*****BORDC-TACOMA****ACTIVIST UPDATE*******

*****WIDEST DISSEMINATION PLEASE*******

Hello everyone,

We have a piece of legislation up before the Washington State 2005
Regular Session. If you agree with this you should help us by
contacting your legislator and asking for their support and
endorsement. You should also contact the sponsors below and offer
your support.

Both Rep Flannigan and Reps Darneille are behind this and many of
you helped them make this choice. This Joint memorial is not as
strong as we would have liked, however, it is moving forward and
brings the issue to the surface at the State level.

I am also asking for you to post this on your various group lists
and ask for their endorsements. We need the Peace Community, the
progressives, socialists, anarchists, unionists etc to sign on.

The house version of the Bill of Rights Resolution just got filed and
has been referred to the House Judiciary committee. The text follows

H-0566.1 HOUSE JOINT MEMORIAL 4006
State of Washington 59th Legislature 2005 Regular Session
By Representatives Moeller, Chase, Tom, Dunshee, Hunter, Jarrett,
Darneille, Upthegrove, McDermott, Hunt, Appleton, Kirby, Flannigan
and Nixon

Read first time . Referred to .
TO THE HONORABLE GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED:

We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of
the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled,
respectfully represent and petition as follows:

WHEREAS, The state of Washington's highly utilized waterways, large active ports, major international airports, multiple bridges, access to military bases, dispatch and transport of hazardous waste into Hanford, and sharing a border with Canada make the state uniquely vulnerable to terrorism; and

WHEREAS, Washington has a diverse population whose contributions to the state are vital to its economy, culture, and civic character; and

WHEREAS, Washington denounces terrorism and acknowledges that federal, state, and local governments have a responsibility to protect the public from terrorist attacks and should ensure that any new security measures enhance public safety without unconstitutionally impairing civil rights or civil liberties; and

p. 1 HJM 4006

WHEREAS, Washington is proud of its tradition of protecting the civil rights and civil liberties of all its residents and affirming the
fundamental rights of all people; and

WHEREAS, Congress passed the USA PATRIOT Act (P.L. 107-56) on October 26, 2001, following the horrific attacks on America of September 11, 2001; and

WHEREAS, The Washington legislature believes that there is no inherent conflict between national security and the preservation of constitutional rights and liberties; and

WHEREAS, The Bill of Rights of the United States Constitution and the Declaration of Rights of the Constitution of the state of Washington guarantee freedom of speech, assembly, and privacy, equality before the law, the presumption of innocence, access to counsel and due process in judicial proceedings, and protection from unreasonable searches and seizures, for all people living in Washington; and

WHEREAS, The preservation of civil rights and civil liberties is a pillar of American society and is essential to the well-being of any democracy; and

WHEREAS, The Washington legislature believes that residents of this state and this nation can be both safe and free;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That the Washington legislature:

(1) Affirms its abhorrence of and opposition to global terrorism; and

(2) Affirms its commitment to protecting the civil rights and civil liberties of all Washington residents and oppose any measures that unconstitutionally infringe upon those civil rights and civil liberties; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Washington legislature calls on Congress to adopt S. 1709, the SAFE Act, which is sponsored by a bipartisan group of senators and which would amend and clarify several provisions of the USA PATRIOT Act including:

(a) Codifying the pre-USA PATRIOT Act standards for delayed notice or "sneak and peek" warrants to allow these warrants if notice of the warrant would: Endanger someone's life or physical safety; result in flight from prosecution; or result in destruction or tampering with evidence; and

(b) Requiring requests for roving wiretaps to identify either the HJM 4006 p. 2 person or place to be wiretapped and that the suspect is present at the place to be wiretapped, before collecting information; and

(c) Reinstating the pre-USA PATRIOT Act standard for seizing business and library records by requiring the Federal Bureau of Investigation to demonstrate it has reason to believe that the person to whom the records are related is a suspected terrorist or spy. The SAFE Act also exempts libraries from the section of the USA PATRIOT Act that allows access to electronic communications on the strength of an administrative subpoena rather than a court order; and

(d) Sunsetting the provisions allowing for: Nationwide search warrants, requiring Congress to review and reauthorize it; delayed notice or "sneak and peak" warrants; application of pen registers and trap and trace devices to electronic communications; and national security letter authority; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable George W. Bush, President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the State of Washington.

--- END ---

p. 3 HJM 4006


The next meeting will be on February 9, 2005 from noon to 1 pm. If you will be joining us in person we're located at the corner of 2nd and Cherry on the 3rd floor of the Hoge building, Seattle Wa. If you will be joining us via phone you can call 1-800-416-8128. When prompted for a passcode please dial 309980. Our next meeting will include an endorsement and legislative update and consider strategies to move this bill forward.

Yours in Liberty,

Tim Smith


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