RECOVER Act (not to be confused with the Recovery Act)

Senators Ben Cardin (D., MD), Barbara A. Mikulski (D., MD), Mark Warner (D., VA) and Tim Kaine (D., VA) have introduced the RECOVER Act (Reducing the Effects of the Cyberattack on OPM Victims Emergency Response) Act of 2015. The bill looks to protect federal workers and others that have been exposed from the recent Office of Personnel Management hacks. 

A partial press release, along with the text of the bill, is located below. 

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Cardin, Mikulski, Warner, Kaine Call for Stronger Protections for the Millions Affected by the Recent OPM Data Breaches

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Thursday, July 9, 2015

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) with Senators Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), Mark Warner (D-Va.) and Tim Kaine (D-Va.) have introduced legislation to better protect federal workers and all those potentially affected by the recent cyberattacks on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) data system. Outraged by the expanse of the breach, the senators found the response by OPM to be severely lacking in the duration and extent of coverage for those who had their most sensitive information stolen off the government system.

The RECOVER Act (Reducing the Effects of the Cyberattack on OPM Victims Emergency Response Act of 2015) mandates expanded identity theft coverage for federal workers, contractors and other individuals affected, including lifetime coverage and not less than $5 million of identity theft insurance. This adjustment to what OPM has previously offered more adequately addresses the egregious nature of this federal cyberattack.

“Private-sector cyberhacks and cyberattacks have become too commonplace, but when the federal government’s own computer system shows its vulnerabilities to the world, we have a responsibility to protect the people who have been put at risk,” said Senator Cardin.“Off-the-shelf solutions are not good enough. We need to plug the holes in the federal network and make sure our workers, their families and all those who have been violated are held harmless from any damage that may be done.” ...

The full text of the RECOVER Act follows: 

Title: To require the Office of Personnel Management to provide complimentary, comprehensive identity protection coverage to all individuals whose personally identifiable information was compromised during recent data breaches at Federal agencies.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the “Reducing the Effects of the Cyberattack on OPM Victims Emergency Response Act of 2015” or the “RECOVER Act”.

SEC. 2. IDENTITY PROTECTION COVERAGE FOR INDIVIDUALS AFFECTED BY FEDERAL AGENCY DATA BREACHES.

(a) Definition.—In this section, the term “affected individual” means any individual whose personally identifiable information was compromised during—

(1) the data breach of personnel records of current and former Federal employees, at a network maintained by the Department of the Interior, that was announced by the Office of Personnel Management on June 4, 2015; or

(2) the data breach of systems of the Office of Personnel Management containing information related to the background investigations of current, former, and prospective Federal employees, and of other individuals 

(b) Identity Protection Coverage.—The Office of Personnel Management shall provide to each affected individual complimentary identity protection coverage that—

(1) is not less comprehensive than the complimentary identify protection coverage that the Office provided to affected individuals before the date of enactment of this Act;

(2) is effective for the remainder of the life of the individual; and

(3) includes not less than $5,000,000 in identity theft insurance.