OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

Federal Agency Data Protection Act

Date: June 3, 2008
Location: Washington, DC
Issues: Senior Citizens Entitlements and the Safety Net


FEDERAL AGENCY DATA PROTECTION ACT -- (House of Representatives - June 03, 2008)

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Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, as chairman of the Subcommittee of Information Policy, Census and National Archives, I am pleased to join my colleagues in the consideration of H.R. 4791, the Federal Agency Data Protection Act, a bill to protect personally identifiable information of individuals that is maintained in or transmitted by Federal agency information systems.

H.R. 4791, which I introduced along with Chairman Henry Waxman and Representative Ed Towns on December 18, 2007, was reported from the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on May 21, 2008. I want to also thank Ranking Member TOM DAVIS for working with us on this legislation, especially on the notification provision.

Despite progress made with the implementation of the Federal Information Security Management Act, or FISMA, GAO found that pervasive weaknesses continue to exist primarily because agencies fail to maintain secure IT networks. As a result, GAO concluded that Federal financial data are at risk of unauthorized modification or destruction, sensitive information at risk of inappropriate disclosure, and critical operations at risk of disruption.

H.R. 4791 would secure our agencies' IT access and require an annual audit of agency programs. The bill would also establish a comprehensive definition for ``personally identifiable information'' and mandate that agencies notify individuals when their personal information is accessed in a data breach.

Mr. Speaker, in light of today's report that 1,000 patients at Walter Reed Army Medical Center and other military hospitals had their names, Social Security numbers and birth dates exposed in a security breach, this is a timely measure that provides Americans with some assurance that the Federal Government will work diligently to protect their personal information.

I urge the swift passage of H.R. 4791.

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Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, in closing, I want to urge the House to support this bill, H.R. 4791, and to say that the American people expect that personal information that they share with their government should be kept private and should be protected, and this bill will ensure that that information is protected.

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