SS# use and Privacy Act 1974

[klt316]

What is the name of your state? GA - I am trying to visit a relative in the Georgia Dept of Corrections (Prison). The form to fill out requires a SS#. I have politely declined, citing the Privacy Act of 1974, sec 7 (a)(1) "It shall be unlawful for any Federal, State or local government agency to deny to any individual any right, benefit, or privilege provided by law because of such individual's refusal to disclose his social security account number." The prison has refused any visitation until I provide my SS#. I spoke with the warden, and also called the state HQs office and spoke with a polite but stern representative who took the question to the corrections' attorney office. After a couple days, he got back with me saying I had to provide the SS#. He would not provide me with any other reasons, but to say I would not win in court if I chose that avenue. There are provisions to the above paragraph (2) "the provisions of paragraph (1) of this subsection shall not apply with respect to -- (A) any disclosure which is required by Federal statute, or (B) any disclosure of a social security number to any Federal, State, or local agency maintaining a system of records in existence and operating before Jan 1, 1975, if such disclosure was required under statute or regulation adopted prior to such date to verify the identity of an individual". Would these provisions allow them to enforce my providing my SS# to them? I asked for a statute, they could not or would not provide me one. Do I have a case against the prison system? I do not want to provide my SS# as a matter of principle, this is exactly why the Privacy Act was created, to curtail its use as a national ID system! And if I have a case, what are my next steps?

 

[HomeGuru]

You are correct in your research but since the prison requires such a number they prevail.
You have right to not disclose your SS # and they have a right to deny you entrance.

 

[JETX]

"Do I have a case against the prison system?"
No.

"I do not want to provide my SS# as a matter of principle, this is exactly why the Privacy Act was created, to curtail its use as a national ID system!"
Wrong. Part of your problem is that the the section 7 that you cite was originally part of the Privacy Act but was not codified. The Privacy Act of 1974 is '5 USC 552a' and a CORRECT copy can be found at:
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/5/552a.html

"And if I have a case, what are my next steps?"
None.

BTW, the reason that the prison officials REQUIRE your SSN is to be able to run a criminal check on you. It is one of the requirements, both for checking.... and for entrance. Your choice.

 

[klt316]

I'm not entirely sure I understand your statement:

"...Part of your problem is that the the section 7 that you cite was originally part of the Privacy Act but was not codified. The Privacy Act of 1974 is '5 USC 552a'..."

"USC" stands for United States Code, I presumed. I do admit I don't understand how codes and annotations differ legally or if that is the case or how one part of the code is valid, but the other isn't? Sorry for my ignorance.

I paraphrased my statement about a national ID system and why the Privacy Act was created. To quote Doyle v. Wilson; 529 F. Supp. 1343 "In enacting Section 7 (Privacy Act of 1974), Congress sought to curtail the expanding use of social security numbers by federal and local agencies and, by so doing, to eliminate the threat to individual privacy and confidentiality of information posed by common numerical identifiers." This is where I was coming from also.

I actually thought the sticking point to my argument would be the provision to paragraph (1):

"... (B) any disclosure of a social security number to any Federal, State, or local agency maintaining a system of records in existence and operating before Jan 1, 1975, if such disclosure was required under statute or regulation adopted prior to such date to verify the identity of an individual..."

This would, I assume, give any govt agency in existence prior to 1975 a green flag to require disclosure of a SS# provided there is a statute or regulation quoted. But that statute would still need to be provided by said govt agency. (see University of Maine violates Privacy Act... http://www.bangor-info.com/RRR/ssns.html)

Finally I do understand their intent to run a background check in order to have visitation rights. But to be honest, I am as suspicious of people working in the government as they are of me visiting their institution. And federal records and its supporting system is far from error-free. Ask anyone with a ruined credit history because of SS fraud. Anytime something as large as the govt is involved, I worry about misuse, or even human error. Which is why I simply wanted to avoid the scenario altogether. Especially considering I am willing to provide any other information they would need, name, address, work, parents, place of birth... It worries me that our system is so tied to a single number, instead of the ability to cross reference effectively. One mistake could lead to lives being destroyed, and often has.

I am not one of these anti-govt crazed loonies, but rather a concerned citizen seeing abuse at all levels of business and govt and trying to avoid that to the best of my ability.

I appreciate the input, especially from those with more expertise than I (who have none).

Thanks again.

 

[racer72]

The security of the prison overides your right to privacy. And your SSN is a lot more vulnerable than you may think. I am far from a rocket scientist but with a name and address, I can find anybodies SSN in just a few short hours. Anybody that offers any kind of credit can access your credit reports and you never know what they would do with it. I would worry a lot more about folks like that the the state prison system.