Bill Number: H.R. 3189
Status: Introduced on July 26, 2007 by Representative Jerrold Nadler (D-NY-8th). Referred to House Judiciary Committee and House Financial Services Committee.
List of Co-sponsors

The purpose of Representative Nadler's bill is to establish procedural protections for the use of National Security Letters (NSLs). Here are some of the higlights:

• The bill raises the standard for the FBI to obtain NSLs, to include "specific and articulable facts" giving reason to believe that the information or records sought pertain to a foreign power or agent of a foreign power.
• An NSL may not be used in connection with a U.S. person based solely on First Amendment activities.
• An NSL must provide information to the recipient about their rights to judicial review, and procedures for seeking a judge's perusal of the NSL.
• Within 20 days of receiving the NSL, the recipient may file in U.S. district court, an appeal to modify or set aside the NSL.
• The bill requires that all information retrieved about innocent people must be destroyed.
• Semi-annually, the FBI must report to Congress 1) the number of NSLs issued in previous 6 months, 2) a summary of challenges made by recipients, 3) a description of how NSLs have aided investigations and prosecutions.
• FBI field supervisors are still able to issue NSLs.

Read Rep. Nadler's press release on H.R. 3189.
Watch statement by Rep. Nadler at a House Judiciary Committee hearing, following the Inspector General's report revealing widespread FBI abuses and misuses of National Security Letters.
Find BORDC's video, FBI Unbound: How National Security Letters Violate Our Privacy, and supporting materials.

Bill Number: S. 2088
Bill Title: A bill to place reasonable limitations on the use of National Security Letters. Status: Introduced on September 25, 2007 and referred to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Sponsor: Senator Russell Feingold (D-WI)
Co-sponsors

• Read the National Security Letters Reform Act of 2007
• Read Senator Feingold's news release upon introducing the bill.
• Read a one-page summary of S. 2088's provisions.
• Read Senator Feingold's statement on the Senate floor, introducing the bill.

Bill Number: H.R. 1739
Bill Title: To require the approval of a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court judge or designated United States Magistrate Judge for the issuance of a national security letter, to require the Attorney General to submit semiannual reports on national security letters
Status: Referred to House Judiciary, House Intelligence and House Financial Services on March 28, 2007.
Sponsor: Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA-36)
List of Co-sponsors

This is the first piece of legislation drafted to address FBI abuses brought to light by a March 9 Inspector General's report, relating to the use of National Security Letters (NSLs). The powers of NSLs was expanded by the 2001 PATRIOT Act, the Intelligence Authorization of 2004, and the PATRIOT Act Reauthorization of 2006. In addition to requiring approval of National Security Letters by a FISA judge or U.S. magistrate judge, H.R. 1739 would also:

• require the government to show a connection between the records sought with an NSL and a terrorist or foreign power;
• create an expedited electronic filing system for NSL applications;
• require the government to destroy information obtained through NSL requests that is no longer needed; and
• mandate more robust congressional oversight, requiring semi-annual reports to both the Congressional Intelligence and Judiciary Committees on all NSLs issued, minimization procedures, any court challenges and an explanation of how NSLs have helped investigations and prosecutions.

Read Representative Harman's statement on the introduction of the bill.

Bill Number: S 2533
Bill Title: A bill to enact a safe, fair, and responsible state secrets privilege Act.
Bill Status: Introduced on January 22, 2008, and referred to the Judiciary Committee.
Sponsor: Senator Edward Kennedy (D-MA)
Co-sponsors

The United States government has used its "state secrets privilege" to shut down court cases that it maintains would reveal information that would jeopardize U.S. national security. The precedent for the "state secrets privilege" was set in U.S. vs. Reynolds, a 1953 case in which widows of men killed in a 1948 plane crash sought accident reports on the crash. The U.S. government declared those accident reports could reveal state secrets, and the case was thrown out of court. Today, the accident reports can be easily found, showing there was no sensitive information contained in them, then or now.

Senator Kennedy's bill is an effort to place limits on when the government can claim the state secrets privilege, as a response to the many recent cases in which individuals have tried to expose wrongdoing in the government. Those many efforts have been squashed by the Bush Administration's frequent claims of state secrets privilege. Click here for a complete list of those cases. Here is a partial list:

• 2007 - Al-Haramain Islamic Foundation v. George W. Bush Alleging Unlawful Surveillance
• 2007 - ACLU et al v. National Security Agency Alleging Illegal Domestic Surveillance
• 2006 - Center for Constitutional Rights et al v. George W. Bush et al Alleging Illegal Domestic Surveillance
• 2005 - Maher Arar v. John Ashcroft
• 2004 - Sibel Edmonds v. Department of Justice, a whistleblower case

There is also a new film on this topic, called Secrecy, which " is about the vast, invisible world of government secrecy. By focusing on classified secrets, the government's ability to put information out of sight if it would harm national security, Secrecy explores the tensions between our safety as a nation, and our ability to function as a democracy." The film is produced by filmmakers Peter Galison and Robb Moss.

