Disclosure of  social security  number.   Act Dec. 31, 1974,
     P.L. 93-579, Section 7, 88 Stat. 1909, provided:
 
 
     "(a)(1)   It shall  be unlawful  for any Federal,  State  or
     local government agency to deny to any individual any right,
     benefit, or  privilege  provided  by  law  because  of  such
     individual's refusal to disclose his social security account
     number.
 
     "(2) the provisions  of paragraph  (1)  of  this  subsection
     shall not apply with respect to --
 
          "(A) any  disclosure   which  is  required  by  Federal
               statute, or
 
          "(B) the disclosure  of a social security number to any
               Federal, State,  or  local  agency  maintaining  a
               system  of  records  in  existence  and  operating
               before January  1, 1975,  if such  disclosure  was
               required under statute or regulation adopted prior
               to  such   date  to  verify  the  identity  of  an
               individual.
 
     "(b) Any Federal,  State, or  local government  agency which
     requests an  individual  to  disclose  his  social  security
     account number  shall inform  that individual  whether  that
     disclosure is  mandatory or  voluntary, by what statutory or
     other authority such number is solicited, and what uses will
     be made of it."
 

Comments by Paul Mitchell follow:
 
Congress deliberately failed to codify this statute in Title 5 of
the United  States Code.  You will find it embedded at the end of
the historical  notes within  the Privacy Act.  When a government
employee was  sued for  violating this Act, he asserted ignorance
of the  law as  his defense.  The court upheld this defense, thus
creating  an   important  exception  to  the  general  rule  that
ignorance of  the law  is no excuse.  My reading of this decision
is that  the court  was giving silent judicial notice to the fact
that Congress  actually "hid" the law;  thus, the court's holding
did not  really overturn the maxim (ignorance is not excuse);  it
merely recognized  that fraud  vitiates everything, even the most
solemn promises.   I  have taken this statute and reduced it down
to the  size of  a standard credit card.  Then, I laminated it in
plastic and  saved it  in my wallet.  Later, I gave it away to an
attendee of  one of  Lynne Meredith's seminars;  the attendee was
mostly incredulous that such a law even existed.  It is very easy
to make  another one.   I prefer to take a photocopy right out of
the law  books, and  to laminate  that photocopy.  Try it!  It is
always very powerful to witness these laws yourself, at the local
county law  library.    Take  this  email  message  down  to  the
reference librarian,  and see if s/he can locate it for you.  The
Privacy Act  can be  found in  the reference  volume which  lists
statutes by name.  Good luck!
 
 
Paul Andrew Mitchell
November 1996 A.D.
All Rights Reserved
 

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Public Law 93-579