Washington Legislative Office Wrap-Up for 2008
The Washington Legislative Office of the American Civil Liberties Union fights to defend constitutional principles and preserve Americans’ civil liberties. This year the ACLU worked closely with Congress in an attempt to contain the damage done by the Bush administration. What follows highlights the issues, the battles and the victories of the ACLU’s Washington, D.C.-based lobbying and advocacy efforts during 2008. Read more >>

House Votes on Pay Equity Bills Signal Momentum for Wage Discrimination Safeguards (1/9/2009)
WASHINGTON – Today, as one of its first orders of business, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed H.R. 11, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and H.R. 12, the Paycheck Fairness Act – a pay equity legislative package that helps employees to combat wage discrimination. The vote counts were 247-171 and 256-163, respectively. The ACLU urges swift action on these bills in the Senate.

ACLU Calls Swift Passage of Pay Equity Bills Strong Steps to Help Protect Wages (1/7/2009)
WASHINGTON – Ahead of the numerous economic indicators set to be released this week – including December payroll figures – all of which are expected to show a worsening US economy, the ACLU sent a letter to Congress urging speedy passage of a pay equity legislative package that gives employees tools to fight unfair wage disparities. This week, the House of Representatives is expected to vote on H.R. 11, the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, and H.R. 12, the Paycheck Fairness Act.

DHS Privacy Office Echoes ACLU’s Concerns With Fusion Centers (12/22/2008)
WASHINGTON – A privacy impact assessment issued by the Department of Homeland Security Privacy Office today officially validates concerns the ACLU raised last year about the dangers a network of intelligence “fusion centers” pose to privacy and civil liberties. An ACLU report entitled “What’s Wrong With Fusion Centers?” was published in November 2007 and updated earlier this year. The DHS privacy impact assessment released today echoes, sometimes word for word, the privacy concerns identified by the ACLU in these reports. The ACLU welcomes the findings of the assessment and hopes to assist the DHS privacy office improve privacy protections within these new institutions, which amount to nothing less than a full-fledged domestic intelligence system.

ACLU Welcomes Report’s Conclusions On Detainee Treatment In U.S. Custody (12/11/2008)
WASHINGTON – Today, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI) and Ranking Member John McCain (R-AZ) released the executive summary and conclusions of the committee’s long-awaited report on its inquiry into the treatment of detainees in U.S. custody. The American Civil Liberties Union welcomes the release and applauds the committee for initiating the inquiry.

ACLU Applauds Passage of Human Trafficking Legislation (12/11/2008)
WASHINGTON – -- The American Civil Liberties Union applauds last night’s passage of the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, which, if signed by President Bush, would take great strides towards preventing the abuse, exploitation and trafficking of domestic workers employed by foreign diplomats in the United States. 

ACLU Briefs Key House Committee on Privacy (12/3/2008)
WASHINGTON – The House Homeland Security Committee hosted a series of roundtable discussions today to consider the future of privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties at the Department of Homeland Security. Chairman Bennie Thompson invited scholars and experts from across the country, including the American Civil Liberties Union, to participate. The ACLU offered guidance on policies such as federal watch lists, border security, and increased information sharing among law enforcement – including the use of fusion centers.

ACLU Applauds Rep. Bobby Scott’s Youth Violence Summit (12/3/2008)
WASHINGTON – Today, as part of a youth violence summit hosted by Representative Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA), ACLU Legislative Counsel Jennifer Bellamy moderated a panel “Law Enforcement/Judicial Perspective on the Need for Prevention.” The purpose of the half-day issues forum, entitled “Empowering Communities to Combat Gang Crime: The Youth PROMISE Act,” is to address the need for evidence-based strategies for juvenile justice prevention and intervention.  

Problematic E-Verify Program Expanded to Include All Federal Contractors (11/14/2008)
WASHINGTON – Today, President Bush issued a final rule requiring all federal contractors to use E-Verify, a flawed governmental system to check the citizenship status of the workforce, as a condition of doing business with the federal government. This rule would also require re-verification of some current federal contracts. This unprecedented expansion will require the compliance of millions of governmental contractors, for which the systemic infrastructure simply does not exist.

