GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA

SESSION 2005

H                                                                                                                                                    2

HOUSE BILL 2883

Committee Substitute Favorable 6/21/06

Short Title:     Servicemembers and Veterans/ID Theft.	(Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:

June 19, 2006

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT to protect military Servicemembers and veterans from identiTy theft.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.  G.S. 75‑63(o) reads as rewritten:

"(o)      This section does not prevent a consumer reporting agency from charging a fee of no more than ten dollars ($10.00) to a consumer for each freeze, removal of the freeze, or temporary lifting of the freeze for a period of time, regarding access to a consumer credit report, except that a consumer reporting agency may not charge any fee to

(1) a A victim of identity theft who has submitted a copy of a valid investigative or incident report or complaint with a law enforcement agency about the unlawful use of the victim's identifying information by another person.person, or

(2) A veteran as defined in G.S. 126‑81, a member of the Armed Forces of the United States, as defined in G.S. 165‑20, including a member of the North Carolina National Guard, who has received notification from the United States Department of Veterans Affairs indicating that their information is, or may, be included in the information involved in the Department's data breach, first announced on May 22, 2006; provided, however, that the application for a freeze includes the notification and also proof of status as described in this subdivision, or

(3) Persons who are the authorized agents, or receive benefits from the State or federal government based on a relationship to a person who is, or was, qualified under subdivision (2) of this subsection."

SECTION 2.  Until and including July 1, 2007, there shall be no fee charged by a consumer reporting agency for the removal of a security freeze by persons who, prior to the expiration date set forth in Section 3 of this act, placed a freeze under G.S. 75‑63(o)(2) and G.S. 75‑63(o)(3), as set forth in Section 1 of this act.

SECTION 3.  This act is effective when it becomes law.  Section 1 of this act shall expire on January 1, 2007, or upon public announcement by the United States Department of Veteran Affairs that it will pay for a security freeze for consumer credit reports for persons eligible under G.S. 75‑63(o)(2) and G.S. 75‑63(o)(3), whichever event occurs first.