Sens. Lee and Wyden Seek Answers to Surveillance Targeting
WASHINGTON – Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Ron Wyden (D-OR) sent a letter to Director of National Intelligence Director Dan Coates today seeking clarity on which individuals the intelligence community is targeting under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Amendments Act.
“As you know, later this year, Congress will consider the reauthorization of Section 702, which authorizes the collection, use, and dissemination of electronic communications content either stored by U.S. internet service providers or traveling across the internet’s backbone,” the letter reads. “Unlike traditional FISA surveillance, which requires individualized warrants, surveillance under Section 702 merely requires that the FISA Court approve broad categories of foreign intelligence information to be collected as well as the targeting and minimization procedures the government intends to employ.”
“As Congress considers reauthorization of this authority,” the letter continues, “we believe it is important that Congress and the American people have a better understanding of the general categories of individuals who can be targeted, particularly given that intelligence community leaders have repeatedly described Section 702 as a tool to target foreigners who threaten our national security.”
The letter requests Director Coats to “clarify the types of individuals and organizations that the intelligence community currently targets under Section 702” by October 25, 2017.
The full letter can be found here.
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Utah Senators Introduce Native Species Protection Act
WASHINGTON – Sens. Mike Lee (R-UT) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT) introduced the Native Species Protection Act today, a bill that would allow states to manage species that exist entirely within their border.
“There are real environmental benefits to protecting endangered species from extinction, but the federal law intended to establish such protections – the Endangered Species Act – is in serious need of reform,” said Senator Lee. “In the nearly fifty years since it was signed into law, the ESA has done more to impede economic activity, obstruct local conservation efforts, and give federal bureaucrats regulatory control over private property, than it has done to protect endangered species. The Native Species Protection Act is a commonsense reform that would limit the damage caused by federal mismanagement of protected species while empowering state and local officials to pursue sensible conservation plans with their communities.”
“I am grateful to join my colleagues in introducing the Native Species Protection Act, which empowers states to manage wildlife populations unique to their state,” said Hatch. “Time and again, we have witnessed federal mismanagement of numerous species, especially in my home state of Utah. In my view, state officials—not Beltway bureaucrats—are best equipped to manage animal populations in a responsible manner, especially those populations that fall exclusively within their borders. This legislation authorizes state wildlife management authorities, in cooperation with local communities, to develop balanced conservation plans that meet the needs of state-specific species and affected areas. I’m pleased to be a part of this effort and hope that the Senate will act quickly to pass this commonsense legislation."
The Native Species Protection Act clarifies that noncommercial species found entirely within the borders of a single State are not subject to regulation under the Endangered Species Act of 1973 or any other provision of law enacted as an exercise of the power of Congress to regulate interstate commerce.
An online version of this release can be found here.
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