ACLU Reacts to Extortion of Private Medical Records (11/7/2008)
WASHINGTON – In response to today’s news that the FBI is investigating an extortion letter threatening the release of millions of private medical records, the ACLU reiterates its demand for the protection of individual privacy for all electronic medical records. Express Scripts, a medical benefits management company, said it has been investigating the threat since October, when the extortion letter was received containing the names, dates of birth and social security numbers of approximately 75 clients. Express Scripts then notified the FBI, and has since ruled out the possibility of an internal breach.

Human Rights, Justice Advocate Jennifer Bellamy Is New ACLU Counsel for Criminal Justice (11/6/2008)
WASHINGTON – The American Civil Liberties Union today announced that Jennifer Bellamy is the new legislative counsel for criminal justice issues for the Washington Legislative Office in advance of her remarks on juvenile justice in an Obama administration. In Bellamy’s new role, she advocates on behalf of more than 500,000 ACLU members on a broad range of criminal justice issues including juvenile justice and drug policy reform, eliminating racial disparities in law enforcement practices and strengthening privacy protections for personal information such as DNA. 

ACLU Calls on the Inspectors General of the Intelligence Agencies to Follow the Law and Provide a Public Report on U.S. Wiretapping (10/24/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union calls on the Inspectors General of the Intelligence Agencies to respect the rule of law and make legally required domestic surveillance reports to Congress completely and publically available.

ACLU Welcomes Introduction of Travelers’ Privacy Protection Act in Both Chambers of Congress (9/29/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union was pleased to see the Travelers’ Privacy Protection Act introduced in both the Senate and the House of Representatives. Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI)introduced S. 3612, with Senators Daniel Akaka (D-HI), Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) signing on as original cosponsors, while Representative Adam Smith (D-WA) introduced H.R. 7118. The proposed legislation is a response to the troubling stories that Americans reentering the United States have had their personal belongings, such as laptops, cell phones and digital cameras, confiscated and searched without probable cause.TheSenate and Housebills raise the privacy protections for travelers without sacrificing national security at our borders.

ACLU Applauds Senators Menendez and Kennedy for Bill to Protect U.S. Citizens from Unlawful Detention and Deportation (9/26/2008)
WASHINGTON - Last night, Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Edward Kennedy (D-MA) introduced legislation to protect U.S. citizens and lawful permanent residents from being unlawfully detained and deported by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).In the wake of sweeping immigration raids that have devastated communities across the country, the ACLU welcomes this bill, S.3594, The Protect Citizens and Residents from Unlawful Raids and Detention Act,as the first legislation to require DHS to follow due process standards in executing immigration raids.

ACLU Applauds Senate Judiciary Committee for Reauthorizing and Expanding Deaths in Custody Reporting Act (9/25/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today the Senate Judiciary Committee voted to reauthorize and expand a Bureau of Justice Statistics program that will require the Attorney General and encourage states to report information regarding the deaths of individuals in the custody of federal, state, and local law enforcement.

Privacy vs. the Internet: Americans Should Not be Forced to Choose (9/25/2008)
WASHINGTON - The Senate Commerce Committee continued exploring the issue of Internet privacy and online marketing today with a hearing on Internet service providers' (ISPs) use of deep packet inspection (DPI). Use of this technology allows ISPs to scrutinize Internet users' e-mail and browsing activities, to monitor usage and communications traffic, and sell that information to advertisers or turn it over to government officials. The risks posed by this technology are significant and should not be underestimated. The ACLU urges members of the committee to zealously guard the privacy of the American people.

ACLU Commends House Oversight Hearing on Department of Justice’s Plan for 2008 Election (9/24/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Subcommittee of the House Judiciary Committee and the Elections Subcommittee of the House Administration Committee are scheduled to hold a joint hearing, entitled “Federal, State and Local Efforts to Prepare for the 2008 Election.” As part of this hearing, Grace Chung Becker, Acting Assistant Attorney General, Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, will testify. Recently, Attorney General Mukasey told voting rights advocates that there was no greater priority in the next two months for DOJ than to ensure a smooth election in November. To keep this promise and to protect the fundamental right to vote, DOJ must be prepared prior to Election Day with a comprehensive plan. The ACLU, therefore, applauds this congressional oversight of DOJ’s preparations for the 2008 elections.

ACLU Urges Senate Judiciary to Subpoena Interrogation Documents (9/18/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union calls on the Senate Judiciary Committee to vote to authorize a subpoena for the Department of Justice (DOJ) to produce the legal opinions that approved harsh interrogations of detainees held by the United States. The committee has repeatedly requested these documents and has seen very little cooperation from DOJ. The Justice Department has provided some heavily redacted documents, which Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Ranking Member Arlen Specter (R-PA) have called inadequate. If authorized, the subpoena would legally require DOJ to comply with the committee’s request.

