Groups Urge Senate to Pass Original Version of USA FREEDOM Act

Today, the Brennan Center, along with nearly 40 civil liberties and public interest groups, urged Senate leadership to pass the original version of the USA FREEDOM Act, a bill aimed at closing the loopholes that allows the NSA to collect, search, and store Americans’ data, rather than the watered-down version the House passed in May.

Specifically, groups want the Senate to make six improvements to the House bill, including:

1. Definitively end bulk collection;
2. Strengthen transparency reporting and other transparency provisions;
3. Avoid ratifying dragnet searches of our international communications;
4. Strengthen reforms to the FISA Court (FISC) process to provide more accountability;
5. Restore strong minimization requirements for the FISA pen register and trap and trace surveillance authority; and
6. Put strict limits on the new call detail records (CDR) authority

[Download the letter here]

Letter Urging Senate to Fix USA FREEDOM Act