I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 239 

To impose requirements with regard to border searches of digital electronic 

devices and digital storage media, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 7, 2009 

Mr. ENGEL (for himself and Mr. PAUL) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the 

Committee on Homeland Security, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To impose requirements with regard to border searches of 

digital electronic devices and digital storage media, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Securing our Borders 

5 and our Data Act of 2009’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. BORDER SEARCHES AND SEIZURES RELATING TO 

2 DIGITAL ELECTRONIC DEVICES AND MEDIA. 

3 (a) FUNDAMENTAL RULES.—The following rules 

4 shall apply to any border search or seizure relating to a 

5 digital electronic device or digital storage media in the pos6 session of an individual: 

7 (1) Except as otherwise provided in this sub8 section, no search of the digital contents of the de9 vice or media may be based on the power of the 

10 United States to search a person and that person’s 

11 possessions upon entry into the United States, un12 less that search is based on a reasonable suspicion 

13 regarding that person. 

14 (2) No seizure of the digital contents of a de15 vice or media, or of the device or media itself, may 

16 be based on the power of the United States to 

17 search a person and that person’s possessions upon 

18 entry into the United States, but must be based on 

19 some other constitutional authority to make the sei20 zure. 

21 (3) Any search of the digital contents of a de22 vice or media must be conducted only by officers 

23 who have received appropriate training, in order to 

24 minimize the possibility of irreparable damage to, or 

25 erasure of, files and the hardware itself, and must 

26 be conducted in the presence of a supervisor. At the 


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1 request of the traveler, such search shall be con2 ducted out of public view. 

3 (4) An individual may be required to turn on 

4 the device in order to demonstrate it is a working 

5 device. 

6 (b) SUPPLEMENTAL AND IMPLEMENTING RULES BY

7 SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY.—The Secretary of 

8 Homeland Security shall— 

9 (1) make rules regarding border searches to 

10 which subsection (a) applies, detailing— 

11 (A) policies for protecting the integrity of 

12 the data; 

13 (B) policies for the length of time seized 

14 data will be stored and where and how it will 

15 be stored; 

16 (C) policies for whether the downloaded in17 formation will be shared and, if so, with what 

18 other governmental entities and under what cir19 cumstances; 

20 (D) information as to what rights an indi21 vidual has to ensure that individual’s device or 

22 media is returned; and 

23 (E) a requirement that a receipt be given 

24 immediately to anyone whose device or media is 


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1 seized with information regarding whom to call 

2 for information about the seizure; and 

3 (2) place these rules on the Department of 

4 Homeland Security website in a manner that makes 

5 them readily publicly available. 

6 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

7 (1) the term ‘‘border search’’ means any search 

8 of an individual upon entry into the United States 

9 based on the power of the United States to search 

10 a person and that person’s possessions upon entry to 

11 the United States; 

12 (2) the term ‘‘digital electronic device’’ means 

13 any electronic device that contains digital data, in14 cluding laptops, personal digital assistants, wireless 

15 phones, ipods, iphones, blackberries, and digital 

16 cameras; and 

17 (3) the term ‘‘digital storage media’’ means any 

18 memory device that contains or may contain digital 

19 data. 

20 SEC. 3. ANNUAL STUDY AND REPORT ON SEARCHES AND 

21 SEIZURES OF TRAVELERS BY THE UNITED 

22 STATES CUSTOMS SERVICE. 

23 (a) STUDY.—The Commissioner of the United States 

24 Customs Service shall conduct an annual study of searches 

25 and seizures, during the prior year, of the digital contents 


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1 of digital electronic devices and digital storage media, and 

2 of seizures of such devices and media, that are based on 

3 the power of the United States to search or seize a person 

4 and that person’s possessions upon entry into the United 

5 States. The study shall include the number of such 

6 searches and seizures, the race, gender, and national ori7 gin of the travelers subject to those searches, the type of 

8 searches conducted, and the results of the searches. 

9 (b) REPORT.—Not later than March 31 of each year, 

10 the Commissioner of the Customs Service shall submit to 

11 the Congress the annual report containing the results of 

12 the study conducted under subsection (a) for the prior 

13 year. 

Æ 


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