Press Releases 2014

Press Releases 2014

It is entirely false that U.S. intelligence agencies conduct electronic surveillance of political, religious or activist figures solely because they disagree with public policies or criticize the government, or for exercising constitutional rights.

We welcome the report of the Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board on Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. In this important report, the PCLOB confirms that Section 702 has shown its value in preventing acts of terrorism at home and abroad, and pursuing other foreign intelligence goals.

On March 28, 2014, the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) declassified and disclosed publically that the U.S. government had filed an application with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) seeking renewal of the authority to collect telephony metadata in bulk, and that, on March 28, 2014, the FISC renewed that authority.

Consistent with 50 U.S.C. 3306(a), the Director of National Intelligence disclosed to the public on March 6, 2014, the aggregate amount of appropriations requested for Fiscal Year 2015. The amount of $45.6 billion excluded funding required to support overseas contingency operations. That disclosure is now updated to include funding requested to support overseas contingency operations.

Earlier this year in a speech at the Department of Justice, President Obama announced a transition that would end the Section 215 bulk telephony metadata program as it previously existed, and that the government would establish a mechanism that preserves the capabilities we need without the government holding this bulk data.