Campaign for Reader Privacy Still Going Strong

Two weeks ago, ABA, the American Library Association, and PEN American Center -- the sponsors of the Campaign for Reader Privacy (www.readerprivacy.org) -- announced that, due to the enthusiasm and strong response from booksellers and libraries, Phase I of the petition drive will continue over the summer. The planned presentation of signed petitions to Congress has been moved back to September 2004.

It is expected that this extension will allow petition drive participants to take advantage of CRP's remarkable momentum and collect that many more signatures over the summer. Already, booksellers have collected well over 120,000 signatures on petitions calling for Congress to amend Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act to ensure the privacy of the records of bookstore and library patrons.

"Based on anecdotal information we've received from participants, booksellers and librarians want to keep circulating petitions -- we have heard countless stories of customers actually thanking them for making the petition available," said ABA COO Oren Teicher in an interview in early June. "So we are urging booksellers who have been collecting signatures in this crucial effort, to continue to do so. And for those booksellers who have yet to join, this is the perfect opportunity to do so now."

Booksellers can order additional petition pads by calling ABA's Information Department at (800) 637-0037, ext. 1292 or 1293, or for a downloadable PDF of the petition, click here.

Looking to Amend the USA Patriot Act

At present, there are a number of bills in both the House and Senate that aim to amend Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act, a provision that gives law enforcement officials broad authority to obtain citizens' medical, business, and bookstore and library records without probable cause. President George Bush has made it clear that he does not support amendments of any kind to the USA Patriot Act, and, in fact, his supporters hope to repeal the legislation's scheduled 2005 Sunset clause (though political pundits believe that is unlikely).

In the meantime, there is a burgeoning bi-partisan effort in Congress to have certain provisions of the USA Patriot Act amended.

At present, two key bills in Congress are:

• The Freedom to Read Protection Act (H.R. 1157). Representative Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced H.R. 1157 in March 2003. The legislation would remove the threat to the privacy of bookstore and library records created by Section 215 of the USA Patriot Act. At present, the proposed amendment has 145 co-sponsors, including Ron Paul (R-TX).
  

Status: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. (For more information, click here.)

• The Security and Freedom Ensured Act (SAFE, S. 1709). Senators Richard Durbin (D-IL) and Larry Craig (R-ID) introduced S.1709 in early October 2003. The bill currently has 19 co-sponsors, including the presumptive Democratic Party presidential nominee, Senator John Kerry. SAFE limits searches under the Patriot Act to the records of people who are "foreign agents" engaged in acts of espionage or terrorism. S. 1709 requires the FBI to have "specific and articulable facts" that show that the person it is targeting is a foreign agent before it may seek a search order from the secret FISA court, among other things.
  

Status: This bill has been read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (For more information, click here.)

Other bills looking to amend the Patriot Act include:

• The Library, Bookseller, and Personal Records Privacy Act (S.1507). Sen. Russell D. Feingold (D-WI) introduced The Library, Bookseller, and Personal Records Privacy Act (S.1507) on July 31, 2003. The legislation protects bookstore and library records by limiting searches under the Patriot Act to the records of people who are "foreign agents" engaged in acts of espionage or terrorism. The bill has 11 co-sponsors, including Senator Kerry.
  

Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (For more information, click here.)

• The Library and Bookseller Protection Act (S. 1158). In late May 2003, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) introduced the S. 1158, a bill similar to Sanders' The Freedom to Read Protection Act.
  

Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (For more information, click here.)

• Protecting the Rights of Individuals Act (S. 1552). On July 31, 2003, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced S.1552. The bill would limit searches under the USA Patriot Act to the records of people who are foreign agents engaged in acts of espionage or terrorism. (For more information, click here.)