Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site lanl-a.UUCP
Path: utzoo!linus!decvax!harpo!gummo!whuxlb!floyd!cmcl2!lanl-a!hwe
From: hwe@lanl-a.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.flame
Subject: Re: SS numbers
Message-ID: <1221@lanl-a.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 2-Sep-83 02:53:14 EDT
Article-I.D.: lanl-a.1221
Posted: Fri Sep  2 02:53:14 1983
Date-Received: Fri, 2-Sep-83 22:00:12 EDT
References: <5150@cornell.UUCP>, <2243@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Organization: Los Alamos National Laboratory
Lines: 39

There seems to be a large amount of mis-information around about
the use of social security numbers. I am not a lawyer, however
I can read...

Public law 93-579, The privacy Act of 1974, deals mainly with
Federal data bases.
Section 7 of the law is unique in that it specifically covers
state and local governments as well as the Feds.
Section 7 of the law has 2 paragraphs. The first says that nobody
can be denied any right or benefit or privilage because of a
refusal to give the ssn. The first paragraph then goes on to say
that certain groups can indeed use the ssn; in particular any
group that has a federal law saying "use it" (the IRS...), or
any state or local group that had a state or local law saying
"use it" enacted before Jan 1, 1975. No state or local government
can pass a law allowing the use of the ssn after that date.

If you are confused by now, paragraph 2 of section 7 makes the whole
thing easy.
ANY Federal, State, or Local government agency that wants your ssn, and
thinks that they deserve it, must inform you as to just what statutory
authority allows them to make such a request, and whether the disclosure
is voluntary or mandatory.

So, the next time someone asks for your ssn, don't claim that its illegal.
It might be perfectly legal and proper.
If it is a legal and proper request, then they must provide you with the
chapter and verse of some set of laws that allows them to ask, legally and
properly, for the nasty little number.
If they can't produce, tell them to go take a flying ...
(OK, I'll help keep the net clean).

I would be VERY interested in hearing from anyone out there who attends
a school that uses the ssn as a student identifier without having
informed you as to the statutory authority of such use.

			Skip Egdorf
		UUCP:	...!lanl-a!hwe
		ARPA:	hwe@lanl