We encourage you to
contact your Member of Congress today to urge them to oppose the “Fourth Amendment Is Not for Sale Act” (FANFSA), which the House may vote on next week.
This bill would would take away critical tools law enforcement uses to keep their communities safe and solve crimes. It would make data that law enforcement investigators currently access through certain commercial services unavailable or very hard to obtain through other means. It could negatively impact a wide range of criminal investigations.
A public safety letter outlining concerns with the bill is available here.
High level talking points you can use for outreach to Members of Congress are below:
- We strongly urge all members of Congress to oppose the “Fourth Amendment is Not For Sale Act” (FANFSA).
- Congress has not vetted the impact of the FANFSA on law enforcement investigations.
- There could be a significant negative impact on the ability to detect, investigate, and prevent crimes from school violence to critical infrastructure disruption to sexual assault victim
identification.
- If the House votes on FANFSA, all members of the House should vote no.
Impact:
- This bill would make it harder for local, state, and federal law enforcement to investigate crime.
- The negative public safety implications anticipated under this bill demonstrate that it was drafted without consulting law enforcement experts whose work would be directly impacted.
- Imposing a probable cause requirement when the Constitution does not compel it will prevent law enforcement from identifying and pursuing irreplaceable investigative leads.
- The data this bill would restrict is
most useful after a crime occurs but before solid leads have been developed and probable cause can be demonstrated.
- The information this bill restricts serves as the building blocks of probable cause, which are then used to obtain a warrant where appropriate as an investigation progresses.
- This bill would delay or prevent law enforcement’s ability to aid victims, solve crimes,
illuminate and investigate drug trafficking networks, and intervene during overt threats of mass violence.
Letter to Congress:
- A joint letter sent by several national law enforcement associations to Congress on July 18, 2023, expressing concerns with this legislation is available here.
Please contact the BBM team if you have any questions or need more information.
