WASHINGTON (June 1, 2015) – The R Street Institute expressed encouragement over the sunset of Section 215 of the Patriot Act, fueling and expanding the ongoing debate over the privacy rights of U.S. citizens.

“Section 215’s sunsetting opens the door for a stronger, more comprehensive consideration of the scope of our government’s institutionalized surveillance,” said Mike Godwin, R Street’s general counsel and director of innovation policy.

Section 215 was interpreted by some federal agencies to allow bulk collection of telephone information, including the phone records of most Americans. It was allowed to sunset after a reform bill, the USA FREEDOM Act, passed the U.S. House but failed to pass the Senate last week. The Senate also failed to pass a straight reauthorization of the existing law. The Senate may approve some version of the USA FREEDOM Act as early as this week.

“The fact that the Senate allowed this law to expire is proof that this type of mass collection of Americans’ records was never necessary in the first place,” Godwin said. “With the deadline behind us, we can now take the time to debate the issues fully and come up with a better-crafted law that both protects citizens’ privacy and serves our national-security and law-enforcement needs.”

R Street has been actively engaged in these issues and participated in meetings with House Judiciary Committee staff, both before and during the drafting of the USA FREEDOM Act. R Street supported that bill, which passed the House in May by an overwhelming bipartisan vote.

“While not a perfect solution, the USA FREEDOM Act was a positive first step toward reforming Section 215,” said Godwin. “We’re hopeful that the reforms contained in that bill will be the starting point for discussion as new legislation, including more and stronger reforms, is considered.”

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