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PUBLIC LAW 108-159 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BILL NO. 2622 OF 2003

PUBLIC LAW 108-159 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES BILL NO. 2622 OF 2003 AS SIGNED ON DECEMBER 4, 2003 AS CODIFIED IN 117 UNITED STATES STATUTES 1952

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Subdivision (g) was added to section 1681c of Title 15 of the United States Code in 2003 following congressional passage of House of Representatives Bill No. 2622 [hereinafter referred to as “H.R. 2622”], which amended the Fair Credit Reporting Act [hereinafter referred to as “the FCRA”] and enacted the “Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act of 2003” [also known as “the FACT Act”]. (See Exhibit A, #1, page 1952)

This bill was introduced on June 26, 2003 by Representative Spencer T. Bachus, III, as lead author. (See Exhibit A, #3a) A July 9, 2003 hearing transcript from the House Committee on Financial Services indicated that:

    The bill was introduced just prior to the 4th of July recess by a bipartisan coalition of 32 members of this Committee, 18 Republicans and 14 Democrats, led by the Chairman of the Financial Institution Subcommittee, the hardworking Mr. Bachus, Ms. Hooley, Mrs. Biggert and Mr. Moore.
(See Exhibit A, #9, page 1)

H.R. 2622 was first reviewed by the House Committee on Financial Services and was amended by the House. (See Exhibit A, #3b and #5) Thereafter, the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs reviewed the bill. (See Exhibit A, #3c) The Senate Committee proposed to strike the text of the bill and insert a substitute text from Senate Bill 1753 of 2003 [hereinafter referred to as “S. 1753”], which the House disputed, prompting a call for the formation of a Conference Committee. (See Exhibit A, #7, page 65) The purpose of a Conference Committee is to bring together legislators, called “conferees,” from the Senate and the House of Representatives in an attempt to reach a compromise on a bill’s language that is acceptable to both.

The Committee of Conference formally recommended that the House recede from its disagreement to the amendment of the Senate and agree to the same with an amendment. (See Exhibit A, #7) Following approval of the conferees’ recommendation by the House and the Senate, H.R. 2622 was presented to President George W. Bush, who signed this bill on December 4, 2003. (See Exhibit A, #1 and #10, page 1746)

As reported in the Congressional Record, the Chair of the House Committee on Financial Services, Representative Michael G. Oxley, characterized the Conference version of H.R. 2622 as “a bipartisan bill that will foster economic growth and development throughout this country.” (See Exhibit A, #4d, page H12214) His comments described the bill as follows:

    In addition to preserving our vital national credit system, this legislation is an extremely comprehensive consumer protection bill. The protections are designed to meet head-on the growing crime of identity theft which has accompanied the expanding credit market in our country. The FTC released a study in early September which revealed the damaging extent of this crime in our country. Ten million Americans were victimized by identity thieves last year alone, costing consumers and businesses over $55 billion, not counting the 300 million hours spent by victims to try to repair damaged credit records. The financial costs are staggering, with over $10,000 stolen in the average fraud.
    The Committee on Financial Services has worked tirelessly to explore and find solutions to this destructive crime. Over 100 witnesses have come before the committee since last April to discuss the renewal of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and many of them focused their statements on the urgent need to increase safeguards designed to protect consumers and businesses alike from this crime. . . . [W]e have a bill before us today that empowers both consumers and businesses as we attempt to eliminate this terrible crime. Congress needs to pass strong, uniform identity theft protect; and it needs to do it now.
(See Exhibit A, #4d, pages H12214 and H12215)