I have recieved an interesting response in regards to the fax I sent to Representative Patrick Tiberi from the ACLU’s Action Center item, “Support the Freedom to Read!”
Dear Chris:
Thank you so much for your recent communication. I certainly appreciate this opportunity to correspond with you.
In your letter, you refer to an amendment offered by Representative Bernard Sanders (D-VT) to H.R. 4754, the Commerce, Justice, State Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2005. As you know, this amendment would prohibit funds used to make an application under section 501 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 for an order requiring the release of library circulation records, library patron lists, library Internet records, book sales records, or book customer lists. On July 8, 2004, this amendment failed in the U.S. House of Representatives.
This amendment was offered in response to the USA PATRIOT Act, the primary law intended to protect Americans from terrorism, approved with overwhelming support in Congress in October of 2001 following the attacks of September 11, 2001. It is unfortunate that the PATRIOT Act has become something of a political football. Misinformation has lead to false commentary, especially regarding section 215 of the Act that ammends section 501 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.
Interestingly, section 215 does not specifically apply to library records, but could include them, in addition to such documents as airline records, international banking records, and receipts of all sorts. Of note, these records have long been authorized for criminal activity investigations, for example, in the 1997 Gianni Versace murder case, and the 1990 hunt for the Unabomber. Since section 215 merely authorizes the court to issue orders in national security investigations, this amendment could have made libraries a safe haven for terrorist communications, including giving them unfettered access to the Internet. Furthermore, current law appropriately provides that each application be made to a judge of the court, shall specify that the records concerned are sought for an authorized investigation, and shall only be approved if the judge finds that the application meets all requirements.
Government’s obligation is a dual one: to protect civil safety and security against violence and to preserve civil liberties. We can achieve both goals if we empower government to do sensible things while exercising oversight to prevent any real abuses of authority. Congress has exercised its oversight authority and, to date, has not uncovered the widespread abuses that some would have us believe are commonplace. Please be assured I take this oversight responsibility very seriously and will continue to monitor these issues closely.
Thanks again for taking a moment to share your thoughts with me. If I may be of assistance to you in the future, please do not hesitate to contact me.
Sincerely,
[signature]
Patrick J. Tiberi
Representative to Congress
