[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 71 (Thursday, June 4, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1032]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           THE UNNECESSARY LEGISLATIVE FIGHT OVER ENCRYPTION

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. DOUG BEREUTER

                              of nebraska

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, June 4, 1998

  Mr. BEREUTER. Mr. Speaker, H.R. 695, the Security and Freedom Through 
Encryption (SAFE) Act is unnecessary legislation and should not be 
passed. Past service on the House Permanent Select Committee on 
Intelligence has provided this Member with considerable evidence of the 
harmful effects this legislation, in its current form, would have on 
our national security and law enforcement efforts. In addition, H.R. 
695 would prohibit the Administration and specifically, the Bureau of 
Export Administration, from striking the proper balance between 
national security and commercial interests in the licensing of strong 
encryption. The legislation needs to be amended, dramatically, if it 
comes to the House Floor. But most importantly, it is not necessary.
  In the House International Relations Committee, this Member co-
authored and supported an amendment to H.R. 695 which would have given 
the President of the United States a national security waiver to the 
mandated and complete relaxation of export controls of encryption 
products under H.R. 695. Unfortunately, our amendment was defeated on a 
13-22 vote in the House International Relations Committee and H.R. 695 
was passed over my opposition. This issue has been intensely lobbied by 
the software and electronics business sector and others.
  On the other hand, this Member also does not support competing 
legislation to H.R. 695, which would impose domestic controls on the 
use of encryption in the United States. This very complicated and 
important national issue has been unnecessarily polarized by the 
software industry and by the law enforcement community. In fact, the 
software industry's uncompromising position on H.R. 695 has actually 
prompted the law enforcement community to push for this more rigorous 
domestic legislation and a stalemate has been created.
  This Member believes that the disinformation that has been provided 
by a few groups or persons on both sides of this national debate has 
not led to an environment where a legislative compromise is easily 
achieved. For example, the software industry currently downplays the 
fact that many U.S. software manufacturers and hardware exporters are 
exporting relatively robust encryption after obtaining license 
approvals from the Department of Commerce. Moreover, U.S. financial 
institutions have general exceptions to the export controls on 
encryption for their own purposes.
  These two important points reveal that the solution to this issue for 
U.S. software exporters is not the legislative process, but a change in 
the administrative regulations. Simply put, current law does not 
prohibit the Administration from relaxing these export controls and, 
therefore, a change in law is not necessary.

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