only the dead can get copies of their death records
Access
Denied!
You have to prove your kinship before
you can obtain your great
grandfather’s records
So, what can we DO
about this?
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Vital Records Are Public Records: Help
Keep Vital Records Accessible
F 328
15 May 2015
St. Charles, Missouri
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Agenda
• Jan Alpert, Chair, RPAC
• About RPAC
• Three-year restriction to Social Security Death Index
• RPAC requesting Amendment or sunset to Sec. 203
• Jan Meisels Allen, Chair, IAJGS Public Records Access Monitoring Com.
• 2011 Revision Model Vital Statistics Act & recent examples
• What you need to watch for in your state legislature in 2015
• European Union Update
• Fred Moss, Counsel for FGS
• Genealogists’ Declaration of Rights. We need 10,000 signatures!
• RPAC Website & Materials
• Q&A
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About RPAC
• Joint Committee of FGS, NGS, and IAJGS
• Participating organizations: APG, ASG, BCG,
and ICAPGen.
• Other participants: Ancestry & ProQuest
• State Liaisons ( 29 of the 50 states currently
represented)
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Records Preservation & Access Committee
Participants
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Jan Alpert, Chair (SC)
Josh Taylor, FGS (MA)
Fred Moss, FGS (TX)
David Rencher, FGS (UT)
Curt Witcher, FGS (IN)
Linda McCleary, FGS (AZ)
Barbara Mathews, BCG (MA)
Linda Gulbrandsen, ICAPGEN
(UT)
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Jan Meisels Allen, IAJGS (CA)
Jordan Jones, NGS, (NC)
Ed Grandi, NGS (VA)
Darrell Jackson, NGS (MI)
Kelvin Meyers, APG (TX)
Juliana Szucs, Ancestry (IL)
Bill Forsyth, ProQuest (UT)
ASG currently vacant
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RPAC Mission
• Advocate open access to vital records
• Support strong preservation policies & practices
• Advise community about federal, state, and
sometimes local regulations and legislation
• Coordinate genealogical community response
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How RPAC Responds to Threats
• RPAC supports and assists local genealogy
groups and state liaisons
• Monitors bills as the legislation progresses
• Communicates threats and bill status
• Prepares written statements for key
committee hearings
• Posts sample letters to legislators
• Talking Points for visits with your legislators
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State Liaisons—How Selected
• Normally by state umbrella society
• Looking for volunteers interested in the political
process
• Who possibly worked in government affairs,
state, or local government
• If interested see me after this presentation
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State Liaison Responsibilities
with Support from RPAC
• Monitor state legislative & regulatory activity
• Timely alert to RPAC
• Primary link between state genealogical
community & RPAC
• Build a communications network across the
state for a consistent response
• Compile state specific data on access and
retention of vital records for RPAC website.
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State Liaison Roster
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Elizabeth Wells (AL)
Connie Bradbury (AK)
Linda McCleary (AZ)
Jan Davenport (AR)
David Coward (CO)
Robert Rafford (CT)
Donn Devine (DE)
Frank Laurent (FL)
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Elizabeth Olson (GA)
Jeanie Lowe (IL)
Curt Witcher (IN)
Cynthia Hofmeister (LA)
Barbara Mathews (MA)
Helen Shaw (ME)
Cynthia Grostick (MI)
Nancy Waller Thomas (MO)
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State Liaison Roster
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Bernice Schroer (NV)
Joan Lowry (NJ)
Derek Davey (OH)
Billie Fogarty (OK)
Leslie Lawson (OR)
James Beidler (PA)
John Andrews, Jr. (SC)
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Teri Flack (TX)
Linda Gulbrandsen (UT)
John Leppman (VT)
Barbara Vines Little (VA)
Eric Stroschein (WA)
Pam Anderson (WI)
State Liaisons in the room please stand
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Liaisons Needed
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California
Hawaii
Idaho
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Maryland
Minnesota
Mississippi
Montana
Nebraska
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New Hampshire
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Tennessee
West Virginia
Wyoming
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Current Threats to Vital Records Access
• Closure of the SSDI record for three years from
person’s death.
• Since November 2011, the Social Security
Administration is providing less data
• Model State Vital Statistics Act trying to increase
the number of years before genealogists can
access Vital Records
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2013 Bipartisan Budget Act
• Passed both houses and signed by the President
in December 2013
• Sec. 203 closed access to the Death Master
File/SSDI for 3 years after someone’s death
• To prevent identity theft and tax fraud of
deceased individuals
• Beginning March 2014 must be certified by the
Department of Commerce to access the
DMF/SSDI during the 3 year embargo period
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Steps Taken by RPAC
• Fred Moss testified at a Hearing March 2014.
• RPAC and its supporting organizations filed
statements in 2014 and 2015 objecting to the
Interim and the Proposed Final Rules.
