Sponsored by Sens. Ron Wyden, D-Ore.; and Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., the bill aims to promote transparency on the thousands of criminal surveillance warrants ordered by courts each year. It specifically works to include digital communications, such as e-mails and search histories, as well as more traditional calls and wiretaps.
The pending legislation does carry exceptions: while it calls for non-disclosure orders for people undergoing court-ordered surveillance, it notes that special mitigating circumstances allow law enforcement to withhold surveillance information past 180 days. These conditions revolve around whether or not discussing the surveillance would jeopardize a criminal case or threaten the life of an individual.