Bill requires amazon et al to report your transactions

Bill requires amazon et al to report your transactions

http://urbansurvival.com/week.htm

top story reported at Urban Survival's news for June 20, 2008 (has
hyperlinks):
[a great site to visit every day!]

Democorp's Dodd Sneaks in Government Money Spy Plan

This is mindboggling - the headline from www.FreedomWorks.org that
"Senate Housing Bill Requires eBay, Amazon, Google, and all Credit
Card companies to Report Transactions to the Government". The sad
details:

"Washington, DC -- Hidden deep in Senator Christopher Dodd's 630-page
Senate housing legislation is a sweeping provision that affects the
privacy and operation of nearly all of Americaʼs small businesses. The
provision, which was added by the bill's managers without debate this
week, would require the nation's payment systems to track, aggregate,
and report information on nearly every electronic transaction to the
federal government.

FreedomWorks Chairman Dick Armey commented: "This is a provision with
astonishing reach, and it was slipped into the bill just this week.
Not only does it affect nearly every credit card transaction in
America, such as Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express, but
the bill specifically targets payment systems like eBay's PayPal,
Amazon, and Google Checkout that are used by many small online
businesses. The privacy implications for America's small businesses
are breathtaking."

"Privacy groups like the Center for Democracy and Technology and small
business organizations like the NFIB sharply criticized this idea when
it first appeared earlier this year. What is the federal government's
purpose with this kind of detailed data? How will this database be
secured, and who will have access? Many small proprietors use their
Social Security number as their tax ID. How will their privacy be
protected? What compliance costs will this impose on businesses? Why
is Sen. Chris Dodd putting this provision in a housing bailout bill?
The bill also includes the creation of a new national fingerprint
registry for mortgage brokers.

"At a time when concerns about both identity theft and government
spying are paramount, Congress wants to create a new honey pot of
private data that includes Social Security numbers. This bill reduces
privacy across America's payment processing systems and treats every
American small business or eBay power seller like a criminal on parole
by requiring an unprecedented level of reporting to the federal
government. This outrageous idea is another reason to delay the
housing bailout legislation so that Senators and the public at large
have time to examine its full implications."

From the Senate Bill Summary:

Payment Card and Third Party Network Information Reporting. The
proposal requires information reporting on payment card and third
party network transactions. Payment settlement entities, including
merchant acquiring banks and third party settlement organizations, or
third party payment facilitators acting on their behalf, will be
required to report the annual gross amount of reportable transactions
to the IRS and to the participating payee. Reportable transactions
include any payment card transaction and any third party network
transaction. Participating payees include persons who accept a payment
card as payment and third party networks who accept payment from a
third party settlement organization in settlement of transactions. A
payment card means any card issued pursuant to an agreement or
arrangement which provides for standards and mechanisms for settling
the transactions. Use of an account number or other indicia associated
with a payment card will be treated in the same manner as a payment
card. A de minimis exception for transactions of $10,000 or less and
200 transactions or less applies to payments by third party settlement
organizations. The proposal applies to returns for calendar years
beginning after December 31, 2010. Back-up withholding provisions
apply to amounts paid after December 31, 2011. This proposal is
estimated to raise $9.802 billion over ten years.

FreedomWorks calls this what it is: "Broad, invasive provisions [that]
touches every aspect of American commerce."

What's going on? An attack on small cash transactions is one way to
read it. Wholesale government spying on private citizens and a
presumption of guilt is another.

And why do you think this might be? Could it be Dodd is a puppet of
the power-mongers and banking industry which needs digidollars to
replace traditional cash and require submission to the
mark-of-the-beast financial system?

Reports that aren't making MSM are that "Sen. Chris Dodd tied to
Countrywide Mortgages" and "Dodd admits to VIP Loan Club". Dodd tops
lender's contributions list. This last report reveals, for example,
that in his career, Dodd's contributions from Citigroup have totaled
more than $439-thousand. Not a bad gig, being a powerful senator, huh?

As the headlines distract with an Israeli dry run attack exercise, the
battle for control of the nation's money is being waged by banksters
dropping in digidollar laws while no one is looking. Or, so they
hope...

Thanks to the cozy relationships at the top of the corporate world,
"Major Networks Avoid Dem Senator's Countrywide Loan Scandals" reports
NewsBusters. So, is this Dodd's payback to the PowersThatBe for
keeping him around?

- - -
TAKE ACTION:
http://www.freedomworks.org/newsroom/press_template.php?press_id=2571
Call Congress and Tell Them to Oppose The eBay Reporting Provision in
the Housing Bill:
1-866-928-3035