[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 164 (Thursday, November 18, 1999)]
[House]
[Pages H12882-H12884]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




CONTINUING REPORTING REQUIREMENTS OF SECTION 2519 OF TITLE 18, U.S.C., 
                        BEYOND DECEMBER 21, 1999

  Mr. COBLE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take from the 
Speaker's table the Senate bill (S. 1769) to continue the reporting 
requirements of section 2519 of title 18, United States Code, beyond 
December 21, 1999, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate 
consideration in the House.
  The Clerk read the title of the Senate bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from North Carolina?
  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, I yield to 
the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Coble), the chairman of the 
subcommittee, for a brief explanation of the bill.
  Mr. COBLE. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from California (Ms. 
Lofgren) for yielding.
  Mr. Speaker, the Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995 
provided that all periodic reports provided to Congress will sunset on 
December 21, 1999, unless reauthorized by the Congress. The intent of 
the Act was to spur Congress to reexamine all the periodic reports it 
receives and eliminate the obsolete ones.
  After careful review, the Committee on the Judiciary determined that 
about 40 reports out of the thousands of reports subject to sunset are 
required for the committee to perform its legislative and oversight 
duties.

[[Page H12883]]

  Examples include the United States Department of Justice's annual 
report on crime statistics and the Immigration and Naturalization 
Service's annual statistical report.
  The bill passed the House on the suspension calendar. The companion 
Senate bill adds two more reports which the Senate has asked to be 
continued. The motion which I will make will continue all the reports 
contained in the House bill and the two additional reports contained in 
the Senate bill into one bill and send it back to the Senate for 
passage and presentment to the President.
  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, continuing to reserve the right to object, 
I would like to note that the Sunset Act itself forces Congress to 
reexamine the usefulness of the reports. But, as the chairman has 
pointed out, there are some of these reports that are very important. 
And I am pleased to report that there has been a bipartisan effort to 
identify the very same reports the chairman has mentioned today.
  We believe, on a bipartisan basis, that the reports identified and 
preserved under this Act will continue to provide information important 
to legislative and to oversight processes and, in particular, that it 
will allow the Congress to make sure that privacy is protected. And for 
that reason, if no other, we do need to act today.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to add finally a note of thanks to the 
Committee on the Judiciary's staff that worked on this measure, my own 
special counsel John Flannery; Cassandra Butts in the office of the 
minority leader, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Gephardt); and 
finally, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Gephardt) himself, who really 
was very passionate in making sure that the privacy issues that will be 
protected by this bill were brought to the forefront so that we could 
be here today on this bipartisan basis to make sure that this is 
enacted.
  Mr. COBLE. Mr. Speaker, if the gentlewoman will continue to yield, I 
think she commented about staff. I want to add the name of Jim Wilon. 
Jim did great work on this matter, as well.
  Ms. LOFGREN. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from North Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the Senate bill, as follows:

                                S. 1769

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Continued Reporting of 
     Intercepted Wire, Oral, and Electronic Communications Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) Section 2519(3) of title 18, United States Code, 
     requires the Director of the Administrative Office of the 
     United States Courts to transmit to Congress a full and 
     complete annual report concerning the number of applications 
     for orders authorizing or approving the interception of wire, 
     oral, or electronic communications. This report is required 
     to include information specified in section 2519(3).
       (2) The Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995 
     provides for the termination of certain laws requiring 
     submittal to Congress of annual, semiannual, and regular 
     periodic reports as of December 21, 1999, 4 years from the 
     effective date of that Act.
       (3) Due to the Federal Reports Elimination Act and Sunset 
     Act of 1995, the Administrative Office of United States 
     Courts is not required to submit the annual report described 
     in section 2519(3) of title 18, United States Code, as of 
     December 21, 1999.

     SEC. 3. CONTINUED REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

       (a) Continued Reporting Requirements.--Section 2519 of 
     title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 
     the following:
       ``(4) The reports required to be filed by subsection (3) 
     are exempted from the termination provisions of section 
     3003(a) of the Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 
     1995 (Public Law 104-66).''.
       (b) Exemption.--Section 3003(d) of the Federal Reports 
     Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995 (Public Law 104-66) is 
     amended--
       (1) in paragraph (31), by striking ``or'' at the end;
       (2) in paragraph (32), by striking the period and inserting 
     ``; or''; and
       (3) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(33) section 2519(3) of title 18, United States Code.''.

     SEC. 4. ENCRYPTION REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

       Section 2519(1)(b) of title 18, United States Code, is 
     amended by striking ``and (iv)'' and inserting ``(iv) the 
     number of orders in which encryption was encountered and 
     whether such encryption prevented law enforcement from 
     obtaining the plain text of communications intercepted 
     pursuant to such order, and (v)''.

     SEC. 5. REPORTS CONCERNING PEN REGISTERS AND TRAP AND TRACE 
                   DEVICES.

       Section 3126 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
     striking the period and inserting ``, which report shall 
     include information concerning--
       ``(1) the period of interceptions authorized by the order, 
     and the number and duration of any extensions of the order;
       ``(2) the offense specified in the order or application, or 
     extension of an order;
       ``(3) the number of investigations involved;
       ``(4) the number and nature of the facilities affected; and
       ``(5) the identity, including district, of the applying 
     investigative or law enforcement agency making the 
     application and the person authorizing the order.''.

      Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute Offered by Mr. Coble

  Mr. COBLE. Mr. Speaker, I offer an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute.
  The Clerk read as follows:

       Amendment in the Nature of a Substitute Offered by Mr. 
     Coble:
       ``Strike out all after the enacting clause of the Senate 
     bill and insert:

     SECTION 1. EXEMPTION OF CERTAIN REPORTS FROM AUTOMATIC 
                   ELIMINATION AND SUNSET.

       Section 3003(a)(1) of the Federal Reports Elimination and 
     Sunset Act of 1995 (31 U.S.C. 1113 note) does not apply to 
     any report required to be submitted under any of the 
     following provisions of law:
       (1) The following sections of title 18, United States Code: 
     sections 2519(3), 2709(e), 3126, and 3525(b).
       (2) The following sections of title 28, United States Code: 
     sections 522, 524(c)(6), 529, 589a(d), and 594.
       (3) Section 3718(c) of title 31, United States Code.
       (4) Section 9 of the Child Protection Act of 1984 (28 
     U.S.C. 522 note).
       (5) Section 8 of the Civil Rights of Institutionalized 
     Persons Act (42 U.S.C. 1997f).
       (6) The following provisions of the Omnibus Crime Control 
     and Safe Streets Act of 1968: sections 102(b) (42 U.S.C. 
     3712(b)), 520 (42 U.S.C. 3766), 522 (42 U.S.C. 3766b), and 
     810 (42 U.S.C. 3789e).
       (7) The following provisions of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act: sections 103 (8 U.S.C. 1103), 207(c)(3) (8 
     U.S.C. 1157(c)(3)), 412(b) (8 U.S.C. 1522(b)), and 413 (8 
     U.S.C. 1523), and subsections (h), (l), (o), (q), and (r) of 
     section 286 (8 U.S.C. 1356).
       (8) Section 3 of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949 (22 U.S.C. 1622).
       (9) Section 9 of the War Claims Act of 1948 (50 U.S.C. App. 
     2008).
       (10) Section 13(c) of the Act of September 11, 1957 (8 
     U.S.C. 1255b(c)).
       (11) Section 203(b) of the Aleutian and Pribilof Islands 
     Restitution Act (50 U.S.C. App. 1989c-2(b)).
       (12) Section 801(e) of the Immigration Act of 1990 (29 
     U.S.C. 2920(e)).
       (13) Section 401 of the Immigration Reform and Control Act 
     of 1986 (8 U.S.C. 1364).
       (14) Section 707 of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (15 
     U.S.C. 1691f).
       (15) Section 201(b) of the Privacy Protection Act of 1980 
     (42 U.S.C. 2000aa-11(b)).
       (16) Section 609U of the Justice Assistance Act of 1984 (42 
     U.S.C. 10509).
       (17) Section 13(a) of the Classified Information Procedures 
     Act (18 U.S.C. App.).
       (18) Section 1004 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964(42 U.S.C. 
     2000g-3).
       (19) Section 1114 of the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 
     1978 (12 U.S.C. 3414).
       (20) Section 11 of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 
     1938 (22 U.S.C. 621).
       (21) The following provisions of the Foreign Intelligence 
     Surveillance Act of 1978: sections 107 (50 U.S.C. 1807) and 
     108 (50 U.S.C. 1808).
       (22) Section 102(b)(5) of the Department of Justice and 
     Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 1993 (28 U.S.C. 533 
     note).

     SEC. 2. ENCRYPTION REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.

       (a) Section 2519(2)(b) of title 18, United States Code, is 
     amended by striking ``and (iv)'' and inserting ``(iv) the 
     number of orders in which encryption was encountered and 
     whether such encryption prevented law enforcement from 
     obtaining the plain text of communications intercepted 
     pursuant to such order, and (v)''.
       (b) The encryption reporting requirement in subsection (a) 
     shall be effective for the report transmitted by the Director 
     of the Administrative Office of the Courts for calendar year 
     2000 and in subsequent reports.

     SEC. 3. REPORTS CONCERNING PEN REGISTERS AND TRAP AND TRACE 
                   DEVICES.

       Section 3126 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
     striking the period and inserting ``, which report shall 
     include information concerning--
       ``(1) the period of interceptions authorized by the order, 
     and the number and duration of any extensions of the order;
       ``(2) the offense specified in the order or application, or 
     extension of an order;
       ``(3) the number of investigations involved;
       ``(4) the number and nature of the facilities affected; and
       ``(5) the identity, including district, of the applying 
     investigative or law enforcement

[[Page H12884]]

     agency making the application and the person authorizing the 
     order.''.

  Mr. COBLE (during the reading). Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that the amendment be considered as read and printed in the Record.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from North Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  The amendment in the nature of a substitute was agreed to.
  The Senate bill was ordered to be read a third time, was read the 
third time, and passed.
  The title of the Senate bill was amended so as to read:

       ``A bill to exempt certain reports from automatic 
     elimination and sunset pursuant to the Federal Reports 
     Elimination and Sunset Act of 1995, and for other 
     purposes.''.

  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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