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WSJHomeland Security officials say they are delaying a program to expand domestic satellite surveillance while they answer lawmakers’ questions regarding the program’s impact on civil liberties and privacy.
The Department of Homeland Security planned to launch the National Applications Office today; its job is to coordinate access to spy satellite images for domestic civilian agencies, including law enforcement. DHS officials say are confident they will satisfy lawmakers’ demands, and that the new office will be open for business in the coming weeks.
Congress and the administration have been wrangling over oversees and controls crucial national security surveillance programs such as warrantless wiretapping and use of spy satellite images. House Democrats on the Homeland Security Committee last week asked lawmakers controlling the purse strings at DHS to pull the new office’s funding until they get answers about how the use of spy satellites will impact Americans’ privacy. The National Applications Office’s budget, like the capabilities of the military satellites to which will have access, is classified, and information about its creation was limited to a small number of officials and members of Congress.
Lawmakers from both parties have accused the administration of keeping them in the dark about the plans to expand domestic access to spy-satellite surveillance technology and have questioned the program’s legal basis. House Democrats specifically want DHS to explain the legal framework for the new office as well its operating procedures with an eye toward ensure that privacy rights aren’t breached.
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http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2007/10/01/spy-satellite-program-on-hold/
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