On February 13, the Senate Judiciary Committee held hearings on the state secrets privilege.

• "Shielded by Secrecy," LA Times, Feb 14, 2008
• "State Secrets Privilege Dangerously Overbroad," ACLU, Feb 13, 2008
• "Legal Experts Urge Senate to Reform State Secrets Privilege," Constitution Project, Feb 13, 2008
• "State Secrets Boots Rendition Case," Forbes Magazine, Feb 13, 2008
• "State Secrets Privilege is Helping White House Escape Liability," Salt Lake Tribune Feb 10, 2008

Bill Number: S. 3405
Status: Introduced July 31, 2008. Referred to Senate Committee and read twice. Transferred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Sponsor: Senators Russ Feingold (D-WI) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI)

The Executive Order Integrity Act of 2008 would prohibit the President from changing a published executive order without informing Congress and the public. It would do so by requiring the President to place a notice in the Federal Register within 30 days of the time that he/she “revokes, modifies, waives, or suspends a published Executive order or similar directive.” Further, the bill would require that the President’s notice in the Federal Register specify the order or provision affected, the change being implemented, and the nature of that change.

Senators Feingold and Whitehouse introduced this bill in response to a memorandum written by the Office of Legal Counsel in the Department of Justice that asserted the President’s right to disregard or revoke a published executive order. According to Senator Feinfold, the memorandum asserted that the President does not need to revise or revoke a pre-existing executive order because his very action modifies or waives that order.

Read Senator Feingold’s statement on the introduction of this bill.

Read Bill text.

Bill Number: H.R. 3835
Status: Introduced on October 15, 2007 and referred to the House Judiciary, Intelligence, Armed Services and Foreign Affairs Committees.
Sponsor: Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX-14th)
List of Co-sponsors

This bill straddles the categories of habeas corpus, torture, rendition, secret evidence, signing statements, and protecting journalists who want to publish material received from the legislative or executive branch. The bill would do the following:

• Repeal the Military Commissions Act of 2006 and re-establish the traditional practice that military commissions may be used to try war crimes in places of active hostility where a rapid trial is necessary to preserve evidence or prevent chaos.
• Clarifies that no information shall be admitted as evidence if it is obtained from the defendant through the use of torture or coercion.
• Codifies the FISA process as the means by which foreign intelligence may be obtained.
• Gives members of the Senate and the House of Representatives standing in court to challenge presidential signing statements that declares the president's intent to disregard certain aspects of a law passed in the U.S. Congress.
• prohibits kidnapping and extraordinary rendition of prisoners to foreign countries on the president's unilateral determination that the suspect is an enemy combatant.
• Clarifies that journalists are not to be prevented from publishing information received from the legislative or executive branch unless such publication would cause immediate, direct, and irreparable harm to the United States.
• Prohibits the use of secret evidence to designate an individual or organization with a United States presence to be a foreign terrorist or foreign terrorist organization.

Bill Number: S. 1249
Status: Introduced April 30, 2007 and referred to the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Sponsor: Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA)
List of Co-sponsors

This bill would require the President to close the detention facility at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba within a year of its enactment. All detainees would be relocated to one of these locations:

• a military or civilian detention facility in the U.S. and tried
• a military or civilian detention facility without being charged, if held as an enemy combatant
• an international tribunal under the authority of the United Nations
• to their country of citizenship or other country for legal process, provided the country assures the U.S. the individual will not be subjected to torture or inhumane or degrading treatment.
• released from further detention.

Read Bill text.

Read Senator Feinstein's Statement on the introduction of this bill. On the same day this bill was introduced, the Supreme Court refused to hear a case involving two detainees, Omar Khadr and Adel Hamdan, with two justices, John Paul Stevens and Anthony Kennedy saying the two must first exhaust judicial remedies before appealing to the Court.

Bill Number: H.R. 7056
Status: Introduced 9/24/08. Referred to the Committee on Armed Services, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, Foreign Affairs, and Intelligence.

Sponsor: Rep. David E. Price (D-NC-4)
List of Co-sponsors

H.R. 7056 proposes to "improve United States capabilities for gathering human intelligence through the effective interrogation and detention of terrorist suspects and for bringing terrorists to justice through effective prosecution in accordance with the principles and values set forth in the Constitution and other laws." It aims to repeal the Military Commissions Act of 2006, close the Guantánamo Bay detention center, prohibit torture, and set out standards for detention and interrogation of terrorist suspects.

