Washington — The House of Representatives today considered and approved the Judicial Redress Act of 2015 (H.R. 1428). The Act extends to the citizens of designated foreign allies certain redress rights granted under the Privacy Act. They would be allowed to seek access to records about them that have been shared with a U.S. government agency in the course of a criminal investigation, amend such records when they are erroneous, and seek civil redress when such records are unlawfully disclosed.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association has helped lead a coalition of others in the technology industry in actively advocating for the swift passage of the Judicial Redress Act since it was introduced in March, through letters and statements from a broad coalition of supporters, and Congressional briefings.
CCIA believes the Judicial Redress Act recognizes that not only U.S. citizens have important rights that our government should respect. The Act would also help mend relations with trusted allies and trade partners, which have been significantly eroded in the past two years. In a recent blow, the European Court of Justice invalidated the long-standing EU-U.S. Safe Harbour framework that provided the basis for most commercial transatlantic data flows. The Judicial Redress Act has been identified as a key requirement of the European Commission for final approval for the pending “umbrella agreement” on law enforcement data transfers with the U.S.
The following can be attributed to CCIA President & CEO Ed Black:
“We commend the House of Representatives for its consideration and passage of the Judicial Redress Act. These rights can be a step toward restoring mutual trust between Europe and the United States. The civil judicial remedies the Act would provide to our allies are already reciprocated for U.S. citizens in most EU member states, and as such, the bill’s passage is an issue of basic fairness. The Act would also form the basis for improved law enforcement, and potentially for commercial, data transfers across the Atlantic, and that has earned it broad support from a range of groups. We now call on the Senate to swiftly pass the Judicial Redress Act.”