Protecting Americans’ Privacy Act of 2025

Senate Bill

S. 490

119th Congress

Protecting Americans’ Privacy Act of 2025

In Committee

Introduced:Feb 6, 2025

Primary Sponsor

Charles E. Schumer

Senator

Democratic

NY

Cosponsors

5

Quick Stats

Policy Area

Taxation

Summary

This bill restricts access to Treasury payment and receipt systems by prohibiting access for non-federal employees, new hires under one year, contractors without continuous service, and those with conflicts of interest. It creates civil penalties of at least 250,000 dollars for violations and allows victims to sue.

Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (text: CR S796-797)

SponsorCharles E. Schumer (D-NY)

Introduced2/6/2025

StatusRead twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (text: CR S796-797)

ChamberSenate

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Vote Prediction

Protecting Americans’ Privacy Act of 2025

This bill restricts access to Treasury payment and receipt systems by prohibiting access for non-federal employees, new hires under one year, contractors without continuous service, and those with conflicts of interest. It creates civil penalties of at least 2

Community Breakdown

Pass

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0 predictions

This bill restricts access to Treasury payment and receipt systems by prohibiting access for non-federal employees, new hires under one year, contractors without continuous service, and those with conflicts of interest. It creates civil penalties of at least 250,000 dollars for violations and allows victims to sue.

Bill Number: 490
Sponsor: Charles E. Schumer (D-NY)
Introduced: 2/6/2025
Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (text: CR S796-797)
Policy Area: Taxation

Data from Congress.gov

AI-generated summary

Fact Sheet

Title: Protecting Americans’ Privacy Act of 2025
Bill Number: 490
Sponsor: Charles E. Schumer (D-NY)
Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance. (text: CR S796-797)
Introduced: 2/6/2025
Summary: This bill restricts access to Treasury payment and receipt systems by prohibiting access for non-federal employees, new hires under one year, contractors without continuous service, and those with conflicts of interest. It creates civil penalties of at least 250,000 dollars for violations and allows

Data from Congress.gov

AI Summary

Plain-English explanation of this bill

This bill restricts access to Treasury payment and receipt systems by prohibiting access for non-federal employees, new hires under one year, contractors without continuous service, and those with conflicts of interest. It creates civil penalties of at least 250,000 dollars for violations and allows victims to sue.

Last updated: 1/6/2026

Official Summary

Congressional Research Service summary

Protecting Americans’ Privacy Act of 2025This bill makes it unlawful for certain individuals to access or exercise administrative control over any Department of the Treasury public money receipt or payment system. The bill also makes it unlawful to disclose return or return information to certain individuals by means of access to such Treasury system.Under the bill, it is unlawful for an individual to knowingly access or exercise administrative control over any Treasury (including the Bureau of Fiscal Service) public money receipt or payment system if the individual is<ul><li>not a federal employee or federal contractor (with at least one year of continuous service);</li><li>a federal employee who holds a certain position within or is the board member of a business, organization, or institution;</li><li>in a civil service position for less than one year (continuously); or</li><li>an employee who meets certain other requirements and who has a conflict of interest or has not signed a written ethics agreement.</li></ul>The bill also makes it unlawful to (1) facilitate access to or administrative control over any Treasury public money receipt or payment system to such individuals, or (2) disclose return or return information to such individuals by means of access to such Treasury system.Finally, the bill provides that persons harmed by the unlawful access to such Treasury system may file a civil action for<ul><li>preliminary and other equitable or declaratory relief,</li><li>damages (the greater of $250,000 or actual damages),</li><li>punitive damages, and</li><li>attorney’s fees and litigation costs.</li></ul>

Key Points

Main provisions of the bill

Restricts access to Treasury payment systems
Prohibits access for new federal employees under one year
Bars individuals with conflicts of interest
Creates 250,000 dollar minimum civil damages
Allows victims to sue for unlawful access

How This Impacts Americans

Potential effects on citizens and communities

Treasury payment systems would have stricter access controls. People harmed by unauthorized access could sue for substantial damages. This protects sensitive government financial data and tax information from inappropriate access.

Policy Areas

Primary Policy Area

Taxation

Scope & Jurisdiction

Jurisdiction Level

federal

Congressional Session

119th Congress

Citation Reference

490, 119th Congress (2025). "Protecting Americans’ Privacy Act of 2025". Source: Voter's Right Platform. https://votersright.org/bills/118-s-490

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