Washington (May 14, 2020) – Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), a member of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee today voted against the USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020. In its current form, the legislation would renew provisions enacted in the USA Patriot Act that allow national security agencies to surveil Americans in the absence of important privacy protections.

“Congress has a duty to safeguard Americans’ privacy, but the USA Freedom Reauthorization Act fails to adequately limit the types of information that the government can collect about Americans, and it fails to adequately limit how long the government can keep the information it collects about us,” said Senator Markey. “I am unwilling to grant any president surveillance tools that pose such a high risk to Americans’ civil liberties.”

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