Subpoena Abuse Prevention Act

This bill changes federal law on how government agencies can use subpoenas to get customer records from phone, internet, and app service providers. It removes a provision that allowed subpoenas for local and long distance telephone connection records and session times and durations, and requires that administrative, grand jury, or trial subpoenas identify a specific subscriber by name, address, network address, or account identifier. It bars using these subpoenas to investigate, monitor, or retaliate against people for free speech, press, religion, assembly, petition, or other constitutionally protected activities, and requires the government to certify under penalty of perjury that a subpoena has a lawful purpose. It also lets service providers tell customers about subpoenas and consult a lawyer unless a court orders otherwise, and requires federal agencies to publish yearly reports on how many administrative subpoenas they issue.

Full text and official record on Congress.gov

Sponsors

• Ron Wyden Democrat sponsor
• 1 cosponsors