Bill Number: S. 3594
Status: Introduced 9/25/08. Referred to Committee on the Judiciary.

Sponsor: Sen. Robert Menéndez (D-NJ)
List of Co-sponsors

The Rights Working Group provides the following description:

[Recently], Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has dramatically stepped up interior enforcement in the U.S.  Immigrant communities face the threat of raids, deportation and detention with little chance of relief.  Inadequate due process protections in our current law and a failure by the federal government to guarantee protections have led to the following crisis:

• U.S. citizens, the mentally ill, children and other vulnerable individuals have been mistakenly detained.
• ICE officials have entered private homes in residential raids without warrant and questioned individuals about their immigration status.
• Mothers responsible for caring for their small children have been detained and transferred to detention facilities thousands of miles away from families and attorneys.
• Workers have suffered immigration raids because they exercised their rights in the workplace.

The Menendez-Kennedy bill (S. 3594) would restore basic due process protections to our immigration enforcement system.

• Protection for U.S. citizens, lawful residents and immigrants during immigration raids;
• Protection for workers during immigration raids;
• Requires DHS to treat immigration detainees humanely;
• Creates new alternatives to detention and new parole opportunities for vulnerable populations in detention; and
• Requires DHS accountability.

Bill Number: House H.R. 1955
                   Senate S. 1959
Status: House: Introduced on April 19, 2007. Referred to the Homeland Security Committee. Passed out of committee October 16, 2007. Passed by a vote of 404-6 on October 23, 2007. Roll Call Number 993
           Senate: Introduced on August 2, 2007. Referred to Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. Received House version October 16, 2007.
Sponsor: House: Rep. Jane Harman (D-CA-36th)
              Senate: Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME)
House Co-sponsors
Senate Co-sponsors

The U.S. government search for "homegrown terrorists" has been in the works for more than a year. The Associated Press reported on August 30, 2006 of the Department of Homeland Security's concern that "homegrown terrorists" may be rising up throughout the U.S., ready to strike. This bill would create a 10-member national commission to "examine and report upon the facts and causes of violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence in the United States, including United States connections to non-United States persons and networks, violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence in prison, individual or `lone wolf' violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence, and other faces of the phenomena of violent radicalization, homegrown terrorism, and ideologically based violence that the Commission considers important." The Commission will issue a report to the President and to Congress 18 months after its first meeting.

It's clear that this bill, though it creates a commission rather than providing law enforcement with more tools to hamper First Amendment rights, also poses a threat to Constitutional rights of free speech and freedoms of religion and association, because of its ambiguous language.

See articles below for commentary.

• Homegrown Terror Suspects Raise Concern, August 30, 2006
• NYPD Warns of Homegrown Terror Threat, August 16, 2007
• The Politics of Paranoia, October 25, 2007
• Examining the Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act November 1, 2007
• Congress Considers How to 'Disrupt' Radical Movements in the United States November 16, 2007
• The Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act November 26, 2007
• The law promoting outstanding excellence in fighting terrorism—and why you never heard about it. November 27, 2007
• Center for Democracy and Technology: Progressives Should Embrace Intent Behind "Violent Radicalization Bill" December 14, 2007
• Interent Powers, Ignoble History Make New Idea Anything But Innocuous December 20, 2007
• Center for Constitutional Rights Fact Sheet
• Committee on Homeland Security Fact Sheet December 17, 2007
• Thinking for Yourself is Now a Crime January 4, 2008
• H.R. 1955 Part One January 2008

Only six Congressional representatives voted against H.R. 1955. They are: Neil Abercrombie (HI-1st), Jerry Costello (IL-12th), John J. Duncan, Jr. (TN 2nd), Jeff Flake (AZ-6th), Dennis Kucinich (OH-10th), and Dana Rohrabacher (CA-46th). 22 Congresspersons failed to vote.

What You Can Do:

• Download and distribute BORDC's flyer, "Stop Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act" available in pdf in two sizes: full page and half page.
• If your senator is on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, you can meet locally with the senator's aides. Senators do listen to their aides, especially when groups of constituents take the time to visit with and help educate them about the local feeling on a particular piece of legislation. Letters to the editor and opinion editorials that are published, clipped and sent to senators are also helpful. See our tips on how to arrange meetings with aides.

Bill sponsor Jane Harman (D-CA-36th) made this statement upon the bill's passage in the House: "The threat of a ‘Made in the USA’ suicide bomber has never been greater. This bill, though not a silver bullet, will help develop a better understanding of the root causes of homegrown terrorism, and the steps we can take to stop it. We must intervene before a person crosses the line separating radical views from violent behavior, create an environment that discourages disillusionment and alienation, and instill in young people a sense of belonging and faith in the future."

