WASHINGTON May 18, 2020 – The U.S. House of Representatives must protect Americans’ online search and browsing history from warrantless government spying, over 50 companies and civil rights organizations demanded in a letter to Congress today. The groups include the American Civil Liberties Union, the NAACP, FreedomWorks, DuckDuckGo, and Demand Progress.
Last week, the U.S. Senate passed the USA Freedom Reauthorization Act, which would renew expired government surveillance powers. The legislation must now go back to the House for consideration.
While the Senate overwhelmingly supported an amendment led by Sens. Ron Wyden and Steve Daines to the legislation that would prevent the government from spying on people’s online search and browsing histories without probable cause, the amendment fell just one vote short of the needed 60-vote threshold. At least two senators who missed the vote had indicated they would have supported the amendment.
That all senators did not show up to vote is not good reason for a failure to protect Americans’ privacy rights, the groups note. They urge House leadership to move the Senate-passed surveillance reauthorization bill with the inclusion of the Wyden-Daines amendment. The Senate-passed version of the bill was an improvement over the original version of the legislation, including another amendment led by Sens. Mike Lee and Patrick Leahy that strengthened the role of the independent “friend-of-the-court” to the secret Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court.
Below is comment from ACLU Senior Legislative Counsel Neema Singh Guliani:
“Search and web browsing history provide a window into some of the most sensitive aspects of our lives — revealing everything from political views to potential medical conditions. This information should not be collected without a warrant. The Senate vote shows there is overwhelming support for this important reform, which House leadership should include in the Senate-passed version of the bill.”
The letter, which remains open for signatures, can be found here: https://www.aclu.org/coalition-letter-house-leadership-concerning-wyden-daines-amendment-usa-freedom-reauthorization-act.
The latest list of signatories includes:
Access Now
ACCESS of WNY
American Booksellers for Free Expression
American Civil Liberties Union
American Family Voices
American Society of Journalists and Authors (ASJA)
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
Arab American Civic Council
Arab American Institute
Center for Biological Diversity
Center for Democracy & Technology
Common Defense
Constitutional Alliance
Council on American-Islamic Relations
Courage California
Defending Rights & Dissent
Demand Progress
DuckDuckGo
Due Process Institute
Equality Labs
Fight for the Future
Free Press Action
Free Speech Coalition
Freedom of the Press Foundation
FreedomWorks
Government Accountability Project
Government Information Watch
Human Rights Watch
Just Foreign Policy
Kurt Vonnegut Museum and Library
MediaJustice
Movement Alliance Project
MPower Change
MSA West
Muslim Justice League
National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)
National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
National Coalition Against Censorship
New America’s Open Technology Institute
PEN America
People For the American Way
Poligon Education Fund
Presente Action
Progress America
Restore The Fourth
RootsAction.org
Secure Justice
Society of Professional Journalists
TechFreedom
Union of Concerned Scientists
X-Lab
Yemeni Alliance Committee