Patriot Act/Draft/Lead
Great Seal of the United States
Long titleUniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001
Acronyms (colloquial)USA PATRIOT Act, also Patriot Act
Enacted bythe 107th United States Congress
EffectiveFebruary 1, 2002
Citations
Public law107-56
Statutes at Large115 Stat. 272 (2001)
Codification
Acts amendedElectronic Communications Privacy ActComputer Fraud and Abuse ActForeign Intelligence Surveillance ActFamily Educational Rights and Privacy ActMoney Laundering Control ActBank Secrecy ActRight to Financial Privacy ActFair Credit Reporting ActImmigration and Nationality ActVictims of Crime Act of 1984Telemarketing and Consumer Fraud and Abuse Prevention Act
Legislative history

The Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001 (Public Law 107-56), known as the USA PATRIOT Act or simply the Patriot Act, is an Act of Congress which U.S. President George W. Bush signed into law on October 26, 2001.

Passed 43 days after the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Act dramatically expanded the authority of U.S. law enforcement agencies for the stated purpose of fighting terrorism in the United States and abroad. Among its provisions, the act increased the ability of law enforcement agencies to search telephone and e-mail communications and medical, financial, and other records; eased restrictions on foreign intelligence gathering within the United States; expanded the Secretary of the Treasury’s authority to regulate financial transactions, particularly those involving foreign individuals and entities; and enhanced the discretion of law enforcement and immigration authorities in detaining and deporting immigrants suspected of terrorism-related acts. The act also expanded the definition of terrorism to include "domestic terrorism", thus enlarging the number of activities to which the Patriot Act’s expanded law enforcement powers can be applied.

Although the Act passed by wide margins in both houses of Congress, it has been criticized from its inception for weakening protections of civil liberties. In particular, opponents of the law have criticized its authorization of indefinite detentions of immigrants; "sneak and peek" searches through which law enforcement officers search a home or business without the owner’s or the occupant’s permission or knowledge; the expanded use of "National Security Letters", which allow the FBI to search telephone, email, and financial records without a court order; and the expanded access of law enforcement agencies to government records, including library and financial records. Since its passage, several legal challenges have been brought against the act, and Federal courts have ruled that a number of provisions are unconstitutional.

Many of the act's provisions were to sunset beginning December 31 2005, approximately 4 years after its passage. In the months preceding the sunset date, supporters of the act pushed to make its sunsetting provisions permanent, while critics sought to revise various sections to enhance civil liberty protections. In July 2005, the U.S. Senate passed a reauthorization bill with substantial changes to several sections of the act, while the House reauthorization bill kept most of the act's original language. The two bills were then reconciled in a conference committee that was criticized by Senators from both parties for ignoring civil liberty concerns.[1] The bill, which removed most of the changes from the Senate version, passed Congress on March 2, 2006 and was signed into law by President Bush on March 9, 2006.


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