Privacy Legislation Enacted in 2001

Unless otherwise noted, all laws go into effect January 1, 2002

Data Collection and Use Limit

SB 168 (Bowen) - Credit bureaus and SSN protection: This bill requires credit bureaus to place fraud alerts and freezes on consumer accounts on request of consumer, starting July 2002; restricts public display of individuals' SSNs, starting 2003, with some provisions phased in through 2005. [Amended by SB 1730 (Bowen) of 2002 to facilitate implementation, by clarifying exemption of forms and applications and by including employer-administered health plans in delayed implementation timeline. Also amended by AB 1068 (Wright) of 2002 to allow financial institutions until 7/1/03 to comply with restriction on certain mailings.]

SB 1090 (Bowen) - Prohibits satellite TV providers from monitoring subscriber viewing (same as for CATV providers).

Identity Theft

AB 488 (Kehoe) - Consumer credit reports: This bill makes it easier for identity theft victims to correct their credit reports by requiring credit bureaus to provide consumers with a list of those requesting copies of their credit record, including contact info of requesters .

AB 655 (Wright) - Unsolicited credit offers, consumer credit reports and investigative reports: This bill allows consumers to remove their names from credit bureau mailing lists to receive unsolicited pre-approved credit offers for two years, and requires bureaus to notify consumers of this option. The bill provides ID theft victims and other consumers with increased rights regarding consumer credit reports, including requiring the deletion of inquiries resulting from identity theft. It also provides more protections under the Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act, including requiring the recipient of a report to give a copy to the subject. The bill gives ID theft victims the right to bring actions in court against those who claim interests in the victim's money or property as a result of ID theft transactions. [Amended by AB 1068 and AB 2068 (Wright) of 2002 to facilitate implementation.]

SB 125 (Alpert) - Fraudulent account information: This bill requires credit issuers to give applications and other records related to fraudulent accounts to ID theft victims and law enforcement.

Unsolicited Commercial Calls, E-mail, Faxes

AB 870 (Wesson) - Telemarketing: This bill prohibits use of certain types of automatic calling devices capable of storing and calling random numbers under certain circumstances.

SB 771 (Figueroa) - Telemarketing: This bill creates a state do-not-call list in the AG's office.