A bipartisan bill introduced to Congress on Monday aims to curtail "overboard" subpoena power given to federal authorities by the Patriot Act.Congressmen Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ) said in a release that National Security Letters, used by federal authorities to cull private information such as Internet histories and financial records, have led to "rampant abuse" and must be curbed.
"To ensure that Americans' privacy and free speech rights are protected, there must be clear oversight and strict guidelines tied to the use of NSLs," said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office, in an advisory on Monday. "Mr. Nadler and Mr. Flake should be applauded for taking this legislative step. Their bill will realign the current NSL authority with the Constitution. Congress must take this opportunity to rein in the power of the NSL."
"Government reports confirm that upwards of 50,000 of these secret record demands go out each year," noted IPS News.
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