Custody Reporting Act Must Demand Accountability in Federal Immigration Detention Facilities (9/18/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today, the Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to mark up a bill that reauthorizes a Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) program, called the Deaths in Custody Reporting Program, which is designed to report the deaths of prisoners and immigration detainees in local and state custody.The ACLU urges senators to strengthen the House-passed bill, H.R. 3971, the Deaths in Custody Reporting Act of 2008, by requiring federal detention facilities to report in-custody deaths to the attorney general.

ACLU Reaffirms Opposition To Unconstitutional FBI Guidelines (9/17/2008)
WASHINGTON- Following testimony before both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees this week, FBI Director Robert Mueller failed to dispel unease regarding new internal FBI guidelines governing investigations. Yesterday and today, members of both committees sought reassurances that the guidelines - which give overly broad authorities to agents - would not be abused by the bureau. Director Mueller said the guidelines would not be rewritten to include more safeguards but that protections would instead be written into overarching FBI policies.

ACLU Calls Immigrant Detainee Basic Medical Care Act of 2008 Long Overdue (9/17/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today for the second time in two weeks, the House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to mark up a bill requiring the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop procedures to ensure adequate medical and mental health care for all detainees held by DHS Immigrant and Customs Enforcement (ICE).The ACLU urges the House Judiciary Committee members to vote for H.R. 5950, the Detainee Basic Medical Care Act of 2008, introduced by Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA).This bill is the first congressional action to provide basic medical care of immigration detainees after months of compelling TV and newspaper exposes detailing deficient medical care and over 60 immigration detention deaths.

FBI Director Faces Interrogation by Congress (9/16/2008)
WASHINGTON - With FBI Director Robert Mueller set to testify in front of both the House and Senate Judiciary Committees this week, the American Civil Liberties Union calls upon committee members to ask tough questions about the agency’s new internal guidelines and past abuses. The ACLU is deeply concerned with revisions to FBI internal guidelines governing investigations that allow agents to use an array of intrusive measures without evidence. The original guidelines were adopted in the mid-1970’s after investigations showed widespread abuses and violations of constitutional rights by the FBI.

ACLU Commends Senate Passage of ADA Amendments Act of 2008 (9/11/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union was pleased to see overwhelming bipartisan support in today’s Senate passage of the ADA Amendments Act of 2008. The legislation seeks to undo nearly two decades of legal setbacks to the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), restoring the landmark legislation to its original intent. Senate passage was through unanimous consent; the House passed a similar bill this past June.

Virtual Fence Should Not Become a Reality (9/10/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today, the House Homeland Security Committee holds a hearing examining what has prevented the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) virtual fence initiative from becoming a reality. The American Civil Liberties Union reaffirms its opposition to the failed and intrusive program that has been besieged with technological difficulties since its inception and calls on Congress to prevent further homeland security resources from being squandered on this effort.

ACLU Welcomes Child Soldiers Accountability Act (9/9/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union was pleased with the unanimous passage of the Child Soldiers Accountability Act yesterday by the House of Representatives. The legislation criminalizes the recruitment and use of child soldiers and gives the United States the authority to deny admission or to deport individuals for such activities.

Bloated and Ineffective Watch Lists Should be Scrapped (9/9/2008)
WASHINGTON - As the House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Transportation Security and Infrastructure Protection holds a hearing today on cleaning up the watch lists, the American Civil Liberties Union calls for congressional action to scrap the current approach to airline security in favor of systems that are far more effective, and, at the same time, protect innocent Americans from the immeasurable hassles and frustration of being swept up erroneously by the watch lists. Currently, the Terrorist Screening Center (TSC) is charged with maintaining a series of lists that, in theory, contain names of suspected threats to American security. In July, the ACLU estimated that the watch lists grew to over 1 million records.

Mukasey Calls On Congress to Subvert Constitution (7/21/2008)
WASHINGTON - In an enormous executive branch power grab, Attorney General Michael Mukasey called on Congress today to authorize indefinite detention through a new declaration of armed conflict. Mukasey also proposed that Congress subvert the right of habeas corpus with a new scheme of procedures that will hide the Bush administration’s past wrongdoing - an action that would undermine the constitutional guarantee of due process and conceal systematic torture and abuse of detainees.

