Patriot Act Extended—Again

-- Library Journal, 02/06/2006

On February 1, two days before the 16 provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act were scheduled to expire, the House of Representatives passed a five-week extension, until March 10, and the Senate followed with approval of the extension on February 2. This was the second extension granted, with the initial deadline set at the end of 2005. Patriot Act critics, including civil liberties organizations and a bipartisan group of Senators, and backers of the Bush Administration's reauthorization effort, will get another chance to hash out the details of the act. The American Library Association urged advocates to continue to lobby their Congressional representatives. Sen. Larry Craig (R-ID) told Reuters that negotiations were continuing with the White House, and that an agreement could be reached soon. "We believe what we're offering is important and does not tie the hands of law enforcement," he said.