• Over 90 statements have been filed, mostly from
genealogists, objecting to the cost and quality of the
data and certification requirements
• Through the process we have gained allies who
were also impacted by the law and need access to
the data
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2013 Bipartisan Budget Act
• Interim rule allowed certification for forensic
genealogists. Only one became certified.
• $200 to become certified, increasing to $400
• Annual fee to access data is $995 for less data
through an inadequate search engine
• Audit and security requirements, inappropriate
for a small business
• $1,000 fine if SSDI information disclosed to
anyone not certified
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RPAC Requesting Amendment to Sec. 203
• Redact the SSN and make the non-sensitive
information available during the three-year
embargo period .
• Require the SSA to release all the information
including middle name or initial, year and state
SSN was issued, and last residence or where the
last payment was sent.
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Fund IRS So Sec. 203 No Longer Needed
• Congress needs to provide the IRS with money
to install filters which flag income tax returns
inconsistent with the prior year(s).
• Filters would protect both the living and
deceased from identity theft
• In 2011 report said tax fraud from identity theft
of the deceased was only 2% of the problem
• Once proof the filters are working, Sec. 203 is no
longer needed
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Jan Meisels Allen
Member, RPAC
Chairperson, IAJGS Public Records Access
Monitoring Committee
President, Jewish Genealogical Society
of the Conejo Valley and Ventura County
(JGSCV)
[email protected]
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Genealogists without records
can’t do genealogy!
We are facing crises worldwide
on access to vital records
Due to misunderstanding
by those in power about Identity Theft
and due to Budget Cuts
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2011 Revision
Model State Vital Statistics Act
• Working group reported revision May 2011
• Restricts access to birth records for 125 years
• Restricts access to marriage or divorce records for
100 years
• Restricts access to death records for 75 years
• Restricts access to indices until the embargo
dates
• Requires confidentiality restrictions on indices as
well as records
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2011 Revision
Model State Vital Statistics Act
• April 2012 Dept. of Health & Human Services
(HHS) put Model Act “on hold”
• January 2013 HHS promulgates final regulation
on privacy and permits medical information on
deceased to be released after 50 years less than
revision act of 75 years
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Remember to Watch For Regulations Too
• Regulations are way for state regulators to
require actions that are not in state law and to
“reinterpret” state laws
• We have already seen changes in the privacy
language for Maine Vital Records proposed
regulations
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Need To Watch “Other” Gov’t Agencies: KS Supreme
Court Proposing Restricting Access to Marriage Records
• Kansas Supreme Court is considering changes to Supreme Court
Rule 106.
• Proposed restricting access to marriage records to attorneys,
court officers, the Kansas Department of Health and
Environment and to whom the marriage license was issued.
• Would redact following information from the marriage record:
• An applicant’s Social Security Number
• An applicant’s date of city of birth
• An applicant’s mother’s maiden name or
• Any information designated as confidential by the Kansas
Department of Health and Environment
• Would prevent OVS from issuing genealogical copies
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OK SB 110
• 75 years after death; 125 years after birth can
inspect certificates except to the person who is
the subject of the record (i.e. the deceased) or
in such person's interest (attorney)
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OK Bill puts issuing marriage licenses solely in the hands
of judges or ordained recognized religious persons
• OK HB 1125 eliminates clerks from issuing
marriage licenses
• Only judges and ordained recognized religious
persons may issue marriage licenses
• How one would access the marriage records
in the future?
• Same state that enacted legislation several
years ago which permits only the deceased to
obtain their death certificate.
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Recent Vital Records Legislation
Oregon—State Liaison, Leslie Lawson
• Passed in 2013 with no change in embargo periods
• Limited access to the indices
Maine—State Liaison, Helen Shaw
• Law changed 2010.
• Researcher card to provide access to genealogists
• 2015 pending regulations incorporate some Model Act
provisions (to make the indices private) 5th draft
Texas—State Liaison Teri Flack
• 2014-Letter writing campaign by Texas genealogists
made a difference. The bill died in committee. New Bill
introduced in 2015 HB 3427
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Recent Vital Records Legislation
• Washington—State Liaison, Eric Stroschein
• Did not have administration support and never became a bill.
• Potential for bill to be reintroduced in 2015
• Where RPAC and the genealogical community
proactively worked together, there has been
limited adverse change.
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New York City Department of Health
and Access to Birth and Death Certificates
"We do not follow that state law.
NYC is a closed jurisdiction and we
are not public records. For birth
and death certificates, you must
show entitlement. There aren't an
amount of years when our records
become public yet."
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Board of Health for New York City Limits Access
to Death Certificates
• Board of Health public hearing was held on
November 14, 2014 and no comments were
received.
• The genealogical community was not aware of the
hearing or notice.
