Bill Caption

Fiscal Notes

Bill Analysis

Summary: HB 1087 seeks to safeguard “protected consumers,” defined as children under 16 years of age, from the negative effects of identity theft on their credit ratings. HB 1087 would allow a protected consumer or their representative to place a security freeze on their consumer report. This freeze would prohibit consumer reporting agencies from releasing a protected consumer’s report without authorization from the consumer or their representative. Under a security freeze, a protected consumer’s record can’t be used to determine their creditworthiness, credit rating, credit capacity, character, general reputation, personal characteristics, or mode of living for any purpose.

Representatives must prove they have authority to act for a protected consumer and consumer reporting agencies must implement security freezes if they receive a proper request from a consumer’s representative. Consumer reporting agencies must document requests and can’t release any information until the freeze is removed or it is proven that a freeze was made based on a misrepresentation of fact. The remedy for a violation, such as a misrepresentation of fact, is a suit filed by the attorney general.

Analysis: HB 1087 protects youth from the adverse effects of identity theft by allowing their representatives to stop the dissemination of their credit information that has been hijacked. It also establishes a penalty for any misrepresentation of fact that will deter protected consumers and their representatives from taking advantage of this portion of the Business and Commerce Code.