Rep. Gordon Promotes E-Signature Guidelines for Federal Agencies

(July 30, 1999) Rep. Bart Gordon wants Congress to pass a bill that would direct the Commerce Department to establish voluntary guidelines for federal agencies to use in complying with the requirement that they accept electronic signatures by 2003. Interoperability is his main concern.

Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN) introduced HR 1572 IH, the Digital Signature Act of 1999, on April 27. Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), the Chairman of the House Science Committee, is the lead cosponsor. Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) is another cosponsor.

Rep. Gordon has been arguing for adoption of his bill at House Commerce Committee meetings pertaining to other electronic signatures bills. On Thursday, July 29, at the Telecom Subcommittee markup of HR 1714 (E-SIGN Act), he offered a revised version of HR 1572 as an amendment. However, after plugging his bill, he withdrew the amendment.

So far this year many members of the House Commerce Committee have been intent on quickly passing a bill that provides for the acceptance of electronic records and signatures in interstate commerce. The full Commerce Committee is likely to report out HR 1714 for this purpose before the August recess.

However, Rep. Gordon's bill does not pertain to electronic signatures used in interstate commerce. It deals with government acceptance of electronic signatures, which was the subject of last year's electronic signatures bill.

In the waning days of the 105th Congress the House and Senate passed, and the President signed, the Government Paperwork Elimination Act. This bill requires that federal agencies accept electronic signatures by the year 2003. Rep. Gordon's bill is designed to assist agencies in accomplishing this task.

Rep. Gordon's bill, as embodied in the amendment offered on Thursday, provides that the "Secretary [of Commerce], in consultation with industry, shall develop electronic authentication infrastructure guidelines for use by Federal agencies to enable those agencies to effectively utilize electronic authentication technologies ..."

The bill would also establish a "National Policy Panel for Digital Signatures." This panel would "be composed of government, academic, and industry technical and legal experts on the implementation of digital signature technologies, State officials, including officials from States which have laws recognizing the use of digital signatures, and representative individuals from the interested public." It would not have any formal powers. Rather, it would "serve as a forum".

Rep. Gordon

Rep. Gordon described the purpose of his bill in a statement at the July 29 hearing. "The problem which we have is this. You have a variety of agencies that are certainly on their way to trying to get the ability by 2003 to qualify for this Paperwork Reduction Act."

"The problem which you are going to have is, if there is not some kind

of interoperability, you could have agencies, or divisions within an agency, that can't communicate with each other. You could have a state government that can't communicate with particular agencies, because they have different software."

"So, it is important that we not have dictates, but rather that there be some advice, of giving technology neutral advice, as to what are the different standards, so that agencies can go to the shelf, take off technology, and know they are going to be compatible within their own agency, as well as within the other federal government" agencies.

Rep. Gordon's bill has not received a hearing by the Commerce Committee. However, the House Science Committee has jurisdiction. And, it has not held a hearing.