Today, Congresswoman Annie Kuster joined Senator Mike Lee (R-UT), Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Representative Kevin Yoder (R-KS), and Representative Jared Polis (D-CO) in introducing the Electronic Communications Privacy Amendments Act of 2015. This bipartisan legislation strengthens privacy protections by requiring law enforcement agencies to obtain search warrants based on probable cause before accessing Americans' emails. This bill would also repeal an outdated provision some government agencies have used to gain warrantless access to older emails.
"Granite Staters deserve to know that our government is not undermining their privacy and spying on their inboxes," said Congresswoman Annie Kuster. "Federal agencies continue to rely on email privacy laws written almost 30 years ago, and it is long past time that Congress take action to safeguard email privacy and prevent unwarranted access to email communications."
This legislation has been endorsed by a broad coalition of leading tech companies and government watchdogs, including Google, Facebook, Twitter, Americans for Tax Reform and Digital Liberty, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and dozens more. Congresswoman Kuster previously cosponsored this legislation, also known as the Email Privacy Act, in the 113th Congress. Kuster has advocated for enhanced digital privacy since arriving in Congress two years ago, and she also cosponsored the bipartisan USA FREEDOM Act to reign in National Security Agency (NSA) excesses and reform our national security surveillance programs.