Subject: Re: Digital Signature Laus (was Re: KISS for PKIX)

From: [email-masked]
Date: Sun, 18 Jul 1999 02:00:07 EDT

Eric,

There are a number of bills that have been introduced at the federal level 
that are interesting, but passage of any will be a major challenge.  One of 
the problems that we face in passing a uniform federal digital signature law 
is that those of us (interest groups and lobbyists and their allies in the 
legislatures) who have significantly overlapping common interests are 
constantly divided while focusing on disputing the narrow issues that 
separate us.   I expect to see a bill of some kind become law this year.   A 
fully outlined legal infrastructure will develop over the next few years, but 
those of us who have or represent business that require industrial strength 
technical and legal infrastructures cannot wait even a year for some measure 
of legal certainty to be attached to electronically authenticated agreements.

I believe that the only type of bill that has a reasonable chance of passage 
is an incremental improvement taking a similar approach to that used 
successfully when we passed the Government Paperwork Elimination Act last 
year.

I believe that passing a law that supports uses of and enforces the validity 
of electronic authentication as agreed to by informed parties in traditional 
contracts is a significant step forward that everyone can agree to accept as 
a fallback to the bills that each interest group is sponsoring.

All of this can be reduced to a bumpersticker type argument that resonates:
Electronic Authentication Legislation Initiatives are about the freedom to 
contract &
the right to enforce contracts.

I don't think you will find many people who will oppose either the concept or 
a properly worded (short) bit of legislative language.

Good luck and have fun while trudging through the state stuff...I have more 
information if you need some...
X (signed)...Kawika Daguio
EVP, Financial Information Protection Association