As Civil Liberties Board Makes First Public Appearance, Author of Legislation Says Board Needs Real Power

As Civil Liberties Board Makes First Public Appearance, Author of Legislation Says Board Needs Real Power

The Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board, created in 2004, participated in its first public meeting today at Georgetown University. Rep. Carolyn Maloney (NY-14), co-chair of the 9/11 Commission Caucus and sponsor of legislation to increase the board's power (H.R. 1310), said today that without a level of power in line with what the 9/11 Commission has advocated, the board will be unable to truly protect civil liberties.

"The civil liberties board's first public appearance is nice, but giving it real independence and power is what we really need," said Maloney. "Right now, the board doesn't seem to have timely access to information about privacy issues, and it only gets briefings if the White House decides to throw it a bone. This is not what the 9/11 Commissioners had hoped, it's not what Americans expect, and this is something that must be rectified."

According to recent news reports, the civil liberties board has just recently received briefings from the White House on the government's domestic eavesdropping program and international bank transaction monitoring program. The board has reportedly asked for access to information from the White House for quite some time, and it took as long as a year to get the briefing on the eavesdropping program.

http://maloney.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=1247&Itemid=61