Our friend, principled limited government constitutional conservative Senator Mike Lee of Utah has introduced the Saving Privacy Act, a bill to end government abuse of Americans’
financial information. For years, federal agencies have been overreaching in their surveillance, collecting vast amounts of personal financial data from law-abiding citizens without just cause. Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) is an original co-sponsor of the bill. For bill text click here.
“The federal government has no business surveilling the financial activities of millions of innocent Americans,” said Senator Lee. “The current system erodes the privacy rights of citizens, while doing little to effectively catch true financial criminals. My Saving Privacy Act ensures that Americans’ personal information is protected and that government agencies operate within the bounds of the Constitution.”
“Big government has no place in law-abiding Americans’ personal finances. It is a massive overreach of the government and a gross violation of their privacy,” said Senator Rick Scott. “That is why I am teaming up with Senator Lee so that we can protect Americans’ personal financials for good. Our Saving Privacy Act will allow federal agencies to go after criminals while also protecting innocent Americans’ data. This is commonsense legislation, and I am urging my colleagues to support its immediate passage.”
“This kind of reform restores the proper balance—as provided by the Fourth Amendment—between Americans’ privacy rights and law enforcement’s ability to gather evidence to enforce laws. It would protect individuals’ financial privacy and improve federal agencies’ abilities to prosecute criminal activity rather than sift through millions of low-value reports. This kind of reform is long overdue.” - Norbert Michel, Jennifer Schulp, and Nicholas Anthony of the Cato Institute
“Financial privacy is of paramount importance in the digital age,” said Bryan Bashur, Director of Financial Policy for Americans for Tax Reform. “Lawmakers should support Sen. Lee’s efforts to further preserve financial privacy and prevent the federal government from easily accessing this information. Enacting this legislation will also protect consumers from other existential threats to financial privacy—such as tracking stock trading and electronic payment activity.
Government surveillance efforts have been largely ineffective, as demonstrated by the dismal success rate of suspicious activity reports (SARs) submitted to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). In FY2023, financial institutions submitted 25.4 million SARs and currency transaction reports (CTRs), yet less than 0.3% of these reports resulted in relevant IRS-CI and FBI cases.
It is particularly noteworthy that a number of legitimate “suspicious activity reports” (SARs) regarding Hunter Biden’s illicit activities were submitted, including one suggesting human trafficking, but they were ignored – obviously for political reasons.
At the same time Hunter Biden’s financial transgressions were being ignored for political reasons, FinCEN and the FBI surveilled the financial transactions of individuals and solicited banks for information on purchases related to “Trump,” “MAGA,” firearms, and even religious texts. Meanwhile, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has quietly been constructing a centralized database, the Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT), designed to track every single stock market transaction and the personal information of millions of Americans without any congressional approval.
Those examples shine a light on an Orwellian financial security state that provides little meaningful contribution to preventing crime, especially of the politically connected elite, while simultaneously eroding Americans’ constitutional rights.
Senator Lee’s bill, the Saving Privacy Act, seeks to curb these abuses and restore Fourth Amendment protections for all Americans.
Key Provisions of the Saving Privacy Act:
* Repeals the Bank Secrecy Act’s SAR and CTR reporting requirements while maintaining recordkeeping provisions.
* Repeals the Corporate Transparency Act.
* Strengthens Fourth Amendment protections, bolstering warrant requirements in the Right to Financial Privacy Act of 1978.
* Repeals the SEC’s Consolidated Audit Trail (CAT) database.
* Requires congressional approval for any new databases that collect personally identifiable information of U.S. citizens.
* Prohibits the creation of a Central Bank Digital Currency.
* Requires congressional authorization for financial regulations deemed major rules.
* Institutes penalties for federal employees who illegally seek constitutionally protected financial information.
* Establishes a private right of action for Americans and financial institutions harmed by illicit government activity.
From our perspective the crucial provision of Senator Lee’s “Saving Privacy Act” is the establishment of a private right of action that will permit citizens to seek redress in the courts when they are harmed by government spying on their private financial records.
The Capitol Switchboard is (202-224-3121), we urge CHQ readers and friends to call your Representative and Senators, tell them you demand they cosponsor Senator Mike Lee’s “Saving Privacy Act” and vote for it in Committee and on the Floor of their respective chambers.
2024 Election
Senator Mike Lee
Saving Privacy Act
Personal information
governmental abuse
financial information
financial activities
government surveillance
credit cards
bank statements
Fourth Amendment
SARs
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