SURVEILLANCE ACT: On Wednesday, the Senate approved the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, rewriting the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA). The measure replaces a temporary law President Bush enacted after Sept. 11, and provides immunity for telecommunications companies that shared customer phone records with the government.

The most hotly debated section of the new bill applies to telecommunication companies that took part in the warrantless domestic spying program instituted by President Bush in 2001. The bill protects the telecoms from facing privacy lawsuits, which could have cost them billions of dollars of damages. Americans abroad cannot be wiretapped now without court approval, a change from the earlier FISA.

New FISA Allows Continued Wiretapping of U.S. Citizens' Phones

The U.S. House of Representatives already passed a version of this bill.

Here are the Act's major provisions:

• Emergency Surveillance—The government may authorize unwarranted surveillance in an emergency—but must apply for FISA court approval within seven days.
• Telecoms Granted Immunity—Telecommunication companies that shared customer records with the government are exempt from lawsuits if they can show that the White House assured them it was legal.
• Wiretapping Restrictions—The government must adhere to the requirements of this bill before authorizing wiretapping.
• Foreigner Surveillance Allowed—U.S. intelligence agencies may eavesdrop, without court approval, on non-American citizens outside the United States.
• Warrant Required for Anyone in Country—The government must obtain a FISA court warrant to conduct surveillance of any person inside the United States. Previously, foreign citizens inside the United States could be targeted without a warrant.
• Warrant Required for Americans Abroad—An American citizen in another country cannot be wiretapped without court approval. Previously, only spying on citizens inside the United States required a warrant.

Telecommunication companies will receive immunity only if they can produce documents proving they were told by the government to eavesdrop without a warrant.

Advocates Say New FISA Appropriate

Sen. Kit Bond (R-Mo.) claims this is an act of justice. "It would be unfair and potentially disastrous to use our patriotic electronic carriers as punching bags to try to get at the administration," Bond said.

Proponents also claim the bill was necessary to address advances in telecommunications technology over the past 30 years.

Critics Say New FISA Infringes on Americans' Rights

Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) opposed the inclusion of the immunity provision in the bill.

"It could not be clearer that [the warrantless eavesdropping] program broke the law, and this president broke the law," Feingold said. "Not only that, but this administration affirmatively misled the Congress and the American people about it for years before it finally became public." (NPR, 7/10/08)

Critics also say allowing warrantless surveillance of foreigners infringes on the rights of any Americans who may communicate with them, and that safeguards against such infringement are inadequate.

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Question for Readers:

Do you think the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 is necessary to protect Americans, or does it encroach too much on our privacy?