Legislative-Reform

Senate Committee Advances Bill Banning Congressional Stock Trading

| Importance: 7/10

The Senate Homeland Security Committee voted 8-7 to advance the Honest Act, which would prohibit members of Congress, the president, and vice president from trading stocks. Senator Josh Hawley joined Democrats to pass the bill, facing criticism from fellow Republicans like Rick Scott and pushback …

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NSA Officially Ends Bulk Phone Metadata Collection Under USA Freedom Act

| Importance: 9/10

The NSA officially ended its bulk collection of Americans’ telephone metadata at 11:59 PM on November 29, 2015, as required by the USA Freedom Act passed by Congress in June 2015. The program, which had operated under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act since 2006, systematically collected …

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Obama Signs USA FREEDOM Act, Ending NSA Bulk Metadata Collection

| Importance: 9/10

President Barack Obama signed the USA FREEDOM Act into law on June 2, 2015, representing the most significant reform of U.S. surveillance programs since the 1970s and a direct response to Edward Snowden’s revelations about NSA mass surveillance. The Act prohibited bulk collection of all …

Barack Obama Mitch McConnell Ron Wyden Rand Paul NSA usa-freedom-act nsa-surveillance legislative-reform patriot-act edward-snowden +1 more
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Senate Passes Franken Amendment Banning Mandatory Arbitration for Sexual Assault Claims by Defense Contractors, 30 Republicans Vote to Protect Corporate Impunity

| Importance: 8/10

The United States Senate passed the Franken Amendment by a 68-30 vote on October 6, 2009, prohibiting defense contractors receiving more than $1 million in Department of Defense funds from requiring employees to resolve sexual assault, battery, or harassment claims through mandatory arbitration. The …

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