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S.1158, A bill to exempt bookstores and libraries from orders requiring the production of tangible things for foreign intelligence investigations, and to exempt libraries from counterintelligence access to certain records, ensuring that libraries and bookstores are subjected to the regular system of court-ordered warrants, was introduced on May 23 by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA).
The non-profit association, EDUCAUSE, maintains a regularly updated online chart in Excel that tracks technology-related legislation for the 108th Congress. The chart indicates issue, bill number, related bill, last action (date), committee/subcommittee, and whether the bill is active. There are currently 51 entries on issues including privacy, ID theft, broadband and spam.
Rep. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), who sponsored the Freedom to Read Protection Act, (H.R. 1157), will present the keynote at the opening session of the Joint Annual Conference of the American Library Association and Canadian Library Association, in Toronto on June 21.
Via Politechbot, the text of the Reduction in Distribution of Spam Act of 2003, (43 pages, pdf) introduced May 22 by Rep. Richard Burr, (R-NC) in another effort to stem the tide of unsolicited commercial e-mail (UCE). For other related information on state and federal anti-spam legislation that I have posted, see this link. Also …
Sen. Debra Bowen’s bill, SB 12, “would…prohibit a person or entity from initiating an unsolicited commercial e-mail advertisement either from California or to a California electronic mail address. The bill would also make it unlawful for a person or entity to collect electronic mail addresses posted on the Internet, or to sell or provide a …
The Alaska legislature passed House Joint Resolution 22 stating “it is the policy of the State of Alaska to oppose any portion of the USA Patriot Act that would violate the rights and liberties guaranteed equally under the state and federal constitutions.” According to the ACLU, “Alaska’s resolution is the 114th of its kind to …
The EFF reports that on May 21, Colorado Governor Bill Owens vetoed House Bill 1303, the so called Super DMCA legislation for which the Motion Picture Association provided the draft model language used in state legislatures throughout the country.
Today the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation held a hearing on Spam (Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail). “Description: Members will hear testimony relating to potential legislative, technical, and other approaches to curtailing unwanted spam. Senator McCain will preside.” The committee provides the full-text of available testimony via this main link. See also, Microsoft Proposes Law …
From the FTC press release: Prepared Statement of the Federal Trade Commission on The Fair Credit Reporting Act, Presented by J. Howard Beales, III, Director, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Before the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, United States Senate: Text of Commission Testimony [PDF 64KB].
The NSA has proposed a FOIA exemption for “files that document the means by which foreign intelligence or counterintelligence is collected through technical systems.” Also via FAS, see the text of the proposed exemption, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2004, S. 747. From OMBWatch, “The Senate language, included in the proposed FY …
From the American Libraries Association (ALA) DMCA Section 1201 Anti-Circumvention Rule site: “On May 9, the U.S. Copyright Office concluded a round of hearings in Washington, D.C. pursuant to its rulemaking, under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (DMCA), to determine potential exemptions to the Section 1201 prohibition on circumvention of technological measures that …
The House Committee on Financial Services, Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, held a hearing on May 8, The Importance of the National Credit Reporting System to Consumers and the U.S. Economy. See this link for full-text access to the opening statements of Representative Carolyn Maloney and Representative Rubén Hinojosa, as well as testimony …
