I 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4570 
To require the approval of a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court judge 
or designated United States Magistrate Judge for the issuance of a 
national security letter, to require the Attorney General to submit semi-
annual reports on national security letters, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 16, 2005 
Ms. HARMAN (for herself, Mr. HASTINGS of Florida, Mr. REYES, Mr. BOS-
WELL, Mr. CRAMER, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. HOLT, Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Mr. 
TIERNEY, and Mr. BERMAN) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Select 
Committee on Intelligence (Permanent Select) and Financial Services, 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 com-
mittee concerned 
A BILL 
To require the approval of a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance 
Court judge or designated United States Magistrate 
Judge for the issuance of a national security letter, to 
require the Attorney General to submit semiannual re-
ports on national security letters, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Security Let-
ter Judicial and Congressional Oversight Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE SURVEILLANCE COURT 
JUDGE OR UNITED STATES MAGISTRATE 
JUDGE APPROVAL OF NATIONAL SECURITY 
LETTERS. 
(a) REVIEW OF NATIONAL SECURITY LETTER RE-
QUESTS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—No national security letter 
shall issue unless a Foreign Intelligence Surveillance 
Court judge or a designated United States Mag-
istrate Judge finds that— 
(A) the information sought is relevant to 
an authorized investigation to protect against 
international terrorism or clandestine intel-
ligence activities; 
(B) such an investigation of a United 
States person is not conducted solely upon the 
basis of activities protected by the first amend-
ment to the Constitution of the United States; 
and 
(C) there are specific and articulable facts 
giving reason to believe that the information 
sought pertains to a foreign power or an agent 
of a foreign power (as those terms are defined
in section 101 of the Foreign Intelligence Sur-
veillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1801)). 
(2) ELECTRONIC
FILING.—The court estab-
lished by section 103(a) of the Foreign Intelligence 
Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1803) shall es-
tablish an electronic system for the submission of 
documents and other information relating to pro-
ceedings under paragraph (1) and for the issuance 
of orders relating to national security letters under 
paragraph (1). 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING CHALLENGES 
TO NONDISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS OF NATIONAL SE-
CURITY LETTERS.—It is the sense of Congress that in the 
case of a challenge to a nondisclosure requirement of a 
national security letter, a certification by the Attorney 
General or other appropriate head or deputy head of a 
department, agency, or instrumentality of the Federal 
Government that disclosure of such national security letter 
may endanger the national security of the United States 
or interfere with diplomatic relations— 
(1) should not be considered conclusive evidence 
that such disclosure would endanger the national se-
curity of the United States or interfere with diplo-
matic relations; and