Obama's loan modifiers are asking applicants to send proof of death; why isn't the ACLU protesting this unfogiveable snooping

Sarah Larson had been trying for months to get a break on her mortgage payments when a letter from her bank arrived in March. Sitting at the dining-room table of her Minneapolis house, the 33-year-old acupuncturist ripped open the envelope and pulled out a list of important documents demanded by Bank of America Corp.

Bank statements. A utility bill. Her death certificate.

Ms. Larson, who was struggling to make her $1,055-a-month mortgage after client appointments dropped off by half, is in good health. So she replied to the nation's largest bank in assets with a letter.

Sarah Larson was asked for a copy of her death certificate as she tried to modify the mortgage of her Minneapolis home.

."I am not sending a death certificate because I am not deceased," she wrote. "I am currently still living."

Turns out the bank had erroneously asked for proof of her demise—the sort of paperwork snafu that has roiled applicants since the Obama administration's foreclosure-prevention plan was announced in February 2009.

(snip)
 
So far, the 17-month-old effort has delivered a permanent fix to less than 15% of the borrowers the administration said it could ultimately help.