Press Releases

(Washington, D.C.) - Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-Wisconsin) introduced the Social Security Identity Defense Act this week. The bill, H.R. 2398, is the House version of Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson’s legislation. Currently, government agencies are not required to inform someone if their identity has been stolen. The Social Security Identity Defense Act would require the Internal Revenue Service to inform Americans if their identity has been compromised and require the Social Security Administration to notify employers who have employees with mismatched Social Security numbers in their employment records. This legislation would also create stiffer penalties on criminals who steal consumer’s identities.

“Identity theft is a major problem in Wisconsin and all across our country,” said Congressman Grothman. “Instead of illegally investigating conservative groups, the IRS should notify victims of identity theft as soon as possible in order to prevent further financial damage.” 

“Over ten million Americans are victims of identity theft every year, which means there is a new victim of identity theft every two seconds. The IRS and the Social Security Administration should do everything in their power to immediately inform victims of identity theft. It is my hope that this legislation will crack down on criminals and help victims of identity theft get their financial lives back in order,” Grothman added. 

Senator Johnson and Congressman Petri introduced similar legislation in the 113th Congress.

A copy of H.R. 2398 can be found here.

U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman is serving his first term representing Wisconsin’s 6th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. Contact his Washington, D.C., office at (202) 225-2476, or online at grothman.house.gov.