A bill (S. 86 [1]) introduced by Sen. David Vitter (R-LA) is designed to prevent terrorists from obtaining credit cards.

The bill is an attempt to close a loophole that allowed the 9/11 hijackers, some of whom were in the United States illegally, to obtain credit cards to finance their activities. S. 86 would only allow financial institutions to accept certain types of identification from noncitizens for the purpose of opening an account. The bill would only allow banks to accept a Social Security number, an alien identification card number, or a valid foreign passport as identification in such circumstances. No other documents issued by a foreign government would be accepted.