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Senate Votes Support of Coghill Privacy Bill
HB 48 Bars Social Security Numbers on Fishing Licenses

(JUNEAU) - Alaskan outdoorsmen will be able to enjoy the privilege of obtaining licenses to hunt and fish in the state without having to provide state bureaucrats with their Social Security numbers, under legislation the Senate passed unanimously today.

Rep. John Coghill Jr. (R-North Pole) sponsored House Bill 48 and guided it successfully through the House and Senate because his constituents expressed their opposition to the national trend of using the Social Security number as a national identity number.

"Constituents asked me what the connection was between their fishing license and their government retirement account, and I couldn't give them an answer," Coghill said. "It's an invasion of privacy, and in the days of identity theft we should limit the use of a number that can be the key to someone's entire identity."

The state had been collecting Social Security numbers on license applications under a federal mandate on the pretext that having the numbers would help the federal government track applicants down if they were ever delinquent on child support payments.

However, Coghill discovered that the federal government actually uses the much more accurate and reliable information submitted by Alaskans on their applications for Alaska Permanent Fund dividends. Under a three-year waiver, the Alaska Child Support Enforcement Division is under no federal obligation to collect Social Security numbers from Alaskans, and HB 48 updates state statutes to halt the practice.

The bill will take effect as soon as the governor signs the final bill into law, freeing applicants from the objectionable requirement even if the application forms still seek the information, Coghill said.

The vote on final passage of HB 48 was 37-0, and the bill moves next to the governor.

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Attachments:

• Sponsor Statement for HB 48
• Print Friendly Version
  requires Adobe Acrobat Reader - 1 page(s) - 102 K

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