Freedom To Travel – Page 59

Jun 26 2008

Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution Holds Hearing on Border Searches

The Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Constitution held a hearing on “Laptop Searches and Other Violations of Privacy Faced by Americans Returning from Overseas Travel.” Individuals innocent of any wrongdoing have increasingly been reporting that their laptops, smartphones and other electronic devices have been searched and seized by US Customs and Border Protection. The Washington Post reported in February:

The seizure of electronics at U.S. borders has prompted protests from travelers who say they now weigh the risk of traveling with sensitive or personal information on their laptops, cameras or cellphones. In some cases, companies have altered their policies to require employees to safeguard corporate secrets by clearing laptop hard drives before international travel.

At the Senate hearing, Subcommittee Chairman Sen. Russ Feingold summed up the situation succinctly: “Customs agents must have the ability to conduct even highly intrusive searches when there is reason to suspect criminal or terrorist activity, but suspicion-less searches of Americans’ laptops and similar devices go too far. Congress should not allow this gross violation of privacy.”

Various witnesses, including Susan Gurley, Executive Director of the Association of Corporate Travel Executives; Lee Tien, Senior Staff Attorney at the Electronic Frontier Foundation; and Peter P. Swire, Senior Fellow at the Center for American Progress, detailed the many privacy and civil liberty issues raised by suspicionless searches and seizures of electronic devices and data at the border.

Tien said that EFF agreed “the Fourth Amendment works differently at the border. But, ‘differently’ does not mean ‘not at all.’” EFF and the Asian Law Caucus have filed suit against the Department of Homeland Security (which oversees Customs and Border Protection) for denying access to public records on the questioning and searches of travelers and seizures of their property at U.S. borders. Read More →

Jun 24 2008

First Reports Of What It’s Like Flying Without ID Arrive

Travelers who willingly refuse to show ID to the Transportation Security Administration are now barred from flying. The new rule went into effect over the weekend. Now, in order to board the plane after forgetting one’s driver’s license, it seems you have to answer questions about your political party affiliation and previous addresses. TSA’s press release said that “cooperative passengers” without ID may be subjected to additional screening protocols, including enhanced physical screening, enhanced carry-on and/or checked baggage screening, interviews with behavior detection or law enforcement officers and other measures. It turns out that “and other measures” include questions about political party affiliation and other questionable invasions of privacy, according to an article that appeared on Consumerist.

Finally satisfied that I didn’t have ID, Laurie took my boarding pass and went away. She came back a few minutes later having photocopied it, and also had an affidavit that she requested I sign. It asked for my name and address, and stated in small print at the bottom that I did not have to fill it out, but if I didn’t I couldn’t fly. It also said that if I choose to fill it out and then provided false info, I would be in violation of federal law.

After filling out the affidavit, Laurie called a service to verify my address. The service needed me to then correctly answer three questions about myself, which Laurie relayed to me. The first was my date of birth, the second was a previous address (which I only got right on my second try), and the third was “You are registered to vote. Which political party have you registered with?” I got all three right, and only then did Laurie clear me to go through security.

As there is no published law governing what conditions the TSA has now placed upon individuals who have the temerity to travel without ID, only by reports such as these will we be able to ascertain what’s playing on the screen today at our nation’s security theater. The cost of admission is but your civil liberty and common sense. Contact us with your story.

Jun 23 2008

TSA Changes Airport ID Requirement; ID-Less Could Be Denied Right to Fly

The Transportation Security Administration has changed its airport ID requirement. These changes allow the agency to deny the right to fly to individuals who “willfully refuse” to present government-issued identification at an airport security checkpoint. The TSA’s press release, which is how we learn about changes in the law, now reads in part as follows:

Beginning Saturday, June 21, 2008 passengers that willfully refuse to provide identification at security checkpoint will be denied access to the secure area of airports. This change will apply exclusively to individuals that simply refuse to provide any identification or assist transportation security officers in ascertaining their identity.

This new procedure will not affect passengers that may have misplaced, lost or otherwise do not have ID but are cooperative with officers. Cooperative passengers without ID may be subjected to additional screening protocols, including enhanced physical screening, enhanced carry-on and/or checked baggage screening, interviews with behavior detection or law enforcement officers and other measures.

In Gilmore v. Gonzales (Gilmore was represented by The Identity Project Director James Harrison), we learned that the pre-June 21, 2008 policy allowed individuals who willfully refused to present government-issued identification to fly if they submitted to extra security screening. This new regulation is a substantial change that was made without public review through the usual Federal Register notice and comment process. Read More →

Mar 10 2008

IDP Helps Forment REAL ID Rebellion In California

After a long and uncharacteristic silence, the State of California is finally weighing-in on the national ID card debate: the anti-REAL ID Assembly Joint Resolution 51 was introduced today by Transportation Committee Chairman Pedro Nava.

