National Legislative Issues

The USA Patriot Act (HR 3162) which stands for Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act, has served to change the face of library use in our nation.

Under the Act, any information that you view in the library, meaning any web sites that you go to, any books that you check out, can and must be turned over to law enforcement if the have a warrant under the Act. The librarian is not allowed to tell his or her supervisor, or you, the patron, of the investigation. Because of objections raised by the American Civil Liberties Union, the American Library Association and others who are concerned about secret warrants violating First Amendment and privacy rights; the Justice Department recently released previously classified information showing the number of times law enforcement has utilized this power: zero. Emily Sheketoff, executive director of the American Library Association responded to this newly released information, "If this number is accurate, then they have demonstrated that there is no need to change the tradition of protecting library patrons." For more information, Click here.

The Children's Internet Protection Act, or CIPA, as it is more commonly known, rules that libraries install computer software on that is designed to block material such as pornography and violence deemed socially dangerous to children. Many people who have used the software have said that it is not effective, frequently blocking useful material. For example, you might have trouble finding recipes for "chicken breast" on a library computer with CIPA approved software installed. Additionally, libraries that refuse to install this software would lose the majority of their government funding, effectively shutting that library down. On June 23, overturning a decision by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, the US Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the CIPA Act. Relying heavily on the Court's 1991 Rust v. Sullivan decision, a plurality of justices held that libraries, in developing collections, have traditionally exercised judgments based on content and that a libraries decision to offer Internet access does not create a public forum. For more information, click here.

Tell our Congressmen how you feel about the Patriot Act and CIPA. US House of Representatives and US Senate.