NSL Reform Act of 2007
Latest action · Apr 23, 2008 Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedSep 25, 2007
- Passed SenateNot reached
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
National Security Letter Reform Act of 2007 or the NSL Reform Act of 2007 - Amends the federal criminal code, the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978, and the Fair Credit Reporting Act to establish new criteria for the use of National Security Letters issued by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to wire or electronic communications service providers, financial institutions, and consumer credit reporting agencies for the production of specified records and information about customers or subscribers.
Allows the issuance of a National Security Letter only where: (1) the records sought relate to an ongoing, authorized and specifically identified national security investigation (other than a threat assessment); and (2) there are specific and articulable facts for believing that such records pertain to a suspected agent of a foreign power and such agent's activities.
Requires the Attorney General to establish minimization and destruction procedures for the disclosure and disposal of information and records received by the FBI in response to a National Security Letter.
Revises criteria for judicial review of nondisclosure orders applicable to recipients of National Security Letters.
Amends the USA Patriot Act to require expanded public disclosure of the number and types of National Security Letter requests for information.
Terminates as of December 31, 2009, certain authorities for issuing National Security Letters.
Amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to revise procedures for, and judicial review of, access to business records in national security investigations.
Directs the Department of Justice (DOJ) to establish a secure electronic system for the submission of documents and other information to courts established under FISA.
Expands protections for communications service providers, financial institutions, and consumer reporting agencies that disclose subscriber or customer identifying information to a government authority when such entity reasonably believes that an emergency involving immediate danger of death or serious physical injury to any person requires disclosure without delay.
Requires the Attorney General to issue guidelines for using the least intrusive means of collecting sensitive information in national security investigations.
Cosponsors 11
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Sep 25, 2007 to Dec 5, 2007; 5 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-NE | Chuck Hagel | Original | Sep 25, 2007 |
| R-NH | John E. Sununu | Original | Sep 25, 2007 |
| D-CO | Ken Salazar | Original | Sep 25, 2007 |
| R-AK | Lisa Murkowski | Original | Sep 25, 2007 |
| D-IL | Richard J. Durbin | Original | Sep 25, 2007 |
| D-IL | Barack Obama | Sep 26, 2007 | |
| D-NM | Jeff Bingaman | Sep 26, 2007 | |
| D-MT | Jon Tester | Oct 3, 2007 | |
| D-NJ | Robert Menendez | Oct 17, 2007 | |
| I-VT | Bernard Sanders | Dec 3, 2007 | |
| D-MA | Edward M. Kennedy | Dec 5, 2007 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Judiciary Committee | Referred Sep 25, 2007Hearings Apr 23, 2008 |
Actions 4
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Apr 23, 2008Committee on the Judiciary. Hearings held.
- Sep 25, 2007Introduced in Senate
- Sep 25, 2007Sponsor introductory remarks on measure. (CR S12056-12057)
- Sep 25, 2007Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary. (text of measure as introduced: CR S12057-12063)
In the Congressional Record 1
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S12056Text printed S12057–S12063 | Russell D. Feingold D-WI (text) | Sep 25, 2007 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 3189 | National Security Letters Reform Act of 2007 | Related bill | Jun 24, 2008 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to place reasonable limitations on the use of National Security Letters, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- National Security Letter Reform Act of 2007
- NSL Reform Act of 2007
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security.
- Administrative procedure
- Armed Forces and National Security
- Bank records
- Business records
- Civil Rights and Liberties, Minority Issues
- Commerce
- Consumer credit
- Courts of special jurisdiction
- Crime and Law Enforcement
- Criminal investigation
- Data banks
- Department of Justice
- Finance and Financial Sector
- Foreign agents
- Government Operations and Politics
- Government publicity
- International Affairs
- Judicial review
- Law
- Liability (Law)
- Right of privacy
- Science, Technology, Communications
- Standards
- Subpoena
- Telecommunication industry
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Sep 25, 2007Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