ACLU Seeks Answers on Torture from Former Attorney General Ashcroft (7/17/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union calls on former Attorney General John Ashcroft, in today’s House Judiciary hearing, to provide Congress and the American people with answers to questions about when, why and how the use of torture was authorized. Ashcroft presided over the Department of Justice (DOJ) during President Bush’s first term in office, when the legal rationale for using torture and abuse during interrogations of detainees held by the United States was first articulated in a series of legal memos. The notorious memos, known as the “torture memos,” were produced by the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC), a DOJ office that assists the attorney general in his function as legal advisor to the president and all executive branch agencies.

ACLU Warns Against Intrusive Deep Packet Inspection (7/17/2008)
WASHINGTON - Americans’ online privacy was discussed today at a hearing before the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. The hearing, titled “What Your Broadband Provider Knows About Your Web Use: Deep Packet Inspection and Communications Laws and Policies,” was meant to shed light on the practice of Deep Packet Inspection (DPI) by Internet service providers (ISPs). DPI allows ISPs to track users’ Internet browsing activities and can be data mined for targeted marketing purposes. The ACLU urges members of the committee to be wary of the privacy landmines inherent in DPI.

ACLU Calls for Probe of Secretary Chertoff’s Use of Terrorist Watch List (7/17/2008)
WASHINGTON, DC - Today, when Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Michael Chertoff testifies before the House Homeland Security Committee, the American Civil Liberties Union calls on the committee to exercise vigorous oversight of the many DHS programs that endanger U.S. citizens’ privacy and civil liberties without increasing security. DHS’s unchecked detention and deportation powers have resulted in abusive interrogations of families with children at checkpoints, creation of militarized zones within the U.S. and widespread fear in immigrant communities facing natural disasters. Collectively, these practices illustrate how DHS has mismanaged its authority and wasted resources.

Senate Passes Unconstitutional Spying Bill And Grants Sweeping Immunity To Phone Companies (7/9/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today, in a blatant assault upon civil liberties and the right to privacy, the Senate passed an unconstitutional domestic spying bill that violates the Fourth Amendment and eliminates any meaningful role for judicial oversight of government surveillance. The FISA Amendments Act of 2008 was approved by a vote of 69 to 28 and is expected to be signed into law by President Bush shortly. This bill essentially legalizes the president’s unlawful warrantless wiretapping program revealed in December 2005 by the New York Times.

ACLU Calls on Congress to Investigate FBI’s Reported Racial and Ethnic Profiling Plan (7/8/2008)
WASHINGTON -In light of tomorrow’s Senate Judiciary Committee oversight hearing on the U.S. Department of Justice, the ACLU urges Congress to investigate the FBI’s reported racial and ethnic profiling plan. Although the guidelines do not require congressional approval, Congress has the authority to stop the Justice Department from finalizing guidelines that will open the door to racial and ethnic profiling of American citizens and legal residents during national security investigations. The Associated Press reported last week that among the factors that could make someone the subject of an investigation are travel to regions of the world known for terrorist activity; access to weapons or military training; and a person’s racial or ethnic background.

ACLU Urges Senators to Oppose Unconstitutional Surveillance Bill (7/8/2008)
WASHINGTON - With the Senate debate continuing and a vote expected on the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 this Wednesday, the American Civil Liberties Union once again urged senators to vote against the unconstitutional bill, which will allow the government to monitor calls and emails without a warrant and without meaningful court review.

ACLU Reacts to DHS OIG Report on ICE Detainee Deaths and Medical Care (7/1/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) reacts to the release of the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General’s report, “ICE Policies Related to Detainee Deaths and the Oversight of Immigration Detention Facilities.” The report examines two of the 33 detainee deaths reported between January 1, 2005 and May 31, 2007 and DHS’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) standards related to detainee deaths and the medical treatment of immigration detainees.

ACLU Urges Senate to Reject Unconstitutional Surveillance Bill (6/26/2008)
WASHINGTON- The ACLU urges Senators to reject legislation that eviscerates the oversight structure of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).

ACLU Applauds First-Ever Congressional Hearing on Gender Identity in the Workplace (6/26/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Heath, Employment, Labor, and Pensions for holding the first-ever congressional hearing on transgender issues and gender identity discrimination in the workplace. Chaired by Representative Robert Andrews (D-NJ), the committee heard from retired Army Colonel and ACLU client Diane Schroer. The ACLU is currently representing Schroer in a Title VII sex discrimination lawsuit against the Library of Congress.

