The treasury department has undermined the Patriot Act with ITIN rules.

Wells Fargo & Co. has decided that facilitating an underground and unregulated economy is good business for Wells Fargo. But it's not good business for the United States.

Wells Fargo and any other banks that issue mortgage loans based on Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers, or allow people to open bank accounts using foreign consular cards as identification, are undermining U.S. security, are most likely helping money launderers and drug dealers, and are possibly facilitating terrorist activities.

Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers, or ITINs, are issued by the Internal Revenue Service for the sole purpose of collecting income taxes. As stated in IRS documents: "ITINs are not valid identification outside the tax system. Since ITINs are strictly for tax processing, IRS does not apply the same standards as agencies that provide genuine identity certification."

The IRS does not check a person's immigration status prior to issuing the number. Nor does the IRS check the validity of documents submitted to identify the recipient of an ITIN. A person can use an unsecured ID--such as a matricula consular card or foreign birth certificate--to obtain an ITIN. You don't even have to appear in person to obtain an ITIN.

Congress passed the Patriot Act in the aftermath of 9/11. The law directed the Department of Treasury to regulate what documents would be acceptable as identification when seeking financial services. The idea was simple--if we cut off the money going to terrorists, we can cut off their ability to terrorize.

Undermining security

Unfortunately, the Treasury Department undermined the Patriot Act--and the security of the country--by issuing regulations that allow IDs that are not secure at all, such as ITINs and matricula consular cards, to be used to satisfy the "know your customer" policies.

Wells Fargo pioneered the field by allowing people to open bank accounts with matricula consular cards and ITINs. All bank officials saw was the huge number of potential new customers and potential profits, never mind the costs of illegal immigration to the taxpayer. Wells Fargo boasts gaining about 700,000 new accounts since it began accepting matricula consular cards as identification. It is yet another incentive for illegal immigrants to bypass our laws, come to the United States and stay here.

What is the cost to legal workers and taxpayers? In California, 66 percent of households (1.67 million people) headed by illegal immigrants have no health insurance. Instead, they use emergency rooms for primary care. That is the primary reason emergency rooms throughout the state are closing.

About 23 percent of California households headed by illegal aliens use food assistance (such as food stamps); 37 percent receive Medicaid; and 45 percent are using some sort of major welfare program. There is also the high number of illegal immigrants crowding our jails and enrolled in our colleges at highly subsidized rates.

And now Wells Fargo is at it again, pioneering mortgages for illegal immigrants using ITINs.

These business practices are a magnet to draw illegal immigrants to the United States and to stay here in contravention of the law. More ominously, these business practices compromise the security of the United States.

Anytime we open up the legitimate stream of commerce to funds of unknown origins, we give terrorists, drug dealers, and other organized criminal organizations an entr6e to launder illicit funds. And make no mistake, we do not know where the funds are coming from if we don't know who is making deposits or taking out loans.

Rep. Elton Gallegly, R-Simi Valley, is a member of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence in the U.S. House of Representatives.