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in the White House's East Room on October 26 , 2001 .]] The USA PATRIOT ACT The Backronym for the '''USA PATRIOT Act''' is ''' {Link without Title} Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001''' ( Public Law 107-56) is short for "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism" Act of 2001 and is a controversial piece of Federal Legislation in the United States . Passed after the September 11, 2001 Attacks , the Act was formed in response to the terrorist attacks against the U.S., and dramatically expands the authority of U.S. law enforcement for the stated purpose of fighting Terrorist Acts in the United States and abroad. It is also used to detect and prosecute Other Alleged Potential Crimes Such As Providing False Information On Terrorism . It was renewed on March 2 , 2006 with a vote of 89–11 in the Senate and on March 7 280–138 in the House. The renewal was signed into law by President George W Bush on March 9 , 2006 . SCOPE Among the laws the USA PATRIOT Act amended are immigration laws and banking and money laundering laws. It also amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). With respect to terrorism definitions, for example, section 802 of the Act created the new crime category of "domestic terrorism." According to this provision, which is found in the U.S. criminal code at , domestic terrorism means activities that (A) involve acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the U.S. or of any state, that (B) appear to be intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population, (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion, or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping, and (C) occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the U.S. Section 2331 also includes the crime of international terrorism, which is identical to domestic terrorism, except that it transcends national boundaries. But this provision predates the Act. Other terrorism definitions are found in section 411 of the Act, which amends sections 212 and 219 of the Immigration And Nationality Act (INA). (which is INA sec. 212) relates to "Excludable Aliens." This is where the definitions of "terrorist activity" and "terrorist organization" may be found. (INA s. 219) provides for the designation of foreign terrorist organizations. These provisions interact with other provisions in the criminal code, for example, and , which criminalize "material support" to terrorists and to foreign terrorist organizations, respectively, drawing on the INA terrorism definitions. RELATED ACTS The USA PATRIOT Act follows and amends a series of acts that are related to the investigations of foreign intelligence. FISA In 1978, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) was passed to produce legal guidelines for federal investigations of foreign intelligence targets. Among the rules put in place were regulations governing:
In addition to defining how foreign intelligence investigations were to be performed, FISA also defined who could be investigated. Only foreign powers or agents of foreign powers were to be subject to FISA investigations. Thus, targets are primarily those foreign persons who are engaged in Espionage or International Terrorism . Section 6001 of the Intelligence Reform And Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, expanded FISA to permit targeting of so-called "lone wolf" terrorists without requiring any showing that they are members of a terrorist group or agents of such a group or of any other foreign power. USA Act The USA Act (Public Law 107-56) was passed on October 12 , 2001 , and subsequently folded into the USA PATRIOT Act. Under the USA Act, a terrorist who was not an agent of a foreign power could be the target of a federal investigation of foreign intelligence. Financial Anti-Terrorism Act The Financial Anti-Terrorism Act was passed on October 17 , 2001 and also folded into the USA PATRIOT Act. It increases the federal government's powers to investigate and prosecute the financial supporters of terrorism. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY The Act swept through Congress with remarkable speed and little dissent. House Resolution 3162 was introduced in the House of Representatives on October 23 , 2001 . Assistant Attorney General Viet D. Dinh and future Secretary Of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff were the primary drafters of the Act. The Bill passed in the House Of Representatives on October 24 , 2001 , and in the Senate (Senator Russ Feingold ( D - WI ) cast the lone dissenting Vote , and Senator Mary Landrieu ( D - LA ) was the sole non-voting member) on October 25 , 2001 . President George W. Bush signed the bill into law on October 26 , 2001 . ORGANIZATION The Act has ten titles, each containing numerous sections. These are:
PROVISIONS The Act mostly incorporates the provisions of the earlier anti-terrorism USA Act (H.R. 2975 and S. 1510). The House passed the USA Act on October 12 , 2001 . The Senate passed it on October 11 , 2001 . The primary differences between the USA Act and the USA PATRIOT Act are:
Much criticism against the Act has been directed at the provisions for Sneak-and-Peek searches — a term coined by the FBI. Critics argue that Provision 213 authorizes "surreptitious search warrants and seizures upon a showing of ''reasonable necessity'' and eliminates the requirement of Rule 41 of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure that immediate notification of seized items be provided." {Link without Title} In special cases covered by FISA (amended by the USA PATRIOT Act), the warrants may come from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) instead of a common Federal or State Court. FISC warrants are not public record and therefore are not required to be released. Other warrants must be released, especially to the person under investigation. A second complaint against Sneak-and-Peek searches is that the owner of the property (or person identified in business/library records) does not have to be told about the search. There is a special clause that allows the Director of the FBI to request phone records for a person without ever notifying the person. For all other searches, the person must be notified, but not necessarily before the search. The judge providing the warrant may allow a delay in notification when there is risk of:
The delays are on average 7 days, but have been as long as 90 days. {Link without Title} Section 213, which federal agencies report they have used 155 times since 2001, does not expire later this year like other USA PATRIOT Act provisions. The American Civil Liberties Union argues that the term "serious jeopardy" is too broad "and must be narrowly curtailed." {Link without Title} However, "sneak and peak" searches have been in use for a long time in criminal cases. Title II of the USA PATRIOT Act was intended to bring the monitoring of foreign powers and the agents of foreign powers into line with such criminal legislation. The main difference between criminal and FISA delayed notification on search warrants is that FISA warrants use a different legal standard when approving such orders (they use Reasonable Cause , not Probable Cause ). ''See also'': United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court Government access to library records Perhaps the most controversial section of the Act stems from Section 215. Section 215 allows FBI agents to obtain a warrant '' In Camera '' from the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for library or bookstore records of anyone connected to an investigation of international terrorism or spying. On its face, the section does not even refer to "libraries," but rather to business records and other tangible items in general. {Link without Title} Civil libertarians and librarians in particular, argue that this provision violates patrons' human rights and it has now come to be called the "library provision." The Justice Department defends Section 215 by saying that because it requires an order to be issued by a FISA Court judge, it provides better protection for libraries. On August 26 , 2005 , The New York Times reported that according to the ACLU , the FBI is demanding library records from a Connecticut institution as part of an intelligence investigation. This would be the first confirmed instance in which the Federal Bureau of Investigation has sought library records, federal officials and the ACLU said. Interestingly, though, the government did not seek the records under section 215, but instead used "National Security Letters," which are the FISA equivalent of grand jury subpoenas and do not require a court order and thus are easier to use than section 215. {Link without Title} ENFORCEMENT Another poll indicates that 52% of Americans are concerned that their civil liberties are being infringed by the administration's war on terrorism. {Link without Title} EXPIRATION AND REAUTHORIZATION Under section 224, several of the surveillance portions (200-level sections) of the Act were originally to expire on December 31 , 2005 . The date was later extended to February 3 , 2006 . This extension was later extended again to March 10 , 2006 . The sunset provision excludes investigations that began before the expiration date. Those investigations may continue with the original Act's full powers. The United States Senate voted to renew the Act on March 2, 2006. On March 7, 2006, the House gave its final vote in approval of renewing the act. {Link without Title} ''The legislation to extend the statute will make all but two of its provisions permanent. The provisions in question are the authority to conduct "roving" surveillance under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and the authority to request production of business records under FISA (USA PATRIOT Act sections 206 and 215, respectively). These provisions will expire in 4 years.'' Bush signed the reauthorization of the Act on March 9 , 2006. After the public ceremony, he issued a " Signing Statement " to the effect that he would not feel bound to comply with some of the provisions of the law. His statement was criticized for an apparent intention to withhold information that the Act required him to provide to Congress. [http://freegovinfo.info/node/435 Provisions that would expire (original version)