Representative Bennie Thompson, chair of the Committee on Homeland Security made this statement, "This vital legislation puts our nation on the path to addressing an emerging threat—homegrown terrorism. We simply don’t know how many ‘would-be terrorists’ are living right next door. Now we will have the ability to analyze our and other nations’ experience with this critical issue, propose and adopt recommendations for a safer America, and also protect civil rights and liberties of U.S. Citizens."

Testimony provided to the House Committee on Homeland Security, Subcommittee on Intelligence, Information Sharing, and Terrorism Risk Assessment

• June 14 testimony from Brian Michael Jenkins, from the RAND Corporation
• April 5 testimony from Brian Michael Jenkins, from the RAND Corporation

Bill Number: H.R. 4114
Status: Introduced on November 8, 2007 and referred to Committee on Armed Services and Committee on Judiciary.
Sponsor: Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY-8th)
Co-sponsors

For more information:

• Read Representatives Jerrold Nadler's and William Delahunt's (D-MA) article " Waterboarding is Drowning, Waterboarding is Torture" about H.R. 4414 in Huffington Post (November 27, 2007).
• Read an article about John Ashcroft's appearance at the University of Colorado on November 27, in which he was asked if he is willing to be subjected to waterboarding. (November 28, 2007)
• Read Amy Goodman's article about Democrats aligning with Bush on torture (November 28, 2007)

Bill Number:S 274
Companion Bill:H.R. 985 Status: Introduced on January 11, 2007. On June 13, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs voted to approve the bill and send it to the Senate for debate, after one amendment was added. Committee member, Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) subsequently placed a hold on the bill, which will keep it from a vote.
Sponsor: Senator Daniel Akaka (D-HI)
List of Co-sponsors

This whistleblower protection legislation is companion to H.R. 985, which passed the House by a vote of 331-94 on March 13, 2007. The hold that Senator Coburn put on S 274 appears to be a nod to the White House, after President Bush promised to veto the House version of the bill. Click here to send a message to your Senator, telling her or him the importance of passing S. 274 to protect those who blow the whistle on governmental misdeed. More information can be found at the National Whistleblower Center.

Bill Number: H.R. 3782
Status: Introduced on October 9, 2007 and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and to the Committee on Intelligence.
Sponsor: Representative Rush Holt (D-NJ-12th)
List of Cosponsors

Representative Holt's bill repeals the "Protect America Act," as well as establishing FISA as the exclusive means by which surveillance for foreign intelligence purposes can take place. It also maintains the traditional FISA protections of personal communications between U.S. persons.

• Click here for a copy of the bill's text.
• Click here for a summary of the bill.

Bill Number: H.R. 3773
Status: Introduced on October 9, 2007. Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and to the Committee on Intelligence.
Passed on October 10 by the Committee on Intelligence by a vote of 12-7 with three amendments.
Passed the House of Representatives on November 15, 2007 by a vote of 227-189.
Amended to resolve differences with Senate bill S 2248 and passed by the House on March 14, 2008, by a vote of 213-197. See key features of this bill.
Sponsors: Representative John Conyers (D-MI-14th) and Silvestre Reyes (D-TX-16th)
List of co-sponsors

The RESTORE Act was introduced by House Judiciary Chair Conyers and Intelligence Committee Chair Reyes to undo the damage from the "Protect America Act" (PAA), which was hurriedly passed before the August recess. Click here for text of the legislation. The RESTORE Act:

• Clarifies that no warrant is required to intercept communications between non-U.S. persons outside the United States.
• Requires an individualized warrant from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court when targeting an individual inside the United States, which is the same as current law.
• Maintains the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) as the exclusive means of electronic surveillance in the United States, and prohibits modifications to FISA without express legal authority.
• Establishes quarterly audits by the Department of Justice's Inspector General, including the number of U.S. persons identified in intelligence reports.
• Allows the Attorney General and Director of National Intelligence to apply to the FISA Court to conduct surveillance of foreign targets or groups of targets for up to one year.

Unlike the Senate's FISA Amendments Act, HR 3773 as amended on 3/14/2008 would not provide retroactive immunity for the telecommunications carriers that carried out the warrantless surveillance of Americans' communications. It would sunset on 12/31/09, five years earlier than the Senate bill, and it would require the DOJ Inspector General audit and report publicly on all warrantless electronic surveillance. It would also:

• Require judicial review in advance of surveillance except in emergencies.
• Provide specific protections for Americans' international communications.
• Require a court order based on probable cause to target Americans who are overseas.
• Retain FISA at the exclusive means for wiretapping in the United States.