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National
Key Vote
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 Amendments Act of 2008
Project Vote Smart's Synopsis:
Vote to pass a bill related to the acquisition of foreign intelligence via surveillance that defines what type of individuals may be targeted through electronic surveillance and outlines the certification and approval processes that are required as precursors to employing electronic surveillance.
Official Title of Legislation:
HR 6304: To amend the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to establish a procedure for authorizing certain acquisitions of foreign intelligence, and for other purposes.
Highlights:
-Prohibits the targeting of any United States persons who are reasonably believed to be located outside of the United States without the approval of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (Sec. 101).
-Prohibits the targeting of any person located outside of the United States with the intention of gaining information about a person located within the United States (Sec. 101).
-Prohibits the acquisition of any communications in which the sender and all recipients are reasonably believed to be within the United States (Sec. 101).
-Requires the Attorney General and the Director of National Security to provide the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court with a written certification and any supporting affidavit prior to the employment of electronic surveillance (Sec. 101).
-Allows the authorization of foreign surveillance under "emergency" or time-limited circumstances without preliminary Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court approval provided that relevant applications or certifications are presented to the Court no later than 7 days after the authorization of such surveillance (Sec 101).
-Releases electronic communication providers from liability with regards to civil action that may be brought up in any court due to assistance provided to the government in obtaining electronic surveillance if such assistance was authorized by the President before January 17, 2007 or if such assistance was the subject of written directions from the Attorney General or heads of the intelligence community indicating that the activity was lawful (Sec. 201).
-Mandates that the certification for reauthorization of surveillance orders already in effect must be submitted to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court at least 30 days prior to the expiration of the previous authorization (Sec. 101).
-Requires the Inspectors General of the Department of Justice, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, the National Security Agency, the Department of Defense, and the Inspector General of any intelligence agency that participated in the President's Surveillance Program to submit a comprehensive report to congress within one year of the enactment of this legislation regarding oversight authority, the responsibility of each such Inspector General, and information regarding the implementation and use of the program (Sec. 301).
Link to Legislation: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c110:hr6304:
House Passage: 06/20/2008 : Bill Passed 293 - 129 (Roll no. 437) Senate Passage: 07/09/2008 : Bill Passed: 69 - 28 (Record Vote Number 168) President Passage: 07/10/2008 : Signed Became Public Law Number 110-261
Sponsor: Rep. Reyes, Silvestre (D-TX)
Cosponsors:
PVS provides summaries for each version of the bill selected as a key vote. The summary does not necessarily reflect the final version of the bill. For further status information, call the Voter's Research Hotline at 1-888-VOTE-SMART (1-888-868-3762).
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