James Sensenbrenner, September 25, 2003

America is a free and open society. With that freedom comes responsibilities and dangers. We have easy access to all types of information -- from how to prepare sauerkraut and brats to how to build a bomb or a methamphetamine lab. Such information is available on the Internet, or through books that can be accessed at local libraries.

The Internet has also been used to lure innocent children to great harm by sexual predators. As a result, throughout the years, law enforcement officials have obtained records from libraries on books checked out, and Internet usage. In criminal cases, this evidence of a crime or information to prevent a crime has been collected with grand jury subpoenas. The terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 that killed nearly 3,000 men, women, and children, demonstrated a glaring loophole in this authority. While law enforcement could obtain this information for a general crime, it could not obtain it when investigating a threat of a terrorist attack.

Consequently, after the incidents of September 11, the House Judiciary Committee, which I Chair, was tasked with developing legislation that would protect our nation from future attacks, yet maintain those values that make us a cherished society. After considerable debate, Congress overwhelmingly passed the USA PATRIOT Act, and the President signed it into law in 2001.

Of the various provisions in the law, many of which will sunset by 2005 unless reauthorized by Congress, is one with which Congress closed the loophole by authorizing the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to issue subpoenas for businesses' records in national security investigations. Specified in Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act, this provision has an extremely narrow scope. It can only be used to "obtain foreign intelligence information not concerning a United States person," or to "protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities." Section 215 cannot be used to investigate ordinary crimes, or even domestic terrorism.

Since it became law, libraries and bookstores, though not singled out in Section 215, have criticized this provision, claiming that implementation of Section 215 constitutes an invasion of the privacy of people using libraries, and that law enforcement can monitor our reading habits. Spurred by Senators and Representatives trying to score political points, this misinformation, or disinformation, is evident through the many articles, editorials, and even letters to editors that I have read over the last year. These types of scare tactics don’t have a place in political debate.

Earlier this month, to quell this criticism, the Justice Department disclosed that it has sought business records, including library records, under Section 215 of the USA-PATRIOT Act zero times. Though this information had been classified, it was readily available to all Members of Congress who should have, or could have, known how often Section 215 was used.

Ensuring that the powers in the PATRIOT Act are not abused requires vigilance by the Attorney General and the Justice Department, as well as by Congress through its oversight responsibility. The hundreds of pages of answers provided by the Justice Department to questions posed by the Judiciary Committee, combined with the disclosure of the number of times the Department has sought business records, including library records, under Section 215 of the PATRIOT Act, should help comfort the public that these authorities are not being abused.

I hope that this disclosure will now foster a more reasoned debate. This will allow the Judiciary Committee to more accurately asses the effectiveness of the PATRIOT Act, and what provisions, if any, need to be extended beyond the 2005 sunset. As Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, to ensure that the proper balance between public security and private liberties continues to be maintained, I will not stop my aggressive oversight of the Justice Department, and its implementation of the PATRIOT Act.

F. James Sensenbrenner is a Republican Member of Congress representing the Fifth Congressional District of Wisconsin. He chairs of the House Judiciary Committee.