Announcing Introduction of the Shield Act

ANNOUNCING INTRODUCTION OF THE SHIELD ACT -- (House of Representatives - June 08, 2005)

(Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute.)

Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin. Madam Speaker, I rise today to proudly introduce H.R. 2695, the Safe Housing Identification Exemption for the Lives of Domestic Violence Victims, the SHIELD Act, with the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Harris). I know of the victims that have finally built up the courage to leave their abusive relationships and have nowhere to go but to a homeless shelter. I know of the women who every day are scared for their lives because their abusers are trying to track them down. I know of the victims who are so scared that they can be tracked down by their predators, and they probably would not seek housing assistance if they knew that HUD required them to disclose their personal information, their Social Security numbers, birth date and location into the homeless management information system database.

I am thinking of those abusers who have ready access to this personal information. They may be their partners. These abusers may work in one of these agencies and have ready access to this database.

I ask my colleagues to please support H.R. 2695, the SHIELD Act, to exclude personally identifying information. Reaching out for assistance is a really big step for these victims. Let us not put them in grave danger.

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