USA Freedom Act Introduced in House, Senate

for even greater transparency for both the private sector and government, and preventing government overreach, while enhancing national security.” The House Judiciary Committee will mark up the legislation Thursday at 10 a.m. The bill “enhances civil liberties protections, increases transparency for both American businesses and the government, ends the bulk collection of data, and provides national security officials targeted tools to keep America safe from foreign enemies,” the congressmen said in a joint statement. Sens. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., introduced a companion bill in the Senate. The Center for Democracy & Technology endorsed the bill and in a news release said the legislation is a “significant first step in broader government surveillance reform.” The bill provides more concrete reform than if USA Patriot Act Section 215 were just to expire in June, CDT said. Even if the bill passes, there's more work to be done to “enhance privacy protections from overbroad government surveillance,” CDT said. “Congress should move quickly to pass this legislation -- without weakening it -- to protect Americans’ privacy while preserving national security,” said CDT President Nuala O’Connor. “It’s time for Congress to finally prove it’s serious about stopping the overly invasive programs that infringe upon the privacy of innocent Americans.” The Software & Information Industry Association also encouraged Congress to pass the legislation. “U.S. Technological leadership continues to be challenged worldwide by questions about our current surveillance regime,” said SIIA Vice President-Public Policy Mark MacCarthy. “Surveillance reform is an essential part of restoring international trust in U.S. businesses and ensuring America’s continued economic leadership.” The Computer & Communications Industry Association has “been a voice against surveillance overreach for years,” said CCIA President and CEO Ed Black. “The newly introduced USA Freedom Act goes a long way towards instituting the real reforms necessary to begin rebuilding the global public trust in digital services.” The legislation isn’t perfect, but “it is an important first step in correcting the wild imbalance between privacy and security,” TechFreedom President Berin Szoka said. “It’s unfortunate the bill stops short of creating a public advocate able to intervene in all Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) cases,” Szoka said. “Letting the FISC decide whether to allow pre-vetted amici to defend the public would be a huge improvement.”