USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005

The USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 was signed into law on March 9, 2006, by President George W. Bush and became Public Law 109-177 (pdf).


 * H.R. 109-333&mdash;"To extend and modify authorities needed to combat terrorism, and for other purposes"&mdash;was introduced July 11, 2005, in the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr. (R-Wisc.). There were no cosponsors.


 * S. 109-1389&mdash;"A bill to reauthorize and improve the USA PATRIOT Act"&mdash;was introduced July 13, 2005, in the U.S. Senate by Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Penn.). Cosponsors were Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Sen. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.).

The Act was intended as a renewal of 16 sunset provisions scheduled to expire December 31, 2005&mdash;including those authorizing secret searches of records and roving wiretaps&mdash;contained in the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT ACT) Act of 2001 signed into law October 26, 2001, by President George W. Bush as Public Law 107-56.

Presidential Signing Statement
The "President's Statement on H.R. 3199, the 'USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005'" accompanied President Bush's signing of the Act on March 9, 2006. It reads as follows:


 * "The executive branch shall construe the provisions of H.R. 3199 that call for furnishing information to entities outside the executive branch, such as sections 106A [ p.10 ] and 119 [ p.29 ], in a manner consistent with the President's constitutional authority to supervise the unitary executive branch and to withhold information the disclosure of which could impair foreign relations, national security, the deliberative processes of the Executive, or the performance of the Executive's constitutional duties.


 * "The executive branch shall construe section 756(e)(2) [ p.85 ] of H.R. 3199, which calls for an executive branch official to submit to the Congress recommendations for legislative action, in a manner consistent with the President's constitutional authority to supervise the unitary executive branch and to recommend for the consideration of the Congress such measures as he judges necessary and expedient."

Patriot Act to Be Extended Indefinitely
On July 21, 2005, the U.S. House of Representatives "voted to extend indefinitely the anti-terrorist USA Patriot Act, while limiting to 10 years two provisions of the law that have become linchpins in the ongoing congressional debate: allowing federal agents to use roving wiretaps and to search library and medical records," according to Associated Press's Glen Johnson.

"Forty-three Democrats joined 214 Republicans in passing the bill, which dropped 14 of 16 expiration dates on provisions initially drafted into the law shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks," Johnson wrote, and only hours earlier "the Senate Judiciary Committee approved its own general extension of the law, but it called for Congress to re-examine the wiretap and library provisions after another four-year time period. The full Senate likely will vote on the bill this fall, before the competing measures are reconciled in a conference committee." 

Full Text of H.R.3199
There are 6 versions of H.R.3199.

Amendments
There were 19 amendments (]) to H.R.3199. See roll call votes on Amendments.

Summaries

 * H.R.3199 - Title: "To extend and modify authorities needed to combat terrorism, and for other purposes".
 * Other summaries.

House Conference Reports

 * Latest Conference Report.
 * Committee Report 1 of 2 - House Report 109-174 - Part 2 - USA PATRIOT AND TERRORISM PREVENTION REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2005.
 * Committee Report 2 of 2 - House Report 109-174 - Part 1 - USA PATRIOT AND TERRORISM PREVENTION REAUTHORIZATION ACT OF 2005.
 * House Report 109-333, December 8, 2005.

Votes on Passage
On July 21, 2005: "This bill passed in the House of Representatives by roll call vote. The totals were: 257 Ayes, 171 Nays, 6 Present/Not Voting." 

On July 29, 2005: "This bill passed in the Senate by Unanimous Consent. A record of each representative's position was not kept." 

On December 14, 2005: "After passing both the Senate and House, a conference committee is created to work out differences between the Senate and House versions of the bill. A conference report resolving those differences passed in the House of Representatives, paving the way for enactment of the bill, by roll call vote. The totals were: 251 Ayes, 174 Nays, 9 Present/Not Voting." 

On March 2, 2006: "After passing both the Senate and House, a conference committee is created to work out differences between the Senate and House versions of the bill. A conference report resolving those differences passed in the Senate, paving the way for enactment of the bill, by roll call vote. The totals were: 89 Ayes, 10 Nays, 1 Present/Not Voting." 

Improvements
The following changes to the USA PATRIOT Act are included in the Act:


 * SEC. 502. INTERIM APPOINTMENT OF UNITED STATES ATTORNEYS.


 * Section 546 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by striking subsections (c) and (d) and inserting the following new subsection:


 * (c) A person appointed as United States attorney under this section may serve until the qualification of a United States Attorney for such district appointed by the President under section 541 of this title.


 * SEC. 503. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY IN PRESIDENTIAL LINE OF SUCCESSION.


 * Section 19(d)(1) of title 3, United States Code, is amended by inserting ', Secretary of Homeland Security' after 'Secretary of Veterans Affairs'.


 * SEC. 504. BUREAU OF ALCOHOL, TOBACCO AND FIREARMS TO THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.