• Adopted December 9, 2014 ; effective January 12,
2015
• The only persons who may obtain or inspect
records, files, reports, transcripts about deaths –do
not include genealogists and are:
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NYC Death Certificates Limited to: (Cont’d)
• The spouse, domestic partner, parent, child, sibling,
grandparent or grandchild of the decedent,
• The legal representative of the estate of the
decedent,
• A party with a proven property right,
• A funeral director, or
• Persons or government agencies who otherwise
establish that such records are necessary or
required for a judicial or other proper purpose.
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How can you help?
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Things to Do Now
• Find out when your state’s legislature begins and
ends. Many start in January–but the end dates
vary–some go year round
• See:
http://www.statescape.com/Resources/Session
s/Sessions.aspx?h=&year=2015
• Identify your representatives, their contact
information, and make your selves known to
them
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What You and Your Society Can Do
• Invite your local legislators to a Society meeting
• Send all your legislators-federal, state, local your
blog/newsletter—remember you and your
society members are their constituents
• Stop into their local offices and get to know
them and their staffs
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Why Lobbying Matters
97 percent of Congressional staff say that in-person
issues visits from constituents influence policymakers, with
46 percent reporting it has a lot of influence. (Source: 2011
poll by Congressional Management Foundation)
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Tool Kit
For
State Liaisons
See:
http://tinyurl.com/83q6t8m
Interview on Records Access
http://tinyurl.com/qhansx2
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How To Find Your State’s ?
“How A Bill Becomes A Law”
Google it!
www.google.com
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Every step on the
“How A Bill Becomes A Law”
is an opportunity to shape the
outcome…from the day it is introduced,
the hearings, going to the floor of the
legislature, to the desk. Take the
necessary steps at each opportunity!
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Write a Letter to the Committee(s)
Which Will Hear the Bill
• Who do you write?
• Committee Chairperson
• Committee Members
• Author of the Bill (may or may not be a member
of the committee)
• If the bill has passed?
• Write the Governor or President who will be
asked to sign the bill
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How To Find Out Where To Write
Go to www.IAJGS.org and
click on Legislation
Then on Legislative Websites
US State Legislative websites
US Congress
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www.IAJGS.org
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www.IAJGS.org
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Get To Know Your Local Representatives
All politics are local!
Each Liaison and your society board member and others in your society
should get to know:
Your local State Representative
Your local State Senator
Your Federal Congressperson
Your US Senators
And their staffs!
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European Union Member 28 Countries
Austria
Belgium
Bulgaria
Croatia
Cyprus
Czech
Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Ireland
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
Malta
Netherlands
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
United
Kingdom
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Right to be Forgotten/Right to be Erased
• The EU principle of right to be forgotten can
happen here.
• Court case against Google but affects all search
engines
• French Court imposes RTBF on global reach of
Google
• California already has a law permitting minors to
have what they posted online to be “erased”
• US freedom of press and speech
• EU right of privacy prevails
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European Union Update
• European Union Court Decision RE: Google on “Right to Be
Forgotten” 760,000 removal requests as of February 2
• European Union Proposed General Data Protection
Regulation—affects genealogy historical and current records
from EU countries as vital records considered personal
information—applies to organizations based outside the EU if
they process personal data of EU residents.
• European Union Guidelines on “Right to be Forgotten”
Worldwide reach as search engine operates outside of EU.
• If you do research in Europe, you may not be able to access
the information—the time is now for you to become active!
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European Union Update Cont’d
•
Lawsuit over Facebook exporting its European’s data to
the US. Plaintiff lost in Ireland and is now suing in
Austria. European Union Court of Justice to determine in
late June.
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Austrian lawsuit based on Facebook compiling its users’
personal data in violation of Austrian and EU legislation.
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If the Vienna Court declares it is entitled to hear the case
then it is conceivable that there will be more legal
battles against Facebook and perhaps other social media
providers as suing in a jurisdiction where company is not
headquartered—Facebook EU headquarters in Ireland.
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EU charges Google in violation over EU antitrust and levy
up to $6 billion Euros fine
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Fred Moss, JD, LL.M.
• Legal Advisor for FGS
• Former Associate Dean & Professor, Texas
Wesleyan School of Law
• Colonel (retired) Judge Advocate General Corps.
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The Threat
• In recent years – Over 1000 legislative proposals
impacting access to vital records and others
• Vast majority restrict access
• Scourge of Identity Theft
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Rationale
• Best (or only) way to thwart Identity Thieves is
to close the records they might have used
• Unstated Assumption: Records can be closed
without harm or cost
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Proposals
• Close DMF/SSDI
• Model State Vital Statistics Act – 2011 Edition
would close
• Birth Records – 125 years
• Marriage Records – 100 years
• Death Records – 75 years
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Cited Cases
• Tax Fraud by Identity Theft
• OPR continued paying government employee
retired pay after deceased
• Syracuse continued paying health care insurance
premiums after stopped paying deceased
retired pay
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The 2011 Paradigm
• The DMF/SSDI was a substantial source of SSNs
used in filing fraudulent tax returns.
