ALAWON: American Library Association Washington Office Newsline
Volume 14, Number 68
July 18, 2005

In This Issue: 
URGENT ACTION ALERT:  Critical decisions on USA PATRIOT Act this 
week

A House floor vote on reauthorization of the USA PATRIOT Act is 
scheduled on HR 3199, possibly as early as Wednesday of this week.  
The Senate Judiciary Committee will be marking up S 1389, possibly 
on Thursday, July 21.  

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES - Grassroots Message on HR 3199:
Advocates' calls are needed as soon as possible to ALL members of 
the House of Representatives to: 

a)	Urge Representatives to ask House leadership for an "open 
rule".  For every vote, House leadership sets rules that govern 
how many, if any, amendments can be introduced on the House floor 
at the time of debate and final vote; a "closed" rule does not 
allow amendments; library advocates want an "open" rule to allow 
the proposal of amendments that would "fix" Sections 215 and 505.

b)	Ask Representatives to vote FOR amendments that would "fix" 
Sections 215 and 505.Key library supporters in the House are 
seeking opportunities and have amendments that could improve 
Sections 215 (business records) and 505 (administrative law 
letters); changes are needed in these two sections to bring back a 
reasonable level of judicial scrutiny and due process.

c)	Ask them to support an amendment to provide the right to 
challenge a FISA order as well as the gag rule in a court of law.
One of the important changes sought to Sections 215 and 505 is the 
right for the recipient of an order to challenge it in court; that 
right does not now exist.

d)	Also, ask representatives to support an amendment that such 
challenges come before a court that can receive challenges from 
the public. The FISA Court (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act 
Court) does not allow anyone from the public to be seen or heard 
before the court; only a government official with a security 
clearance can be heard.  An amendment calling for this change 
might create an opportunity for non-government persons to appear 
before the FISA Court, OR allow such challenges before federal 
district courts.
 

SENATE - Grassroots message to members of the Senate Judiciary 
Committee on S 3189: Please call your Senators before Wednesday 
morning this week and ask them to support additional changes to 
bring more balance to the increased powers allowed in the USA 
PATRIOT Act.
  
a)	Advise members of the Senate Judiciary Committee that, while 
S 1389 makes some improvement to protect the privacy of library 
users, the bill does not go far enough in providing oversight and 
preventing the FBI from using the overly broad powers of the 
PATRIOT Act to sweep up the records of persons who have no 
connection to terrorism.

b)	Ask the senators to include amendments that provide the right 
to challenge FISA orders, including a gag order in a court that is 
able to receive petitions from members of the public.  (See 
talking points above on HR 3199.) 

Senate Judiciary Committee:
Republicans: (10)

• Arlen Specter (PA)
• Orrin Hatch (UT)
• Charles Grassley (IA)
• Jon Kyl (AZ)
• Mike DeWine (OH)
• Jeff Sessions (AL)
• Lindsey Graham (SC)
• John Cornyn (TX)
• Sam Brownback (KS)
• Tom Coburn (OK) 

Democrats: (8)
• Patrick Leahy (VT)
• Edward Kennedy (MA)
• Joseph Biden (DE)
• Herbert Kohl (WI)
• Dianne Feinstein (CA)
• Russ Feingold (WI)
• Charles Schumer (NY)
• Richard Durbin (IL) 



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