Expiring provisions “of the 2001 anti-terrorism law known as the Patriot Act would be renewed, with some modification, in legislation approved Thursday by the Senate Judiciary Committee,” Congressional Quarterly reports.
The bill would extend three sections that under current law are slated to expire Dec. 31: “roving wiretap” authority, a “lone wolf” terrorist provision and Section 215 orders for tangible items, commonly referred to as the “library records” provision, which allows federal authorities to seek a court order for “any tangible thing” they deem related to a terrorism investigation.
The roving wiretap provision allows the government to conduct surveillance on suspects who communicate on multiple devices. The lone wolf section allows the government to seek warrants from the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for authority to spy on terrorists who are not connected to terrorist groups.
Chairman Pat Leahy (D-VT) feels good about the bill.
Leahy said he has been careful to draft a reauthorizing bill that would provide additional protections for law-abiding Americans without “undermining the operational effectiveness of the counterterrorism tools provided in the Patriot Act.”
Some changes suggested by Ranking Member Jeff Sessions (R-AL) were added.
In its work Thursday, the committee adopted by voice vote a package of amendments by Jeff Sessions of Alabama, the ranking Republican. Among the changes, the amendments would revise standards regulating the use of “pen registers” — electronic surveillance devices that record the phone numbers of incoming and outgoing calls.
The panel voted 11-8 to extend the provisions until 2013.
(credit image – reuters)
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