S 317	Library, Bookseller, and Personal Records Privacy Act
	Sponsor: Sen. Russ Feingold, D-WI.

By Mr. FEINGOLD (for himself, Mr. Akaka, Mr. Bingaman, Ms.

Cantwell, Mr. Corzine, Mr. Dayton, Mr. Durbin, Mr. Jeffords,

Mr. Kennedy, and Mr. Wyden):

S. 317. A bill to protect privacy by limiting the access of the

Government to library, bookseller, and other personal records for

foreign intelligence and counterintelligence purposes; to the Committee

on the Judiciary.

Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, today I will reintroduce the Library,

Bookseller, and Personal Records Privacy Act. The bill is identical to

the bill I introduced in the 108th Congress, S. 1507.

This bill would amend Sections 215 and 505 of the USA-PATRIOT Act to

protect the privacy of law-abiding Americans. It would set reasonable

limits on the Federal Government's access to library, bookseller,

medical, and other sensitive, personal information under the Foreign

Intelligence Surveillance Act (``FISA'') and related foreign

intelligence authority.

I am pleased that several of my distinguished colleagues have joined

me as original cosponsors of this important legislation.

Millions of Patriotic Americans love our country and support our

military men and women in their difficult missions abroad, but worry

about the fate of our Constitution here at home.

Much of our Nation's strength comes from our constitutional liberties

and respect for the rule of law. That is what has kept us free for our

two and a quarter century history. Our constitutional freedoms, our

American values, are what make our country worth fighting for as we

strive to win the war on terror.

Here at home, there is no question that the FBI needs ample resources

and legal authority to prevent future acts of terrorism. But the

PATRIOT Act went too far when it comes to the government's access to

personal information about law abiding Americans.

Even though in the end I opposed the PATRIOT Act, there were many

provisions that I did support. And even in those provisions I sought to

amend when the bill was debated, there was often some change that I

supported. For example, Congress was right to expand the category of

business records that the FBI could obtain pursuant to the Foreign

Intelligence Surveillance Act. Prior to the PATRIOT Act, the FBI could

seek a court order to obtain only travel records--such as airline,

hotel, and car rental records--and records maintained by storage

facilities. The PATRIOT Act allows any business records to be

subpoenaed. I don't quibble with that change.

But what my colleagues and I do find problematic--and an increasing

number of Americans who value their privacy and First Amendment rights

agree with us--is that the current law allows the FBI broad, almost

unfettered access to personal information about law-abiding Americans who have no connection to terrorism or spying.

Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act requires the FBI to show in an

application to the court that the documents are ``sought for'' an

international terrorism or foreign intelligence investigation. There is

no requirement that the FBI make a showing of individualized suspicion

that the documents relate to a suspected terrorist or spy.

In other words, under current law, the FBI could serve a subpoena on

a library for all the borrowing records of its patrons or on a

bookseller for the purchasing records of its customers simply by

asserting that they want the records for a terrorism investigation.

Since the passage of the PATRIOT Act, librarians and booksellers have

become increasingly concerned by the potential for abuse of this law. I

was pleased to stand with the American Booksellers Association and the

Free Expression Network over 2 years ago when we first started to raise

these concerns.

Librarians and booksellers are concerned that under the PATRIOT Act,

the FBI could seize records from libraries and booksellers in order to

monitor what books Americans have purchased or borrowed, or who has

used a library's or bookstore's internet computer stations, even if

there is no evidence that the person is a terrorist or spy, or has any

connection to a terrorist or spy.

These concerns are so strong that some librarians across the country

have taken the unusual step of destroying records of patrons' book and

computer use, as well as posting signs on computer stations warning

patrons that whatever they read or access on the internet could be

monitored by the federal government.

As a librarian in California said, ``We felt strongly that this had

to be done. . . . The government has never had this kind of power

before. It feels like Big Brother.''

And as the executive director of the American Library Association

said, ``This law is dangerous. . . . I read murder mysteries--does that

make me a murderer? I read spy stories--does that mean I'm a spy?

There's no clear link between a person's intellectual pursuits and

their actions.''

The American people do not know how many or what kind of requests

Federal agents have made for library records under the PATRIOT Act. The

Justice Department refuses to release that information to the public.

But in a survey released by the University of Illinois at Urbana-

Champaign, about 550 libraries around the Nation reported having

received requests from Federal or local law enforcement during the past

year. About half of the libraries said they complied with the law

enforcement request, and another half indicated that they had not.

