The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (PCLOB) is an independent agency created by Congress to ensure that the government’s counterterrorism efforts are balanced with the need to protect privacy and civil liberties. The Board’s investigations and reports have increased public transparency around the government’s foreign intelligence surveillance programs and informed significant legislative reforms.
The president’s dismissal of three members of the Board without cause undermines its independence, impeding the PCLOB’s ability to provide effective oversight. With the power to remove PCLOB members at will, a presidential administration could prevent the PCLOB from reviewing surveillance activities the administration wishes to keep hidden or from publishing critical reports. Even the threat of termination would have a chilling effect on earnest oversight. It was for this very reason that in 2007, Congress removed a statutory provision authorizing the president to remove PCLOB members without cause.
The Brennan Center urges Congress to restore the PCLOB’s independence and protect it from future interference.
Coalition Letter Condemns Firing of Three PCLOB Members by The Brennan Center for Justice on Scribd
