Week 2: USA PATRIOT Act

Passed by the Senate 98-1

Passed by the House 357-66

October 26, 2001 – Signed into law by President Bush

130 pages in length

Divided into 10 titles

Legislative History

Previous existing laws were amended or expanded to increase police powers to investigate and apprehend individuals suspected of terrorist activityForeign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) of 1978Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act

(CALEA) of 1994Federal criminal code

“Congress simply took existing legal principles and retrofitted them to preserve the lives and liberty of the American people from the challenges posed by a global terrorist network.” – US Dept of Justice website

Creation

Title I – Enhancing domestic security against terrorism

Title II – Enhanced Surveillance ProceduresTitle III – International Money Laundering

Abatement and Anti-Terrorist Financing Act of 2001

Title IV – Protecting the BorderTitle V – Removing Obstacles to Investigating

Terrorism

Ten Titles of the USA PATRIOT Act

Title VI – Providing for Victims of Terrorism, Public Safety Officers, and Their Families

Title VII – Increased Information Sharing for Critical Infrastructure Protection

Title VIII – Strengthening the Criminals Laws Against Terrorism

Title IX – Improved IntelligenceTitle X - Miscellaneous

Ten Titles of the USA PATRIOT Act

Amended the Posse Comitatus Act (1878) to allow military involvement in domestic law enforcement activities when weapons of mass destruction are used against the U.S.

Expands power of the President to freeze or confiscate assets of a foreign person, organization, or nation in response to foreign aggression against the U.S.

Allows monies from the Counterterrorism Fund to provide resources to rebuild facilities, offer rewards to capture terrorists, or protect existing buildings from terrorist attacks.

Condemns violence or discrimination against Muslim and Arab Amercians

Title I – Enhancing Domestic Security Against Terrorism

25 total provisions16 sunset provisions

Set to expire unless renewed by Congress on Dec 31, 2005

9 permanent provisions14 of 16 sunset provisions made permanent

by the USA PATRIOT Act Additional Reauthorization Act of 2006

2 remaining provisions extended until 2009§206 - Roving Surveillance Authority Under the

Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978§215 - Access to Records and Other Items

under FISA

Title II – Enhanced Surveillance Procedures

Power of law enforcement officers to identify the source and destination of telephone calls expanded beyond specific phones to any potential phone that a terrorist may useWarrants follow the terrorist, not the phone

device

Email and Instant Messaging treated the same as telephone conversations under this provision

Title II continued - Roving Wiretaps

Warrants no longer tied to the Federal district court in which the property to be search is located

Law enforcement officers can obtain a search warrant in any Federal district without coordinating with a court in the district where the warrant will be served

Warrants can be obtained where an investigation starts, for example, and then be served on property in a different state.

Title II Continued - Search warrants

Cooperative efforts to investigate financial support for terrorist groups and money laundering

Regulation on financial institutions operating in the United StatesRequires each institution develop an anti-

money laundering program with audits

Authority to seize fund-raising assets of foreign terrorist organizations

Title III – International Money Laundering Abatement

Expands border security along the border with Canada

Mandates machine-readable passports

Information sharing between FBI and DOJ on criminal histories for visa applications

Electronic information sharing process funded for all agencies responsible for border security

Title IV – Protecting the Border

Authorizes DOJ and Department of State to pay rewards for assistance in combating terrorism

Revises the National Security Letter proceduresAccess to communication transactions records,

financial reports and credit information from suspected terrorists

FBI senior staff can sign letter requesting information that is “relevant” to counterterrorism operations

Previously, only FBI Director could request this information

Title V – Removing Obstacles to Investigating Terrorism

Quicker payments for first responders (fire, medical, state and local police) involved in investigation, rescue or recovery efforts related to a terrorist attack.

Overall benefits for public safety officers and families increased

Established $50 million emergency reserve fund within the Victims of Crime Fund to aid victims of terrorism

Title VI – Providing for victims of terrorism, public safety officers, families

Resources available to expand regional information sharing between Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies

Aids agencies at all levels to investigate and prosecute terrorist-related crimes and activities

Title VII – Increased information sharing

Amends the Federal criminal code to include acts of international terrorism, individuals conducting terrorist activities, harboring terrorists, or planning terrorist attacks.

No statute of limitation for terrorist acts resulting in death or serious bodily injury

Acts of terrorism included in RICO (Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations) cases

Title VIII – Strengthening the Criminal Laws Against Terrorism

Overall goal is to eliminate previous culture of separation between intelligence and law enforcement agencies at all levels of government

Federal intelligence chiefs required to set up systems for information sharing between agencies

Local law enforcement required to share terrorist-related information collected during local criminal investigations

Title IX – Improved Intelligence

Prohibits entry into the U.S. by non-citizens involved in money laundering

Regulates telemarketing to prevent fraudulent charitable soliciting

List of definitions to be used throughout the Act

Other appropriations not yet listed in previous Titles

Title X - Miscellaneous