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ACLU Challenges Florida Law Mandating Social Security Numbers for
Absentee Voting
August 10, 2000
TALLAHASSEE, FL ? In an effort to protect individuals' privacy rights, the Voting Rights Project of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed suit today in U.S. District Court in Tallahassee challenging a Florida statute that requires voters to disclose the last four digits of their social security number in order to obtain absentee ballots.
Filed on behalf of Florida voters from Key Largo, the lawsuit charges that Florida Statute 101.62, which requires that individuals give their entire social security numbers when requesting absentee ballots on behalf of immediate family members, violates the 1974 Federal Privacy Act. The federal law makes it unlawful for local, state or federal agencies to deny someone "any right, benefit, or privilege provided by law" for refusing to disclose their social security numbers.
Claiming the policy also violates the First and Fourteenth Amendments, attorneys representing the plaintiffs are asking the court to declare the statute unconstitutional, thus preventing any further enforcement of the invasive law by elections offices throughout the State of Florida.
The plaintiffs, who will be in Tennessee during the first primary election on September 5, requested absentee ballots in Monroe County in order to participate in the election with other Florida voters. When they failed to include the last four digits of each of their social security numbers on the request forms for absentee ballots, the Monroe County Supervisor of Elections refused to issue ballots to either one of them. One of the plaintiffs then tried to get a ballot for his wife, but he was unable to do so without disclosing his entire social security number and the last four digits of her social security number.
In her eight-page complaint, Cristina Correia, counsel for the ACLU Voting Rights Project, claims the state has made no effort to assure the nine-digit identification numbers will not be misused. In fact, another state statute that allows anyone to inspect election registration records, including social security numbers, makes it impossible to ensure confidentiality. "It's shocking that Florida first requires disclosure of social security numbers for registration and voting, and then fails to take the necessary steps to ensure that those numbers are not disclosed to third parties," added Correia.
The ACLU is concerned that the forced disclosure of social security numbers can lead to identity fraud, where imposters armed with a person's name and social security number can raid bank accounts, establish fraudulent credit cards and even ruin a victim's credit.
