A1P: Power of the Purse
Feb 3, 2016
“When Congress is back in charge of federal spending,
the American people will quickly be back in charge of the federal government.”
A1P: Mission Q&A
Feb 3, 2016
The Article I Project (A1P) is a new network of House and Senate conservatives working together on broad agenda of reform to strengthen Congress by reclaiming its constitutional legislative powers that are now being improperly exercised by the Executive Branch.
A1P: Restoring Regulatory Accountability
Feb 3, 2016
“It’s Congress’s job to make sure federal regulations work
for the American people, not the other way around.”
Lee, Grassley, Law Enforcement Officials to Hold Forum on Criminal Justice Reform
Feb 3, 2016
WASHINGTON—On Tuesday, February 9 at 4:00 p.m. EST, Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Chuck Grassley (R-IA) will join members of law enforcement to discuss their perspectives on the Sentencing Reform and Corrections Act of 2015. The briefing follows a pair of letters Republican leaders circulated to colleagues. In the letters, more than 130 law enforcement leaders urged Congress to pass the measure because federal sentencing reform will reduce both crime and unnecessary incarceration.
Who
Senator Mike Lee (R-UT)
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
Hon. Michael B. Mukasey, Former Attorney General of the United States for President George W. Bush
Ronal Serpas, Chairman, Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration Former Police Superintendent, New Orleans, Louisiana
William McManus, Police Chief, San Antonio, Texas
Richard J. Pocker, Former U.S. Attorney, District of Nevada
Where
Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 224
When
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 at 4:00 p.m. EST
Who
Senator Mike Lee (R-UT)
Senator Chuck Grassley (R-IA)
Hon. Michael B. Mukasey, Former Attorney General of the United States for President George W. Bush
Ronal Serpas, Chairman, Law Enforcement Leaders to Reduce Crime and Incarceration Former Police Superintendent, New Orleans, Louisiana
William McManus, Police Chief, San Antonio, Texas
Richard J. Pocker, Former U.S. Attorney, District of Nevada
Where
Dirksen Senate Office Building, Room 224
When
Tuesday, February 9, 2016 at 4:00 p.m. EST
Giving Americans a Voice in Land Management Decisions
Feb 2, 2016
"But there’s one story that nearly every Utahn knows: President Bill Clinton’s infamous use of the Antiquities Act in 1996 to designate as a national monument more than 1.5 million acres of land in southern Utah – what would become known as the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument."
Rise Of The Licensing Cartel
Feb 1, 2016
"Occupational licensing has grown not because consumers demanded it, but because lobbyists recognized a business opportunity where they could use government power to get rich at the public’s expense."
Leveling the Playing Field for Energy Producers
Jan 29, 2016
Experience teaches that the federal government does a poor job of picking winners and losers in the marketplace and in the public square. Nowhere is this lesson more evident than in our energy sector where the federal government has squandered hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars betting on unviable technologies and unsound companies like Solyndra, the solar panel company that went bankrupt in 2011 shortly after receiving more than half a billion dollars in federal loans.
The Fight to Reform Congress in 2016
Jan 29, 2016
After Republicans won a majority in the Senate and maintained their majority in the House in November 2014 I proposed that the two chambers take five modest steps to repair what had become a dysfunctional legislative branch. This was part of my effort as the recently elected chairman of the Senate Steering Committee to put forward a vision and a plan that would guide the Republican majority toward unity and restore the public’s confidence in Congress.
Clock ticking on email privacy reform
Jan 28, 2016
January 28 marks Data Privacy Day—an annual day to raise awareness about personal and data privacy in an era when we store the majority of our business and personal lives online. It is also an important opportunity to remind Congress that Americans’ digital privacy rights remain exposed under an outdated law called the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA), which allows the government to access our private emails to friends, photos shared with family members and a host of other personal communications conducted online without a warrant.
A year ago on this date, Republicans and Democrats came together in both the Senate and House in an unprecedented show of support to introduce legislation (S. 356, the Electronic Communications Privacy Amendments Act and H.R. 699, the Email Privacy Act) to fix this gaping hole in our privacy rights. Nearly everyone across the political spectrum agrees on a simple premise: that there must be limits on government access to Americans’ emails. These bills would accomplish this by requiring government officials to go before a judge, which is the same process they go through to gain access to enter our homes or open a letter sent through the mail.
Despite a massive show of support that only continues to grow, there has been limited activity in the House and Senate. The Senate held a hearing in September followed by a House Judiciary hearing in December. Yet both pieces of legislation are still stalled in committee and not even set for a markup, let alone a floor vote.
Why the hold up? Unfortunately, some congressional leaders are listening to the concerns of civil agencies -- namely the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These government agencies are reluctant to give up their backdoor access to online communications without a warrant and have successfully blocked ECPA reform thus far. Yet the original ECPA legislation was passed in 1986 -- when the Internet was first growing and widespread use of the cloud wouldn’t occur for another two decades. Ironically, ECPA was intended to protect Americans’ electronic privacy and restrict the government from warrantless access to our online activities. However, ECPA permitted law enforcement and other civil agencies to access online communications after 180 days because, at the time, policymakers and experts couldn’t fathom the idea of storing emails or other data online for an extended period of time. Fast forward nearly 30 decades and that’s exactly what happens today with services like Gmail and Facebook.
2016 is the year to bring ECPA reform across the finish line. Congressional and public support for reform is overwhelming: the Email Privacy Act is now the most co-sponsored bill in the House with a quarter of the Senate co-sponsoring corresponding legislation. Dozens and dozens of businesses, civil liberty organizations, technology companies and experts, including tech mogul Mark Cuban, have praised reform, and more than 110,000 people across the country signed onto a White House petition.
Not only is 2016 the year to capitalize on this surge in support, but it needs to be done soon since there is a limited time left on the congressional calendar for its passage. In a pivotal election year, there are a limited number of days in session to move legislation through both houses before members of Congress transition to full-time campaign mode this summer.
The Senate, House and general public have fully proved the necessity and backing for this crucial safeguard to Americans’ online privacy. It is time to stop heeding the exaggerated concerns of the SEC and move forward with ECPA reform legislation. In an age when bipartisan cooperation and congressional buy-in are low, it should be a no-brainer to bring this legislation to the floor. ECPA reform has met and surpassed all requisite hurdles of support and deserves a floor vote as soon as possible.
Americans deserve to have their Fourth Amendment protections apply online, as they do in the offline world. We call on members of Congress to stand up to the small number of government agencies, like the SEC, which are pulling out all the stops to halt ECPA reform in its tracks to protect their own interests. Congress should listen to the American people -- not the government -- when it comes to strengthening privacy protections online.
