A new report from Vice's Motherboard gives everyone yet another reason to hate the most despised government agency.
According to state documents, the California Department of Motor Vehicles has been selling drivers' personal information for a hefty sum:
In a public record acts request, Motherboard asked the California DMV for the total dollar amounts paid by commercial requesters of data for the past six years. The responsive document shows the total revenue in financial year 2013/14 as $41,562,735, before steadily climbing to $52,048,236 in the financial year 2017/18.
The document doesn’t name the commercial requesters, but some specific companies appeared frequently in Motherboard’s earlier investigation that looked at DMVs across the country. They included data broker LexisNexis and consumer credit reporting agency Experian. Motherboard also found DMVs sold information to private investigators, including those who are hired to find out if a spouse is cheating. It is unclear if the California DMV has recently sold data to these sorts of entities.Click here to read the full article.
In addition, the California DMV admitted to selling the information to “insurance companies, vehicle manufacturers, and prospective employers.”
And California isn't alone. A previous report from Vice found that this is a common practice across the country, and some DMV's even release personal information to private investigators.
The Virginia DMV has sold data to 109 private investigator firms, according to a spreadsheet obtained by Motherboard. The New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission has sold data to at least 16 private investigation firms, another spreadsheet shows. The Delaware DMV has data sharing agreements with at least a dozen investigation firms, and Wisconsin has around two dozen current agreements with such firms, other documents show.
These are state agencies, of course, and a Convention of States only has the power to limit the scope and jurisdiction of the federal government.
But this debacle at our state DMV's powerfully illustrates the truth that government bureaucrats shouldn't be given any more power than is absolutely necessary -- which is to say, none. If this is what state agencies are doing with our information, imagine what Washington is doing.
And, unlike at the state level, the actions of the federal government are almost totally immune from the average American citizen. Washington is too big, too complex, and too far away for most people to enact meaningful change.
While state governments are sometimes no less corrupt, they are infinitely more accessible. Most people can get a sit-down meeting with their state representatives, where they can voice their concern about what's happening at their DMV. Empowering state governments empowers average Americans, which is precisely what the Convention of States Project is all about.
An Article V Convention of States can propose constitutional amendments that limit the power, scope, and jurisdiction of the federal government. These amendments can limit the number of topics on which Washington can legislate and spend money, and revert the majority of those issues back to state control.
No government is perfect. But the most powerful levels of government should be the most accountable to We the People. With a Convention of States, we can make that happen.
Sign the petition below to voice your support!
