i2Coalition Supports LEADS Act

Today, Internet Infrastructure Coalition (i2Coalition) Co-Founder and Public Policy Chair David Snead released the following statement regarding the Law Enforcement Access to Data Stored Abroad (LEADS) Act, introduced in the Senate by Senators Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Chris Coons (D-Del.), and Dean Heller (R-Nev.), to amend the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA):

“ECPA reform has long been a legislative priority for i2Coalition, and we support the LEADS Act and applaud Senators Hatch, Coons and Heller for making reforms of this nature a priority. ECPA is grossly outdated, and U.S. laws from surveillance to access to content with a warrant must be updated to keep up with nearly 30 years of technological advances.

“Customers of Internet infrastructure providers have clear expectations when it comes to protecting their 4th amendment rights, and this bill is a key component in bringing U.S. laws up to date when it comes to these expectations. At the same time, allowing ECPA warrants to apply abroad hurts our global competitiveness and is a threat to U.S. jobs.

“We recognize difficulties other groups have with the definition of ‘U.S. persons’ used in the bill. The i2Coalition remains firmly committed to ensuring that U.S. laws that are utilized to allow governmental access to data, including ECPA and surveillance laws, address concerns raised by infrastructure customers around the world, not just U.S. citizens. We challenge Congress to think broadly about these issues.”