ACLU Commends House Judiciary Subcommittee for Continued Investigation into Whether High-Level Officials Authorized Torture (6/25/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union commends Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties for their continued efforts to uncover the full extent of this administration’s approval of torture in the interrogation of detainees. Tomorrow’s hearing is the last in a series of three held by the subcommittee on torture, and the first time both David Addington, chief of staff to Vice President Cheney, and John Yoo, formerly of the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC), are scheduled to testify before Congress on their roles in approving the use of torture. An important focus of the series of hearings has been whether high-level government officials violated federal criminal laws against torture and abuse.

ACLU Urges Congress to Ensure Privacy of Electronic Health Records (6/25/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today, lawmakers will be making decisions about the future of patients’ medical privacy as legislation aimed at pushing the health care industry toward a conversion from paper to electronic health records is due for a vote by a House panel.

ACLU Applauds Committee Passage of National Security Letter Reform (6/24/2008)
WASHINGTON - Today, the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties approved legislation that would greatly reduce the scope of the National Security Letter (NSL) statute. NSLs are secret government requests for information that are used to collect private records without judicial oversight. The FBI’s gross misuse and abuse of the NSL statute has led to consecutive and embarrassing reports issued by the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General. In March, a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the ACLU also uncovered abuses of the NSL statute by the Department of Defense.

ACLU Urges Congress to Do the Right Thing for Young Americans (6/24/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union urges both the Senate and House of Representatives to act in the best interest of young people and eliminate funding for abstinence-only-until-marriage programs. It will be a critical week as two of the largest federal funding streams for such programs are slated for consideration. In the Senate, the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies marked up the FY09 appropriations bill today, including an allocation for the Community-Based Abstinence Education (CBAE) program; the Senate Appropriations Committee will meet on Thursday, June 26th. In the House, the Appropriations Committee will also meet this Thursday to ratify the subcommittee recommendations, which last week included flat-funding for CBAE.

House Approves Unconstitutional Surveillance Legislation (6/20/2008)
WASHINGTON - Following a vote in the House of Representatives sanctioning warrantless wiretapping and handing immunity to telecommunications companies for their role in domestic spying, the American Civil Liberties Union expressed outrage at representatives who voted for the unconstitutional legislation. The bill, H.R. 6304, or The FISA Amendments Act of 2008, passed the chamber by a vote of 293-129, and is expected to be voted on in the Senate next week.

H.R. 6304, THE FISA AMENDMENTS ACT OF 2008 (6/19/08)
WASHINGTON - The ACLU recommends a no vote on H.R. 6304, which grants sweeping wiretapping authority to the government with little court oversight and ensures the dismissal of all pending cases against the telecommunication companies.

ACLU Applauds House Judiciary Subcommittee on Continuing Its Examination into Torture Approval (6/18/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union applauds Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) and the House Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties on holding the second in a series of three hearings to determine who authorized or ordered torture and abuse during interrogations at Guantanamo Bay, Iraq, Afghanistan and in secret government torture cells around the world. In today's hearing the subcommittee will hear from three former high-level officials in the Bush administration.

ACLU Urges Congress to Reform Department of Justice Grant Program (6/18/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union calls on Congress to reform a Department of Justice grant program as part of today's markup of HR 3546, reauthorizing the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant. This program funds hundreds of regional anti-drug task forces that perpetuate racial disparities, police corruption, over-incarceration and civil rights abuses in large and small towns across America.

ACLU Applauds Senate Committee Investigation Into Personal Privacy Protections (6/17/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) applauds Senators Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) and the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs for holding a hearing to explore whether the federal government is doing enough to protect personal information.

ACLU to Testify Before House Judiciary Subcommittee on Electronic Employment Verification (6/10/08)
WASHINGTON - Timothy Sparapani, senior legislative counsel for the ACLU, will testify today before the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, Refugees, Border Security, and International Law about the effects of implementing a mandatory electronic employment verification system in the United States. Sparapani will explain that imposing a mandatory system will endanger the privacy of American citizens, and that its inevitable systemic errors will create a 'No-Work' list of eligible Americans who are wrongly prevented from working by the U.S. government. Six members of Congress will also testify before the subcommittee, marking the growing significance of this issue to both members of Congress and the American people.