Washington, D.C. — On Thursday, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) introduced the Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act, a bill to curb invasive government surveillance. The bill closes loopholes that allow the government to sweep up the private texts, emails and calls of people in the United States without court approval. The government’s sweeping spying authority, also known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, is set to expire next month on April 20 if Congress does not reauthorize it. Demand Progress has been leading a bipartisan coalition to reform Section 702 under both Democratic and Republican presidents.
The following is a statement from Demand Progress Senior Policy Advisor Hajar Hammado:
“Not enough people realize that the government has the power to hoover up your private calls, texts and emails without any court approval. The Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act is a necessary bill that closes the loopholes allowing the government to conduct this dangerous, invasive spying. We thank Rep. Biggs for his committed, bipartisan leadership to fix this serious threat to our privacy. Congress must follow his lead and support critical reforms that would stop the government from buying our sensitive information from data brokers and warrantlessly surveilling us.”