• SSNs of deceased individuals needed to be
protected in the same ways we safeguard those
of the living.
• Simple fix (Silver Bullet?): Just limit access to the
DMF/SSDI
• Unstated Assumption: Nothing would be lost by
closing this resource.
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Is the SSDI/DMF issue . . .
An Access issue?
A Preservation issue?
Both?
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Section 203 Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013
• Embargo report of death for three years
• During embargo access limited to those certified
• Redact location data
• Costs and Security burden
• Limit role for third party hosts
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What IF Story -• IF in 2011 thieves had gotten SSNs off DMF and:
• Tried to open a credit card
• Buy a car or boat
• Mortgage a house
• Initiate telephone service to an apartment
They would have been REJECTED. . . . All of these
lenders would have checked the DMF and concluded
they did not wish to do business with someone
authoritatively reported as deceased.
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Section 203 as Case Study
• 2011 and later data now available
• Deceased cases less than 2% of tax fraud
• IRS started using better filters in December 2011
• TY 2012 and 2013 data should show interdiction
of almost all deceased cases
• Improving filters will catch increasing number of
fraud cases involving SSNs of the living
• Burden only falls on legitimate DMF users
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RPAC Posture
• The Genealogical Community would rather be
• Thought of as a Stakeholder & Resource, NOT
• A mere constituency to be placated,
• Or safely ignored.
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Genealogists’ Declaration of Rights
• FGS, NGS, & IAJGS Sponsored
• The Declaration of Rights is a statement
advocating open access to federal, state, and
local public records.
• The Declaration affirms America’s long history of
open public records, which has been threatened
the last few years over concerns about identity
theft and privacy.
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Genealogists’ Declaration of Rights
• Will be used to show state and federal
legislators and regulators that genealogists
support open records and
• Genealogists Vote!!
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Genealogists Vote
Web site to order pins
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6,900 Signatures through March 2015
We Need 10,000 Signatures
• How you and your society can participate:
• Online at http://bit.ly/gen-declaration
• RPAC Booth today and Saturday
• State and regional conferences
• Society gatherings
Stop by the RPAC Booth #717 and pick-up a form
to take home.
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Sign the Declaration
Sign under the state tab
in which you are registered to vote
Encourage your friends and
society members to sign
electronically online
http://bit.ly/gen-declaration
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If Your Society Collects Signatures Button
and Banner for Your Website
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What is Needed NOW ?
• We need you to deliver the message to your
elected representatives?
• Do you know who they are? Do they know you?
• Call on your state and federal legislators
• Office Visits during Congressional Recesses
• August and holidays
• We also recommend joint calls between
President of State Genealogical Society and APG
Chapter President
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Deliver the Following Message
• Fraud from identity theft of the deceased was
less than 2% of the total in 2011 and improving
• The IRS can install more filters to flag
inconsistent/fraudulent tax returns which will
reduce identity theft of the living as well as the
deceased.
• Genealogy websites had already closed access to
the SSDI for 2-10 years
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Rationale Revisited
• Best (or only) way to thwart Identity Thieves is
to close the records they might have used
• Unstated Assumption: Records can be closed
without harm or cost
• Seeking additional examples
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Three Questions for Legislators
• Is the best [or only] way to stop ID thieves
closing the records they might have used?
• Can access to vital records or the Death Master
File be closed (or limited) without harm or cost?
• Is it impossible for you to believe that more
effective alternatives to closure can be found?
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Amend Sec. 203 of the 2013 Bipartisan
Budget Agreement
• Redact the SSN from the Death Master File for
three years, and provide the non-sensitive
information to data aggregators such as
Ancestry and FamilySearch.
• Require the Social Security Administration to
release all the available information including
middle name or initial, year and state the SSN
was issued, and last residence.
• Sunset Section 203
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RPAC Blog Posts
• These slides are posted on the RPAC Blog at
http://www.fgs.org/RPAC
• Sample letter to write your legislators
• RPAC Brochure on Open Records
• Statements sent to Congressional Committees
and the Department of Commerce about why
genealogists need access to the SSDI
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RPAC Blog
http://www.fgs.org/rpac/publications
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Pick Up the RPAC Brochure
at the RPAC Table, NGS Booth #201
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Contact RPAC
• Watch the RPAC Blog www.fgs.org/rpac for
updates
• Contact RPAC at [email protected]
• We can help!
• We need to know early and stay informed
throughout the legislative process
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Questions?
http://www.fgs.org/rpac
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