Omnibus: Financial Services Agencies Must Seek Warrants for E-mails

The 2,000-page omnibus spending bill that lawmakers will vote on Dec 18 includes a provision that marks a big step forward for privacy advocates. Buried in the year-end spending package is language that would prohibit financial service agencies from requiring any e-mail, social media or other electronic communication provider to hand over the contents of customer communications without a warrant. Rep Kevin Yoder (R-KS) orchestrated the inclusion of the provision when negotiating Financial Services appropriations bill in July. As such, the language governs only financial services agencies.

There is separate legislation in both the House and the Senate that would extend similar requirements to all federal law enforcement agencies. However, this marks a big step forward for the legislation, as it covers the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission and the Internal Revenue Service. Both the SEC and the FTC have argued that they should not have to go through the warrant process to acquire online communications from third-party providers. “These are some of the biggest offenders and abusers of the 1986 law, and so it’s a great place to start and it’s consistent with what I believe Congress will ultimately pass for the entire government,” Rep Yoder said. “It’s a big victory for individual liberty, privacy rights, Fourth Amendment.”