Americans don't know much about these incidents, because the law also

contains a provision that prohibits anyone who receives a subpoena from

disclosing that fact to anyone.

In testimony before the Judiciary Committee, Attorney General

Ashcroft stated that as of September 18, 2003, the Department of

Justice had never used Section 215. The Department has not made that

claim in public testimony since then, leading many to speculate that

the provision has now been used. Whether it has been used once, or

dozens of times, the problem with the section remains--it is too broad

and does not permit adequate judicial supervision. There is a potential

for overreaching that Congress must address.

David Schwartz, president of Harry W. Schwartz Bookshops, the oldest

and largest independent bookseller in Milwaukee, summed up well the

American values at stake when he said: ``The FBI already has

significant subpoena powers to obtain records. There is no need for the

government to invade a person's privacy in this way. This is a uniquely

un-American tool, and it should be rejected. The books we read are a

very private part of our lives. People could stop buying books, and

they could be terrified into silence.''

I would not claim that we have reached the point where people in this

country are afraid to buy books, but section 215 is a tool that is

unnecessarily broad. And it raises the specter of indiscriminate

government snooping into the private lives of innocent citizens, which

is an unnecessary distraction from the serious law enforcement work

that is needed to fight terrorism.

It is time to reconsider those provisions of the PATRIOT Act that are

un-American and, frankly, unpatriotic.

But my concerns with the PATRIOT Act go beyond library and bookseller

records. Under section 215 of the PATRIOT Act, the FBI could seek any

records maintained by a business. These business records could contain

sensitive, personal information--for example, medical records

maintained by a doctor or hospital or credit records maintained by a

credit agency. All the FBI would have to do is simply assert that the

records are ``sought for'' its terrorism or foreign intelligence

investigation.

Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act goes too far. Americans rightfully

have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their library, bookstore,

medical, financial, or other records containing personal information.

Prudent safeguards are needed to protect these legitimate privacy

interests.

The Library, Bookseller, and Personal Records Privacy Act is a

reasonable solution. It would restore a pre-PATRIOT Act requirement

that the FBI make a factual, individualized showing that the records

sought pertain to a suspected terrorist or spy while leaving in place

other PATRIOT Act expansions of this business records power.

My bill will not prevent the FBI from doing its job. It recognizes

that the post-September 11 world is a different world. There are

circumstances when the FBI should legitimately have access to library,

bookseller, or other personal information.

I'd like to take a moment to explain how the safeguard in my bill

would be applied. Suppose the FBI is conducting an investigation of an

international terrorist organization. It has information that suspected

members of the group live in a particular neighborhood. The FBI would

like to obtain records from the library in the suspects' neighborhood.

Under current law, the FBI could decide to ask the library for all

records concerning anyone who has ever borrowed a book or used a

computer, and what books were borrowed, simply by asserting that the

documents are sought for a terrorism investigation. But under my bill,

the FBI could not do so. The FBI would have to set forth specific and

articulable facts giving reason to believe that the person to whom the

records pertain is a suspected terrorist. The FBI could obtain only

those library records--such as borrowing records or computer sign-in

logs--that pertain to the suspected terrorists. The FBI could not

obtain library records concerning individuals who are not suspected

terrorists.

So, under my bill, the FBI can still obtain documents that it

legitimately needs, but my bill would also protect the privacy of law-

abiding Americans. I might add that if, as the Justice Department says,

the FBI is using its PATRIOT Act powers in a responsible manner, does

not seek the records of law-abiding Americans, and only seeks the

records of suspected terrorists or suspected spies, then there is no

reason for the Department to object to my bill.

The second part of my bill would address privacy concerns with

another Federal law enforcement power expanded by the PATRIOT Act--the

FBI's national security letter authority. The FBI does not need court

approval to use this power.

My bill would amend section 505 of the PATRIOT Act. Part of this

section relates to the production of records maintained by electronic

communications providers. Libraries or bookstores with internet access

for customers could be deemed ``electronic communication providers''

and therefore be subject to a request by the FBI under its NSL

authority.

As I mentioned earlier, some librarians are so concerned about the

potential for abuse by the FBI that they have taken matters into their

own hands before the FBI knocks on their door. Some librarians have

begun shredding on a daily basis sign-in logs and other documents

relating to the public's use of library computer terminals to access

the internet.

