Yeah, you guys lucked out. The UK made a crucial mistake: it planned for one comprehensive system, implemented in collaboration with the government. So the government planned on putting in an ID system...and then failed to do so because of wild bureaucratic incompetence, and had to postpone, and then again, and again, and it kinda fell apart. Unfortunately the laws are much leaner here in the states: the government's not doing jackshit on its own. It's just saying "Hey, do this yourself, or someone can sue you if they want." Which is devilishly smart, because it means the cost and hassle to the gov. is 0.