HR 387 · 115th Congress 2017–2019, ended

Email Privacy Act

Introduced Jan 9, 2017 Originated House Sponsor Kevin Yoder R-KS

Latest action · Feb 7, 2017 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

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.

IntroducedJan 9, 2017
Passed HouseFeb 6, 2017
Passed SenateNot reached
To the PresidentNot reached
Became lawNot reached

Summary

Email Privacy Act

(Sec. 2) This bill amends the federal criminal code to revise provisions that limit an electronic communication service (ECS) or remote communication service (RCS) provider from voluntarily disclosing the contents of a wire or electronic communication that is in electronic storage.

(Sec. 3) The bill also revises the standards for the government to compel an ECS or RCS provider to disclose contents of a wire or electronic communication or noncontent records or information pertaining to a subscriber or customer.

The government must obtain a warrant to compel the disclosure of contents of a communication that is in electronic storage, or otherwise stored, held, or maintained by an ECS or RCS provider.

An ECS or RCS provider may notify a subscriber or customer of the receipt of a warrant, court order, subpoena, or request, unless the government obtains an order for delayed notification.

(Sec. 4) The bill revises the process for obtaining a delayed notification order and lengthens the maximum duration of a delayed notification order.

(Sec. 5) The bill does not preclude the government from acquiring, pursuant to other legal authorities: (1) contents of a wire or electronic communication, or (2) noncontent records or information related to a subscriber or customer.

Cosponsors 138

Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Jan 9, 2017 to Feb 6, 2017; 9 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.

