LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Make IRS disclose compromises

OPINION:

So the IRS is not telling parents when their minor children’s identities have been stolen (“Audit: IRS doesn’t alert families of kids with stolen identities,” Politics, Sept. 15). At best, the agency will tell parents that ’someone’s’ Social Security number has been compromised from their tax return. This is nuts and should be rectified by Congress right away. A law should mandate that the filer of the tax return be notified if any Social Security number on their return is compromised.

Per the Social Security Administration, I was ’dead’ from 1974 to 1994 — but Social Security taxes were witheld from my military pay every month during that same period. I only learned I was “dead” when I got a copy of my credit report, which said the holder of said Social Security number died in 1974.

The reason for my early ’death’? The Social Security Administration stopped my orphan benefits when I graduated college and some clerk keyed in the wrong information.

CMDR. WAYNE L. JOHNSON

Judge Advocate General’s Corps, U.S. Navy (retired)

Alexandria, Va.