Colorado Gov. Bill Owens has signed two pieces of legislation intended to fight identity theft in the state.

One new law, previously HB1134, makes the crime of identity theft a Class 6 felony, punishable by 12 to 18 months in prison.

It creates a process for victims to establish their innocence in crimes committed by the person who stole their identity. It also allows a court to order public information, such as records and criminal databases, be updated to reflect that data is inaccurate because the person’s identity was stolen.

According to The Coloradoan, the new law could also be used to correct a person’s credit report – one of the most commonly and detrimental aspects of identity theft.

The second signed bill – HB1311 – prohibits a public entity from issuing a license, permit, pass or certificate containing the holder’s Social Security number unless it is needed for legitimate reasons.

The enacted legislation should help Colorado – which ranks eighth nationally in identity theft cases – with this growing problem, Rep. Jerry Frangas, D-Denver, told the newspaper.

“I think we’ll go from one of the worst states in the country to one of the best,” Frangas said.

Both pieces of legislation signed June 4 follow a measure enacted earlier this spring tightening the requirements for banks that offer credit or debit accounts by mail.

That new law requires banks to verify the applicant is the person they offered the account to if an application contains an address different from the address to which they mailed an offer.

Each new law is scheduled to take effect July 1.