Again, safeguards are needed to ensure that any individual who

accesses the internet at a library or bookstore does not automatically

give up all expectations of privacy. Like the section 215 fix I've discussed, my bill would require an individualized showing

by the FBI of how the records of internet usage maintained by a library

or bookseller pertain to a suspected terrorist or spy.

Yes, the American people want the FBI to be focused on preventing

terrorism. And, yes, it may make sense to make some changes to the law

to allow the FBI access to the information that it needs to prevent

terrorism. But we do not need to change the values that constitute who

we are as a Nation in order to protect ourselves from terrorism. We can

protect both our Nation and our privacy and civil liberties.

An increasing number of Americans are beginning to understand that

the PATRIOT Act went too far. Four States and over 350 cities and

counties across the country have now passed resolutions expressing

opposition to the PATRIOT Act. And it's not just the Berkeleys and

Madisons of this Nation, but other States and communities with strong

conservative and libertarian values, such as Alaska and cities in

Montana, that have passed such resolutions.

I have many concerns with the PATRIOT Act. I am not seeking to repeal

it, in whole or in part. In this bill, my colleagues and I are only

seeking to modify two provisions that pose serious potential for abuse.

The privacy of law-abiding Americans is at stake, along with their

confidence in their government. Congress should act to protect our

privacy and reassure our citizens. The Library, Bookseller, and

Personal Records Privacy Act bill is a reasonable approach to do just

that. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the

Record.

There being no objection, the bill was ordered to be printed in the

Record, as follows:

S. 317

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of

the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Library, Bookseller, and

Personal Records Privacy Act''.

SEC. 2. PRIVACY PROTECTIONS ON GOVERNMENT ACCESS TO LIBRARY,

BOOKSELLER, AND OTHER PERSONAL RECORDS UNDER

FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE SURVEILLANCE ACT OF 1978.

(a) Applications for Orders.--Subsection (b) of section 501

of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50

U.S.C. 1861) is amended--

(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the end;

(2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and

inserting ``; and''; and

(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:

``(3) shall specify that there are specific and articulable

facts giving reason to believe that the person to whom the

records pertain is a foreign power or an agent of a foreign

power.''.

(b) Orders.--Subsection (c)(1) of that section is amended

by striking ``finds'' and all that follows and inserting

``finds that--

``(A) there are specific and articulable facts giving

reason to believe that the person to whom the records pertain

is a foreign power or an agent of a foreign power; and

``(B) the application meets the other requirements of this

section.''.

Section 502 of that Act (50 U.S.C. 1862) is amended--

(1) in subsection (a), by striking ``the Permanent'' and

all that follows through ``the Senate'' and inserting ``the

Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and the Committee

on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the

Select Committee on Intelligence and the Committee on the

Judiciary of the Senate''; and

(2) in subsection (b), by striking ``On a semiannual

basis,'' and all that follows through ``a report setting

forth'' and inserting ``The report of the Attorney General to

the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of

Representatives and the Senate under subsection (a) shall set

forth''.

SEC. 3. PRIVACY PROTECTIONS ON GOVERNMENT ACCESS TO

INFORMATION ON COMPUTER USERS AT BOOKSELLERS

AND LIBRARIES UNDER NATIONAL SECURITY

AUTHORITY.

(a) In General.--Section 2709 of title 18, United States

Code, is amended--

(1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); and

(2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new

subsection (e):

``(e) Records of Booksellers and Libraries.--(1) When a

request under this section is made to a bookseller or

library, the certification required by subsection (b) shall

also specify that there are specific and articulable facts

giving reason to believe that the person or entity to whom

the records pertain is a foreign power or an agent of a

foreign power.

``(2) In this subsection:

``(A) The term `bookseller' means a person or entity

engaged in the sale, rental, or delivery of books, journals,

magazines, or other similar forms of communication in print

or digitally.

``(B) The term `library' means a library (as that term is

defined in section 213(2) of the Library Services and

Technology Act (20 U.S.C. 9122(2))) whose services include

access to the Internet, books, journals, magazines,

newspapers, or other similar forms of communication in print

or digitally to patrons for their use, review, examination,

or circulation.

``(C) The terms `foreign power' and `agent of a foreign

power' have the meaning given such terms in section 101 of

the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C.

1801).''.

(b) Sunset of Certain Modifications on Access.--Section

224(a) of the USA PATRIOT ACT of 2001 (Public Law 107-56; 115

Stat. 295) is amended by inserting ``and section 505'' after

``by those sections)''.