Washington State House of Representatives	BILL ANALYSIS
Transportation Committee

ESSB 5364

Brief Description:  Modifying drivers' license and identicard provisions.

Sponsors:  By Senate Committee on Transportation (originally sponsored by Senators Horn, Haugen and Benton).

Brief Summary of Engrossed Substitute Bill

$Contracts between the Department of Licensing and private vendors who provide drivers= licenses or identicard services cannot contain the driver=s social security number or fingerprints or thumbprints.

$Applications for noncommercial drivers= licenses must contain the social security number of the applicant.

$The Governor shall seek a waiver from the federal requirement to collect social security numbers.

Hearing Date:  3/27/01

Staff:  Penny Nerup (786‑7335).

Background: 

The federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, commonly known as the welfare reform act, made significant changes to the child support enforcement system, including increasing the use of social security numbers on license applications to improve tracking of ?dead beat parents.@

In 1998 the Legislature passed a law that conformed state law with these federal requirements by requiring licensing agencies for professional, commercial driver=s, occupational, or recreational licenses to obtain the applicant=s social security number on the application form.  Subsequently, Congress postponed the deadline for implementation of state collection of social security numbers on noncommercial drivers= licenses until October 1, 2000 and state law was conformed to that date.

By state law, licensing agencies cannot display a social security number on the licensing document itself.

In 1998 the Legislature passed a law directing the Department of Social and Health Services to seek a waiver to the federal mandate to record social security numbers on applications for professional, driver=s, occupational, and recreational licenses.  That waiver was sought and denied by the federal Department of Health and Human Services on June 11, 1998.

Summary of Bill: 

Any contract entered into by the Department of Licensing and a private vendor who provides driver=s license or identicard services cannot contain the driver=s social security number or the driver=s fingerprints or thumbprints.

Applications for noncommercial drivers= licenses must contain the social security number of the applicant.

The Governor must seek a waiver from the federal requirement to collect social security numbers.

Technical changes are made deleting obsolete language.

Appropriation:  None.

Fiscal Note:  Available.

Effective Date:  Ninety days after adjournment of session in which bill is passed.