TIA presentation

[jya at pipeline.com]

These remarks in the House on November 22, 2002:

  Mr. INSLEE. Mr. Speaker, today the United States
Congress will send to the desk of the President of 
the United States for his signature, the Homeland
Security bill. This bill will create the Department of Homeland Security, an
agency charged 
with safeguarding Americans and the American way 
of life.
  When enacting this bill, we must be careful not 
stray into invading American's privacy when using 
the regulatory tools provided for in this bill. I 
refer specifically to the vague authorizations in 
this bill that would give this new Federal agency 
broad authority to push the privacy envelope.
  Section 201, paragraph 14, charges the Under 
Secretary for Information Analysis and
Infrastructure with the responsibility of 
establishing a secure communications and 
information technology infrastructure that 
specifically authorizes the use of `Data-mining.'' 
Since ``Data-mining'' has no statutory definition, 
I am concerned that we have not adequately 
established that the Department of Homeland 
Security does not have the green light to adopt an 
all encompassing program that invades the privacy 
of every American without their permission or 
knowledge. We were recently notified that former 
Rear Admiral John Poindexter is developing a Total 
Information Awareness program to monitor the 
everyday transactions of Americans. We cannot 
allow this to happen.
  I do not believe that this statutory language is 
meant to allow the Federal Government to obtain 
whatever list, public, private, or commercial, to 
profile Americans. It is clear that the American 
public does reject this approach, as they soundly 
voiced their outrage for other privacy-eroding 
proposals such as the FBI's ``Carnivore'' system, 
and the Department of Justice ``TIPS'' program. It 
is vital that this body adopt standards to define 
such terms as ``data-mining,'' and to do 
so early in the 108th Congress. I thank the 
Speaker.

  Mr. ARMEY. Mr. Speaker, I am proud that the 
House is today sending H.R. 5005, the Homeland 
Security Act of 2002 to the President. It is an 
important step forward in the defense of the nation.
  I would like to take this opportunity to discuss 
a few items of interest in the bill as amended by 
the Senate.
  First, Mr. Speaker, I would like to address the 
privacy concerns that have been raised recently 
about provisions in the Homeland Security bill.
  Le me be clear. This bill does not in any way 
authorize the Department of Defense program knows 
as ``Total Information Awareness.'' It does not 
authorize, fund or move into the Department anything like it. In fact, this
bill provides 
unique statutory protections that will ensure the 
Department of Homeland Security could never undertake such a program.
  Section 892 of our bill prohibits the sharing of 
any information that would undermine the statutory 
and constitutional protections of citizens. We 
also create a privacy officer, the first ever 
established by statute, whose sole mission will be 
to ensure that programs like TIA never get off the 
ground in this Department.
  Our bill contains provisions that discontinue 
two programs that raise the very concerns that TIA 
has raised. We stop Operation TIPS, and ensure 
that nobody will use this bill as an excuse to 
implement a National ID card.
  So the legislative intent of this bill is unmistakable. This department must
protect the 
civil liberties that we all cherish.
  I would like to further make it clear that 
references in the bill to data-mining are intended 
solely to authorize the use of advanced techniques 
to sift through existing intelligence data, not to 
open a new method of intruding lawful, everyday 
transactions of American citizens.

-----

House debate and version of the bill on November 
22, 2002:

  http://cryptome.org/hr5005.txt

Nothing in the debate precludes another bill
authorizing what the HSA allegedly doesn't,
either openly or secretly. See in particular the
House report on 2003 funding authorization for 
intelligence:

  http://cryptome.org/hr107-789.txt