RFID Law Blog

According to a recent Chicago Sun-Times article, the city may soon be requiring dogs in the city to have RFID chips for identification. It is unclear from the article whether the chips are to be worn, like dog tags, or implanted. It seems like there would be little advantage to an RFID chip over a traditional tag that has owner contact information -- unless the chip is implanted so the tag cannot fall off or be removed.

Either way, wait for PETA to say that this is a violation of a dog's right to privacy.

| Posted By RFIDblogger In Animal Identification | Permalink | 0 Comments

While agreeing to the request from the Department of Agriculture to fund a program to use RFID tags to identify and track animals -- like cows for Mad Cow Disease -- the House of Representatives passed legislation yesterday prohibitting any of the funds being used until Congress receives a comprehensive plan for how much money is ultimately needed and how it will be spent. Apparently, since the Dept. of Agriculture envisions having the tags scanned and entered into a private-sector controlled database, they have told Congress that they don't know exactly how much it will ultimately cost. Not a great answer. There also may need to be legislative changes to authorize certain elements of the RFID program -- changes that probably could and should have been done BEFORE trying to get the program rolled out. Oddly enough, Congress likes to have a say in how programs they are funding are operated.

A separate amendment was offered that would have removed funding for the program altogether -- not just blocking it pending a report to Congress. However, that amendment was defeated by a significant margin.

| Posted By RFIDblogger In Animal Identification , Federal Legislation | Permalink | 2 Comments