Seat	Cosponsor		Signed on
R-VA	Bob Goodlatte	Original	Jan 9, 2017
R-GA	Doug Collins	Original	Jan 9, 2017
D-CO	Jared Polis	Original	Jan 9, 2017
D-NY	Jerrold Nadler	Original	Jan 9, 2017
D-MI	John Conyers, Jr.	Original	Jan 9, 2017
D-CA	Judy Chu	Original	Jan 9, 2017
D-WA	Suzan K. DelBene	Original	Jan 9, 2017
R-TX	Ted Poe	Original	Jan 9, 2017
R-TX	Will Hurd	Original	Jan 9, 2017
D-FL	Alcee L. Hastings		Jan 24, 2017
D-NH	Ann M. Kuster		Jan 24, 2017
R-MO	Ann Wagner		Jan 24, 2017
D-CA	Anna G. Eshoo		Jan 24, 2017
R-AS	Aumua Amata Coleman Radewagen		Jan 24, 2017
R-VA	Barbara Comstock		Jan 24, 2017
R-GA	Barry Loudermilk		Jan 24, 2017
R-FL	Bill Posey		Jan 24, 2017
R-MO	Blaine Luetkemeyer		Jan 24, 2017
R-OH	Bob Gibbs		Jan 24, 2017
D-NJ	Bonnie Watson Coleman		Jan 24, 2017
R-OH	Brad R. Wenstrup		Jan 24, 2017
R-ME	Bruce Poliquin		Jan 24, 2017
R-FL	Carlos Curbelo		Jan 24, 2017
D-FL	Darren Soto		Jan 24, 2017
R-AZ	David Schweikert		Jan 24, 2017
D-MI	Debbie Dingell		Jan 24, 2017
D-WA	Derek Kilmer		Jan 24, 2017
D-CO	Diana DeGette		Jan 24, 2017
R-AK	Don Young		Jan 24, 2017
R-CO	Doug Lamborn		Jan 24, 2017
D-OR	Earl Blumenauer		Jan 24, 2017
D-DC	Eleanor Holmes Norton		Jan 24, 2017
R-WI	F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr.		Jan 24, 2017
R-WI	Glenn Grothman		Jan 24, 2017
D-CT	James A. Himes		Jan 24, 2017
D-IL	Janice D. Schakowsky		Jan 24, 2017
R-TX	Joe Barton		Jan 24, 2017
D-CA	John Garamendi		Jan 24, 2017
R-NY	John Katko		Jan 24, 2017
R-IL	John Shimkus		Jan 24, 2017
D-NY	Jose E. Serrano		Jan 24, 2017
I-MI	Justin Amash		Jan 24, 2017
D-MA	Katherine M. Clark		Jan 24, 2017
D-NY	Kathleen M. Rice		Jan 24, 2017
D-CA	Lucille Roybal-Allard		Jan 24, 2017
R-SC	Mark Sanford		Jan 24, 2017
D-CA	Mark Takano		Jan 24, 2017
R-NC	Mark Walker		Jan 24, 2017
D-PA	Matt Cartwright		Jan 24, 2017
R-TX	Michael C. Burgess		Jan 24, 2017
D-PA	Michael F. Doyle		Jan 24, 2017
R-MI	Mike Bishop		Jan 24, 2017
D-MA	Niki Tsongas		Jan 24, 2017
D-NY	Paul Tonko		Jan 24, 2017
R-TX	Pete Olson		Jan 24, 2017
D-OR	Peter A. DeFazio		Jan 24, 2017
D-MN	Richard M. Nolan		Jan 24, 2017
R-GA	Rick W. Allen		Jan 24, 2017
R-IL	Rodney Davis		Jan 24, 2017
R-KS	Roger Marshall		Jan 24, 2017
D-AZ	Ruben Gallego		Jan 24, 2017
D-MI	Sander M. Levin		Jan 24, 2017
D-TN	Steve Cohen		Jan 24, 2017
R-FL	Ted S. Yoho		Jan 24, 2017
D-OH	Tim Ryan		Jan 24, 2017
R-MN	Tom Emmer		Jan 24, 2017
D-CA	Tony Cárdenas		Jan 24, 2017
D-HI	Tulsi Gabbard		Jan 24, 2017
R-NC	Walter B. Jones		Jan 24, 2017
D-CA	Alan S. Lowenthal		Feb 2, 2017
D-NM	Ben Ray Luján		Feb 2, 2017
D-TX	Beto O'Rourke		Feb 2, 2017
D-NH	Carol Shea-Porter		Feb 2, 2017
R-OH	David P. Joyce		Feb 2, 2017
R-TN	David P. Roe		Feb 2, 2017
D-VA	Gerald E. Connolly		Feb 2, 2017
R-FL	Gus M. Bilirakis		Feb 2, 2017
R-UT	Jason Chaffetz		Feb 2, 2017
R-MN	Jason Lewis		Feb 2, 2017
R-NE	Jeff Fortenberry		Feb 2, 2017
D-KY	John A. Yarmuth		Feb 2, 2017
D-CA	Julia Brownley		Feb 2, 2017
R-PA	Lou Barletta		Feb 2, 2017
D-MA	Michael E. Capuano		Feb 2, 2017
R-IA	Rod Blum		Feb 2, 2017
R-MO	Billy Long		Feb 3, 2017
R-TX	Blake Farenthold		Feb 3, 2017
R-TN	Charles J. "Chuck" Fleischmann		Feb 3, 2017
R-NY	Chris Collins		Feb 3, 2017
R-VA	Dave Brat		Feb 3, 2017
R-WV	David B. McKinley		Feb 3, 2017
R-AL	Gary J. Palmer		Feb 3, 2017
R-PA	Glenn Thompson		Feb 3, 2017
R-MI	Jack Bergman		Feb 3, 2017
R-MO	Jason Smith		Feb 3, 2017
R-CA	Ken Calvert		Feb 3, 2017
R-TX	Kenny Marchant		Feb 3, 2017
R-IN	Luke Messer		Feb 3, 2017
R-OK	Markwayne Mullin		Feb 3, 2017
R-TN	Marsha Blackburn		Feb 3, 2017
R-PA	Patrick Meehan		Feb 3, 2017
D-VT	Peter Welch		Feb 3, 2017
R-NJ	Rodney P. Frelinghuysen		Feb 3, 2017
R-PA	Ryan A. Costello		Feb 3, 2017
R-OH	Steve Chabot		Feb 3, 2017
R-OH	Steve Stivers		Feb 3, 2017
R-GA	Tom Graves		Feb 3, 2017
R-AZ	Trent Franks		Feb 3, 2017
D-CA	Barbara Lee		Feb 6, 2017
R-KY	Brett Guthrie		Feb 6, 2017
R-TX	Brian Babin		Feb 6, 2017
D-LA	Cedric L. Richmond		Feb 6, 2017
R-WA	Dan Newhouse		Feb 6, 2017
D-IL	Daniel Lipinski		Feb 6, 2017
R-NC	David Rouzer		Feb 6, 2017
D-NJ	Donald M. Payne, Jr.		Feb 6, 2017
D-CA	Eric Swalwell		Feb 6, 2017
R-AR	J. French Hill		Feb 6, 2017
R-WA	Jaime Herrera Beutler		Feb 6, 2017
R-OH	Jim Jordan		Feb 6, 2017
R-TX	Kay Granger		Feb 6, 2017
D-MN	Keith Ellison		Feb 6, 2017
I-AZ	Kyrsten Sinema		Feb 6, 2017
R-NY	Lee M. Zeldin		Feb 6, 2017
R-NJ	Leonard Lance		Feb 6, 2017
R-KS	Lynn Jenkins		Feb 6, 2017
R-NC	Mark Meadows		Feb 6, 2017
R-AZ	Martha McSally		Feb 6, 2017
R-AL	Martha Roby		Feb 6, 2017
D-AZ	Raúl M. Grijalva		Feb 6, 2017
R-ID	Raul R. Labrador		Feb 6, 2017
R-GA	Rob Woodall		Feb 6, 2017
R-MO	Sam Graves		Feb 6, 2017
R-CO	Scott R. Tipton		Feb 6, 2017
D-TX	Sheila Jackson Lee		Feb 6, 2017
R-LA	Steve Scalise		Feb 6, 2017
R-FL	Thomas J. Rooney		Feb 6, 2017
R-MI	Tim Walberg		Feb 6, 2017