At the Assembly’s invitation, IDP Director Jim Harrison was instrumental in drafting the Resolution: go Jim!

More on the Resolution can be read over at Ryan “That’s a shovel, not a spade” Singel’s webular log, 27 B-6.

Feb 03 2008

Will you really need a “REAL-ID” to fly? No.

There’ve been a lot of scary reports lately about how, if your state governor doesn’t “volunteer” to collaborate with the Department of Homeland Security’s “REAL-ID” scheme for a distributed national identity card and linked databases of personal information about every American resident, the DHS won’t “allow” you to board any airline flight in the U.S. of A.

What’s the skinny?

It’s an empty threat, designed to intimidate citizens, state legislators, and governors. You’ll still have a legal right to travel, even by air, even if your state opts out of compliance with the REAL-ID Act.

The DHS does have plans to require everyone who wants to fly to carry government-issued papers and get permission for each flight from the DHS. The DHS is already trying to put some of those into effect this month for international travel, and has proposed to extend them to domestic flights as part of Secure Flight.

But those other rules are independent of the REAL-ID Act, and don’t yet affect domestic air travel. Nothing in the REAL-ID law or regulations would require you to show ID to fly.

Don’t be scared. Ignore the empty threats. Stand up for your rights, and fly freely — with or without papers or permission.

Jan 26 2008

Closing the noose on the USA

A pop quiz for US citizens:

The next time you want to leave the USA. will your government let you go? When you want to come back, will they allow you to come home?

Unless people assert their rights, maybe not. And you’ll need the government to give you papers or permission to do so.

The Department of Homeland Security has already issued regulations effective February 18th that will forbid international airlines from letting anyone on a plane to or from the US without individualized express prior permission from the DHS. Those rules were issued in spite of our objections that they violate the US Constitution international human rights treaties.

And already the Department of Homeland Security is trying to enforce an illegal regulation that purports to require passports (issued at the “discretion” and for the “convenience” of the government, not as a matter of right, and which take weeks to obtain if you want to travel on short notice) for citizens to fly between the USA and Canada or Mexico. (Again, having ignored our objections.)

The DHS has proposed to extend that rule to those crossing the land borders with Canada and Mexico, closing the last possible means of leaving the USA, or returning home from abroad, without DHS papers or permission.

Now, without even considering our objections or any others, the DHS has announced a change in “internal” procedures that would achieve essentially the same result as the “pending” rulemaking: Effective January 31st, the goons from the DHS Customs and Border Protection division will be instructed not to permit anyone to cross the US border — even US citizens — unless they present government-issued documents proving their citizenship to their satisfaction.

The burden will be on you to “prove” your right to travel, rather than on the government to prove you are doing something wrong if they want to prevent you. And only government-issued documents will suffice. If the government won’t give you papers, you can neither leave nor return to your own country.

Jan 11 2008

The REAL ID Final Rules Are Out

While we plow through the several hundred pages of text and figure-out precisely how heinous this National ID card scheme is, feel free to read it yourself:

Part the First
Part the Second

Sep 21 2007

The Homeland Security Vacuum Cleaner

An Identity Project investigation into the incredible amount of personal information collected by DHS was published yesterday. Titled “Homeland Security’s Data Vacuum Cleaner In Action”, the report documents how DHS keeps track of your race, what you read, where you sleep and with whom you associate. Wired‘s story from yesterday was followed-up by a front page splash in today’s Washington Post. We are opposing the DHS proposal to exempt most of this information from the Privacy Act., and we have posted forms and instructions on how you can request a copy of your own travel dossier.

Sep 16 2007

Tell the Feds what you think of their plans

The Transportation Security Administration will hold a public hearing in Washington, DC, this Thursday morning, September 20, 2007 on the TSA’s so-called Secure Flight scheme to require government-issued travel credentials and individualized, explicit, prior permission for all domestic airline travelers within the U.S., and to subject us to government-compelled search and interrogation by private commercial third parties whenever we fly.

The hearing is open to the public, and you can sign up to speak on site with the TSA staff beginning at 8:00 a.m. Thursday at the Grand Hyatt Washington, 1000 H Street, N.W. (2 blocks from Metro Center station).

The Identity Project will be there to give our comments in person. We are also submitting detailed written comments on what’s wrong with this scheme. If you can make it, we encourage you to come out too, and tell the TSA what you think of their plans.

If you can’t make it to the hearing, you can submit comments to the TSA online. You can submit comments anonymously, and you don’t have to be a U.S. citizen or resident

Sep 10 2007

Gerry Adams: Panic at passport control

Gerry Adams: Panic at passport control | Travel | The Guardian

Welcome to America, land of official harassment for people on secret lists.

Papers, Please!

The Identity Project