 * The second sentence of section 1111(a)(2) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 531(a)(2)) is amended by striking 'Attorney General' the first place it appears and inserting 'President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate'.


 * SEC. 505. QUALIFICATIONS OF UNITED STATES MARSHALS.


 * Section 561 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:


 * (i) Each marshal appointed under this section should have--


 * (1) a minimum of 4 years of command-level law enforcement management duties, including personnel, budget, and accountable property issues, in a police department, sheriff's office or Federal law enforcement agency;


 * (2) experience in coordinating with other law enforcement agencies, particularly at the State and local level;


 * (3) college-level academic experience; and


 * (4) experience in or with county, State, and Federal court systems or experience with protection of court personnel, jurors, and witnesses.'.


 * SECTION 506. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE INTELLIGENCE MATTERS.


 * (a) Assistant Attorney General for National Security-


 * (1) IN GENERAL-Chapter 31 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by inserting after section 507 the following new section:


 * Sec. 507A. Assistant Attorney General for National Security


 * (a) Of the Assistant Attorneys General appointed under section 506, one shall serve, upon the designation of the President, as the Assistant Attorney General for National Security.


 * SEC. 605. THE UNIFORMED DIVISION, UNITED STATES SECRET SERVICE
 * "created and established a permanent police force, to be known as the 'United States Secret Service Uniformed Division'."

News Releases

 * News Release: "President Encourages Renewal of Patriot Act Provisions," Office of the White House Press Secretary, July 20, 2005.
 * News Release: "Senator Dianne Feinstein Urges Senate Support for USA-Patriot Act Reauthorization. Legislation includes measures to crack down on methamphetamine production and bolster seaport security," Office of Sen. Dianne Feinstein, February 16, 2006.
 * News Release: "President Signs USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act" and "Fact Sheet," Office of the White House Press Secretary, March 9, 2006.
 * "President Bush Signs USA PATRIOT Act. Anti-Meth Provisions Take Aim at Methamphetamine Production, Trafficking, Use," Office of National Drug Control Policy, March 9, 2006.
 * "Leahy: President Strikes Again In PATRIOT Act Bill Signing Statement; Suggests He'll Pick And Choose Which Parts Of Law To Follow," Opening Statement Of Sen. Patrick Leahy, Ranking Member, Judiciary Committee, March 15, 2006.

Reports & Analyses

 * "The USA PATRIOT Act: A Sketch" prepared by Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist, American Law Division, Congressional Research Service, April 18, 2002. Posted online by Federation of American Scientists (FAS).
 * "USA Patriot Act Sunset: Provisions That Expire on December 31, 2005 prepared by Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist, American Law Division, CRS, Updated June 10, 2004. Posted on line by FAS.
 * "USA PATRIOT Act Reauthorization Proposals and Related Matters in Brief" prepared by Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist, American Law Division, CRS, July 15, 2005.
 * "USA PATRIOT Act Reauthorization in Brief" prepared by Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist, American Law Division, CRS, August 10, 2005.
 * "USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 (H.R. 3199): A Legal Analysis of the Conference Bill" prepared by Brian T. Yeh, Legislative Attorney, and Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist, American Law Division, CRS, January 17, 2006. Posted online by FAS.
 * White Paper: "The USA PATRIOT Act: Implications for Lawful Interception," Aqsacom Inc., May 2006.
 * "USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005: A Legal Analysis" prepared by Brian T. Yeh, Legislative Attorney, and Charles Doyle, Senior Specialist, American Law Division, CRS, Updated December 21, 2006. Posted online by FAS.

General

 * USA PATRIOT Act, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) website.
 * The USA PATRIOT Act, American Library Association (ALA) website.
 * FACT SHEET: USA PATRIOT Act Provisions Set for Reauthorization, U.S. Department of Justice, April 5, 2005.
 * "USA PATRIOT Act Sunset," Electronic Privacy Information Center website.
 * "Debating the Patriot Act," NPR website.
 * USA PATRIOT Act and Combat Methamphetamine Epidemic Act of 2005 in the Wikipedia.

2007

 * Ian M. Paul, M.D., "Data do not support use of OTC decongestants in children," AAP News, January 1, 2007. re Combat Methamphetamine Act (House; Senate), which was incorporated into the Act.
 * Nat Parry, "Bush's Signing Statement and the First 100 Hours," Consortiumblog, January 5, 2007.

Related SourceWatch Resources

 * civil liberties
 * Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA)
 * Global War on Terrorism (GWOT)
 * homeland defense
 * homeland security
 * National defense links
 * Office of the Director of National Intelligence
 * police state
 * terrorism / terrorist
 * Unofficial Official Secrets Act
 * USA PATRIOT Act
 * Patriot Act industry
 * Patriot Act abuses
 * Patriot Act II


 * presidential signing statements
 * Unitary Executive Theory
 * U.S. Department of Homeland Security (formerly Office of Homeland Security)
 * war on freedom
 * war on terrorism