Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act

Floor Speech

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1568, the bipartisan Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act.

I believe that privacy is something we are going to be discussing on this floor for the next 10 years. We are trying to catch up to the electronics that exist in our lives, and we want to make sure that people are all respected.

We know protecting privacy is a difficult and constantly evolving challenge. This is especially true in our modern world. Privacy is deeply important for all Americans, particularly our servicemembers abroad. Unfortunately, our troops are often victims of identity theft.

For security purposes, U.S. Customs and Border Protection requires manifest sheets to document the cargo of incoming vessels. The Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act will ensure that personal data on cargo manifests cannot be abused.

I am proud to co-lead this crucial and commonsense measure with the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Waltz).

In recent years, manifest data has been mistakenly exposed, enabling identity theft, credit card fraud, and unwanted solicitations. Our plan will protect Americans from having their personal information compromised.

We must make sure information like names, addresses, Social Security numbers, and passport numbers can be removed from cargo manifests before they are disclosed. This is a no-brainer. We are talking about protecting people's privacy, including servicemembers and their families serving abroad.

Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record two letters of support for the Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act: the first is from the New Jersey Warehouse and Movers Association; the second is from the American Trucking Associations and a coalition of supportive organizations. New Jersey Warehouse & Movers Association September 11, 2023. Hon. Bill Pascrell, Washington, DC.

Representative Pascrell: As the leader of the New Jersey Warehouse & Movers Association, I have the privilege of representing moving and storage companies located across the Garden State. Thank you for your continued leadership, especially as a member of the US House Ways & Means Committee.

Our members especially thank you for introducing, along with Representative Mike Walz, the bipartisan Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act (``MAPPA'' / HR 1568). As you know, this legislation would help protect the privacy and personally identifiable information (PII) of American servicemembers, federal employees, private sector workers, and their families who are returning to the United States after living abroad.

With multiple defense and government installations, more than a dozen Fortune 500 corporate headquarters, globally recognized colleges and universities, and its status as a center for international trade, New Jersey residents frequently move overseas and then return to the US. This exchange plays an important role in our state's continued economic growth, and the moving industry is proud to support these individuals and their families. Unfortunately, current government policy regarding the security of their PII unwittingly places them at risk of identity theft, financiat fraud, and other crimes. The MAPPA would change this policy and require US Customs to remove the PII contained in vessel manifests from trade data that is provided to sale.

Passage of legislation accomplishing the goal of the MAPPA has been a long-standing priority of the moving industry. We are thankful for introducing identical legislation in the House (HR 1568) and the Senate (S 758). The Senate passed S 758 in March 2023, making House approval the only step necessary before the legislation goes to the White House for the President's signature.

As such, the New Jersey moving industry asks you to contact House Ways and Means Committee Ranking Member Richard Neal and urge him to support the Committee, including S 758 as passed by the Senate in the next available markup, to approve the legislation without amendment, and for the House to consider the legislation under suspension of the rules. We also understand that Rep. Waltz is testifying in support of MAPPA during the Ways and Means Committee's ``Member Day'' hearing on September 14, 2023--joint testimony in support of the legislation or a letter of support for the legislation submitted for the hearing's record would be appreciated as we all work to enact this necessary and commonsense legislation.

Thank you again for your leadership on this important issue. May 24, 2023. Hon. Jason Smith, Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means, Washington, DC. Hon. Adrian Smith, Chairman, Subcommittee on Trade, Committee on Ways and Means, Washington, DC. Hon. Richard Neal, Ranking Member, Committee on Ways and Means, Washington, DC. Hon. Earl Blumenauer, Ranking Member, Subcommittee on Trade, Committee on Ways and Means, Washington, DC.

Dear Chairman J. Smith, Ranking Member Neal, Chairman A. Smith, and Ranking Member Blumenauer: Our organizations respectfully request Committee sign off for House consideration--under suspension of the rules as a stand-alone bill--the Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act (S. 758), as passed by the Senate on March 9, 2023.

The legislation addresses a specific and unique issue and helps protect the sensitive personal data of servicemembers, federal employees, private sector workers. and families who are returning to the United States after living abroad. S. 758 was introduced on a bipartisan basis by Senators Daines, Peters, Stabenow, and Marshall and passed the Senate by voice vote. It has a bipartisan House companion (H.R. 1568) introduced by Representatives Waltz and Pascrell. The legislation is identical to the Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act (115th--H.R. 4403), which in 2018 the Ways & Means Committee reported out by voice vote, followed by House passage under the suspension calendar. The Congressional Budget Office and Joint Tax Committee have determined a ``zero'' score for the legislation.

Each year, the U.S. military, federal departments, and private sector organizations relocate tens of thousands of Americans back home to the U.S. after posting overseas. Other Americans return home after time abroad for personal reasons. When shipping their personal household goods to the U.S., these individuals must include elements of Personally Identifiable Information (PII) on shipping forms which are made part of vessel manifests. The PII often contains Social Security numbers, Passport numbers, home addresses, and other sensitive data.

Currently U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) is required to make all commercial information from vessel manifests--often capturing the sensitive PII of returning American citizens--available to data brokers who package and resell this data throughout their subscriber network. Without concrete action to protect the PII, normally held under strict security by the U.S. Government, these elements can be exposed, placing Americans at risk of identity theft, financial fraud, and other abuses of their data.

The Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act helps protect Americans from this risk by ensuring PII is removed from manifests prior to CBP providing and selling the commercial manifest information to data brokers. While it does not amend other provisions of the Tariff Act or in any other way modify Customs, authorities or trade policy, it does remove the U.S. Government from making sensitive PII of servicemembers and other Americans available to potential criminals as citizens move back home to the United States.

Given the focused nature of this legislation and increase in identity theft crimes in recent years, we urge the Committee to agree to direct House consideration of the Senate-passed version of the Moving Americans Privacy Protection Act (S. 758) as a stand-alone bill under suspension of the rules.

Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, American Trucking Associations, International Association of Movers, Military Officers Association of America, Senior Executives Association, Worldwide ERC.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, I strongly encourage my colleagues to support this commonsense measure today.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. PASCRELL. Mr. Speaker, protecting the privacy of the American people must be our priority. I strongly urge my colleagues to support this commonsense measure.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source