Committees 2

Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.

Chamber	Committee	What it did
House	Judiciary Committee	Referred Jan 9, 2017
	Crime and Federal Government Surveillance Subcommittee	Referred Jan 10, 2017
Senate	Judiciary Committee	Referred Feb 7, 2017

Actions 9

Everything that happened, newest first.

Feb 7, 2017Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
Feb 6, 2017Mr. Yoder moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
Feb 6, 2017Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H988-992)
Feb 6, 2017DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 387.
Feb 6, 2017Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H988-989)

Show all 9 actions

In the Congressional Record 3

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
House	Debate and remarks H8434	Ken Buck R-CO, Ted Poe R-TX	Nov 2, 2017
Extensions	Debate and remarks E186	Henry C. "Hank" Johnson, Jr. D-GA	Feb 14, 2017
House	Debate and remarks H988–H992Text printed H988	Bob Goodlatte R-VA, Eric Swalwell D-CA, Jared Polis D-CO, Jerrold Nadler D-NY, John Conyers, Jr. D-MI, Kevin Yoder R-KS, Tom Emmer R-MN	Feb 6, 2017

Research

What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.

Constitutional authority

Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuant to the following: Amendment IV The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.

The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 163, no. 5, January 9, 2017, page H236.

Printed hearings 1

Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.

Number	Hearing	Committee	Held
S. Hrg. 115-62	UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS: INNOVATION, INTEGRATION, SUCCESSES,. AND CHALLENGES94 pages	Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee	Mar 15, 2017

Related bills 2

Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.

Bill	Title	Relationship	Latest action
S 1654	Email Privacy Act	Identical bill	Jul 27, 2017
HR 6147	Interior, Environment, Financial Services and General Government, Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act, 2019	Related bill	Sep 7, 2018

Titles 3

Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.

Official Title as Introduced: To amend title 18, United States Code, to update the privacy protections for electronic communications information that is stored by third-party service providers in order to protect consumer privacy interests while meeting law enforcement needs, and for other purposes.
Short Titles as Introduced: Email Privacy Act
Short Titles as Passed House: Email Privacy Act

Subjects

Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement.

Text 3

Each version as it was printed, newest first.

Support LegiList

This page is free, carries no paywall, and is built and maintained by one person. If the record here is useful to you, a few dollars keeps it going.

$1 $5 $10

Processed by Stripe in a separate window. LegiList never sees card details.

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.