Provisions that are permanent (original version)
CONGRESSIONAL ACTION On June 10 , 2005 , during testimony at a House Judiciary Committee hearing on the reauthorization of the Act, Chairman James Sensenbrenner (one of the Act's authors) abruptly gaveled the proceedings to a close after Congressional Democrats and their witnesses launched into a broad denunciations of President Bush's war on terror and the condition of detainees at Guantanamo Bay . In frustration, Sensenbrenner declared, "We ought to stick to the subject. The USA PATRIOT Act has nothing to do with Guantanamo Bay. The USA PATRIOT Act has nothing to do with Enemy Combatant s. The USA PATRIOT Act has nothing to do with Indefinite Detentions ." He then gaveled the meeting to a close and walked out with the gavel. {Link without Title} Witnesses continued testifying despite Sensenbrenner's departure, while C-SPAN cameras continued to roll after microphones and lights were promptly turned off by House Judiciary Majority Counsel, Robert Tracci. On July 21 , 2005 , the House of Representatives passed HR3199, the USA PATRIOT and Terrorism Prevention Reauthorization Act of 2005, which would have removed certain sunset clauses entirely rather than renewing them or allowing them to be enacted. The act was introduced by Representative F. James Sensenbrenner (R- Wisconsin ). On December 16 , 2005 , the Senate refused to end debate on legislation to renew the Act. The Senate fell seven votes short of invoking cloture on the matter, leaving the future of the Act in doubt. The vote went as follows: Fifty Republicans as well as two Democrats voted unsuccessfully to end debate; Five Republicans, 41 Democrats and one independent voted to block. On December 21 , 2005 , the U.S. Senate came to a bipartisan agreement (S.2167) to extend by six months the expiring provisions of the Act. Under House rules, the House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner had the authority to block enactment of the six-month extension. On the following day, December 22, 2005, the House rejected the six-month extension and voted for a one-month extension, which the U.S. Senate subsequently approved later that night. Pending President Bush's signature, the provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act will remain in effect until February 3 , 2006 . On February 17 , 2006 , the '' Washington Times '' reported: :"Last week, Republican Sens. John E. Sununu of New Hampshire, Larry E. Craig of Idaho, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Chuck Hagel of Nebraska, all dropped their opposition to the bill after modifications were made that they said appeased their concerns about protecting civil liberties." {Link without Title} COMPARISONS TO HISTORICAL LAWS
:The '' Decree Of The Reich President For The Protection Of People And State '' (Reichstag Fire Decree) and subsequent '' Enabling Act '' that empowered Adolf Hitler to seize control of Germany are occasionally compared to the USA PATRIOT Act. {Link without Title} The similarities are that both were passed after an act of terrorism, both were passed quickly, and both limited civil liberties with the expressed purpose of protecting the people. The English translation of Article 1 of the ''DRPPPS'' states that the decree intends ''"...to restrict the rights to personal freedom, freedom of speech, including the freedom of the press, the freedom to organize and assemble, the privacy of letters, mail, telegraphs and telephones, order searches and confiscations and restrict property, even if this is not otherwise provided for by present law."'' The USA PATRIOT Act is not as explicit about its intentions, often wording the act in terms of what civil liberties and safeguards people have left. :The Reichstag Fire Decree differs from the USA PATRIOT Act in that the ''DRPPPS'' more explicitly seizes states rights and associates the death penalty with many offenses. Additionally, some of the USA PATRIOT Act has a Sunset Provision , whereas the set expiration date of the Enabling Act was dependent upon a succession of power, and the ''DRPPPS'' did not have a set expiration date. The USA PATRIOT Act and the Enabling Act were both passed by a freely elected Congress, whereas the ''DRPPPS'' was an "emergency decree" by the German president made at the behest of Chancellor Hitler. :Although the USA PATRIOT Act differs in some respects, the Reichstag Fire Decree and subsequent Enabling Act are cited as examples of how giving up civil liberties in times of crisis can be used to legally overthrow a government's constitution from within.
:The AEDPA is the direct predecessor of the USA PATRIOT Act and contains many provisions that were maintained and expanded by the USA PATRIOT Act, including those relating to terrorism, FISA, immigration, and so on. See David Cole's book, listed below in the critics section.
FOOTNOTES AND REFERENCES SEE ALSO
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