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SPONSOR: |
HJC |
DATE TYPED: |
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HB |
HJM 40/HJCS |
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SHORT TITLE: |
Affirming Civil Rights & Liberties |
SB |
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ANALYST: |
Fox-Young |
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APPROPRIATION
Appropriation
Contained |
Estimated
Additional Impact |
Recurring or
Non-Rec |
Fund Affected |
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FY03 |
FY04 |
FY03 |
FY04 |
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Minimal (See Narrative) |
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(Parenthesis
( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)
Duplicates SJM 30
Responses Received From
Administrative Office of the District Attorneys
(AODA)
Department of Public Safety (DPS)
Attorney General (AG)
Public Defender Department (PDD)
SUMMARY
Synopsis of Bill
The House Judiciary Committee Substitute for House Joint Memorial 40 recognizes that federal, state and local governments should protect the public from terrorist attacks but should do so in a manner that ensures protection of civil liberties.
The memorial affirms the Legislature’s strong support for fundamental constitutional rights, declaring its opposition to federal measures that infringe on these rights.
The memorial directs the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to discourage the State Police from
· Engaging in the surveillance of individuals or groups of individuals based on their participation in activities protected by the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution;
·
Using race, religion, ethnicity or national
origin as a factor in selecting individuals for investigation;
·
Collecting
or maintaining information about the political, religious or social views, associations
or activities of individuals, groups, businesses, corporations unless such
information directly relates to an investigation of criminal activity and there
are reasonable grounds to believe that the subject of the information is or may
be involved in criminal conduct; and
·
Engaging
in the practice of stopping drivers or pedestrians for the purpose of
scrutinizing their identification documents without reasonable and
particularized suspicion of criminal activity and from engaging in searches and
seizures unless they are consistent with state laws and rules of court.
The bill directs public schools and
institutions of higher education to provide notice to individuals whose
education records have been obtained by law enforcement agents pursuant to the
USA Patriot Act and directs public libraries to post notices informing the
public that records of borrowed materials may be obtained by federal agents.
The bill directs the official in charge of
homeland security for the state to obtain information from the federal
government, facilitating an assessment of the effect of federal antiterrorism efforts
on residents of the state. The official
in charge of homeland security shall provide a summary of the information
obtained to the Legislature and the Corrections Oversight and Justice Committee
at least once every six months.
Copies of the memorial shall be transmitted to Senators Jeff Bingaman and Pete Domenici; Representatives Tom Udall, Heather Wilson and Steve Pearce; President George W. Bush and Attorney General John Ashcroft.
Significant Issues
In the face of
broad new federal policies, laws, executive orders, regulations and actions,
the memorial outlines parameters for the surveillance
and investigation practices of the State Police. While it stops short of
demanding accountability from law enforcement agencies, the memorial provides for a method of monitoring the effects of the
federal antiterrorism efforts on
Additional federal legislation and policy changes, including the proposed Domestic Security Enhancement Act of 2003, will expand on many of the provisions contained in the Patriot Act, further corroborating the concerns expressed in the bill.
In October, 2002, the city of
The Administrative Office of the District Attorneys (AODA) notes that the executive could invoke a separation of powers argument in response to the bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS
There are minimal costs associated with posting notifications and gathering and reporting information from the federal government.
DUPLICATION
Duplicates SJM 30.
JCF/yr/njw