Congress Extends USA Patriot Act by One Month
Information Today, December 26, 2005
3 Pages Posted: 15 Oct 2009
Abstract
On the last day of the 2005 legislative session, the U.S. Congress passed Senate Bill 2167, which extended the existing USA PATRIOT Act by one month. The Act’s provisions, which had been set to expire on December 31, 2005, will now set to expire on February 3, 2006.
The passage of the extension maintains the status quo represented by the existing USA PATRIOT Act for a few weeks. However, the objections and concerns raised by critics of the PATRIOT Act are also maintained as well.
The one-month extension allows both supporters and critics a bit of time to regroup. However, with such a short time to the next deadline, the political storm surrounding the Act is unlikely to die down.
Keywords: USA PATRIOT Act, PATRIOT Act, extension, First Amendment, free speech, civil liberties, intelligence gathering, unwarranted searches, constitutional rights, wiretapping, National Security Letters, NSLs, secrecy provision
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