![]() The section granted the government expansive power to access public libraries and demand they turn over an individual's borrowing records. ![]() One initial gripe with the Act was that it deconstructs the system of checks and balances and the power the courts have to curtail abuses of power.īut by far the most controversial section of the Patriot Act has been section 215, also known as the 'business records provision'. Section 215 and Edward SnowdenĮver since it was signed into law, the Patriot Act has been a major concern for US residents who want to preserve their online privacy. Since then, law enforcement agencies have relied on a range of legislation to obtain personal information from citizens. The 2009-era resistance to National Security Letters spurred the bureau to rely on Section 215 and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court for email and other records acquisition Spencer Ackerman, Former Guardian US security correspondent (2016) in at least one case, when the secret court refused an application for journalists' records on First Amendment grounds, the Bureau turned around and obtained the same data using National Security Letters Julian Sanchez, Cato Institute (2015)īut by 2009, NSLs were being met with opposition from companies they were being used to subpoena. The FBI didn't even bother using 215 for more than a year after the passage of the Patriot Act. Although section 215 eventually came under heavier scrutiny, it was initially the NSLs that helped US law enforcement agencies obtain information. In terms of permanent provisions, the 'National Security Letters' (NSLs) program legalized a search procedure that grants the FBI the authority to force banks, telephone companies, internet service providers, and others to hand over customer data and call logs without going through a surveillance court first. National Security Lettersġ92K NSLs were issued by the FBI between 20, yet only led to one terror-related convictionĭespite being littered with sunset provisions, it's important to remember that much of the Act's provisions are permanent - the existence of some sunset provisions seems to have led some to conclude that all the powers in the Act expire and then have to be reauthorized over and over again. This was his way of saying that he thought the federal government perceived the legislation to grant them more powers than it actually did, and American citizens were none the wiser.Īlthough the remaining sunset provisions were extended again until 2015, in 2013 the misuse of one of them, section 215, was exposed by a whistleblower in one of the biggest leaks in US law enforcement history. It was around this time Senator Ron Wyden first used the term "secret Patriots Act" on the floor of the Senate. The 2006 reauthorization also extended the 'lone wolf' provision, which permitted law enforcement to investigate anyone they think might be a terrorist even if they have no known connection to a terrorist group (it is claimed this provision has never been used).Īfter a one-year extension ensured the Patriot Act was still legally binding in 2010, Barack Obama then signed the Patriot Sunsets Extension Act of 2011 in early 2012, elongating the expiry period for Section 215, the 'lone wolf' provision and laws surrounding roving wiretaps. It also made 14 of the original sunset provisions permanent and extended the expiration date of section 202 and section 215 until 2009, the latter of which gave the government the power to demand public libraries turn over an individual's borrowing records. It included new provisions relating to the death penalty for terrorists and new powers to combat those who finance terrorism.Īlthough it originally passed with near-unanimous consent after 9/11, almost a decade later concerns were starting to emerge in Congress. However, after much congressional debate, US lawmakers passed the USA Patriot and Terrorism Reauthorization Act in March in 2006. This means they had a set expiry date, and in the first case, it was 2005. Many aspects of the original Patriot Act were considered 'sunset provisions'. *Corresponding sections of Patriot Act in brackets Sunset provisions Hand the CIA private information on innocent citizens (203 & 901).Demand your info from telecommunication companies and block them from informing you (505).Search your home without telling you (213).Put immigrants in jail indefinitely and without proof they are guilty of a crime (412).Confiscate your property without a hearing (806).Label you a terrorist if you belong to an activist group (411).Surveil your emails and internet traffic without your consent (216).However, according to rights groups, the Act effectively allowed the US government to:
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