Jane Harman: “the Patriot Act Conference Report which Congress will amend today deals with the outcry leveled at provisions in the…”

“the Patriot Act Conference Report which Congress will amend today deals with the outcry leveled at provisions in the original Patriot Act that allow the government to have access to library records. I strongly agree that the original PATRIOT Act was too broad: it permitted the FBI and other agencies to issue National Security Letters (NSL)--secret administrative subpoenas--without court approval to obtain a wide range of data from libraries that had little or nothing to do with fighting terrorists. But embedded in the law was something I felt and still feel was essential to prevent and disrupt terrorist plots: it covered Internet sites at libraries that also function as Internet Service Providers (ISPs), places terrorists use to communicate with each other--something they have done effectively in the effort to evade being monitored. Though it was extremely unpopular, I voted against early efforts to repeal Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act--the so called Library Provision--because those efforts included ISPs. Last year, Congressman Bernie Sanders' amendment Section 215 expressly did not include ISPs, and I spoke for it on the floor. Today's bill modifies the PATRIOT Act by barring the government from using NSLs to obtain records from libraries functioning in their traditional roles. Only libraries that also function as ISPs are now covered. This compromise is right and the law ensures that we can continue to monitor terrorist activity on the Internet.…”