Technology

Congress should push for expedited compliance with employment verification standards, particularly during these challenging times.  I am encouraged that an amendment to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 was proposed to ascertain the lawful eligibility of employees of the companies receiving stimulus funds.  Verifying that essential jobs such as federal contracting be conducted by a legal workforce should be a top priority as we work to restore economic opportunity. Read more...

What I was trying to do yesterday was build on what was in the Chairman’s mark to make a longer period of time for the wind energy tax incentive.  Previous legislation that contained the wind energy tax credit was offset, so it was only extended for a short period of time.  My efforts were just to improve the bill and make the most of investment. There are a lot of jobs at stake here. And this was a jobs bill, so it made sense.

Today, privacy advocates, industry leaders and government officials from across the nation and around the world celebrate Data Privacy Day – a day to raise awareness about data privacy practices and rights.  As the nation answers President Obama's call for an immediate investment in health information technology, Data Privacy Day is an important opportunity to remind all of us about the important work that the Congress must complete to protect Americans’ health privacy rights.

Yesterday, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a critical hearing to examine the best practices for protecting Americans’ sensitive health information.  Without adequate safeguards to protect electronic health records, many Americans will simply not seek the medical treatment that they need for fear that their sensitive health information will be disclosed without their consent.  The Committee’s hearing was one of many steps that I plan to take in this Congress to help tackle the difficult but essential task of ensuring meaningful health information privacy for all Americans.  I salute the many leaders who are working to raise awareness about data privacy today and I urge the President, all Members of Congress and all Americans to join me in working on this pressing issue

Every day we come into contact with nanoparticles. Nanotechnology, a broad term for the field that incorporates tiny particles in materials and devices, is used to create over 800 consumer goods – from cosmetics, such as sunscreen, to food packaging to household cleaners to batteries.

In 2007, $60 billion in nano-enabled products were sold; and the Lux Research Group predicts that number will rise to $2.6 trillion by 2014. Since the range of potential applications of nanotechnology is broad — from electronics to energy transformation and storage, to medicine and healthcare — and affects so many industries as well as our economy, it is crucial that we ensure the safety of this new technology and address any potential downsides from the beginning in a straightforward and open way. Read more...

With the 111th Congress only weeks away, The Hill asked some members of Congress what they think their top priority will be in the New Year.

Sen. Lieberman is chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.

As part of my oversight duties as Chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, I gaveled to order a closed hearing the other day to find out more about the Administration’s new cyber security plan, known as the Cyber Initiative. The plan, which has been kept under tight wrap, takes a government-wide approach to protecting the federal government’s information systems and databases. This means that many agencies will have newly defined responsibilities, which Congress needs to know about. Funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) part of the initiative has tripled in the past year, and that too merits our close attention. Read more...

This past week, a group of bi-partisan Senators from the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee led by myself, Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) and the Committee’s Ranking Member, Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), introduced legislation aimed at ending the deceptive practice known as phishing.  The Anti-Phishing Consumer Protection Act of 2008 (S. 2661) would prohibit the solicitation of a consumer’s personal information through the use of emails, instant messages, and misleading websites that trick recipients into divulging their information for the purpose of identity theft.  The legislation would also prohibit related abuses, such as the practice of using fraudulent or misleading domain names, by defining them as deceptive practices under the FTC Act.

Phishing and other online fraud activities directly undermine the vital trust of online consumers.  In a world that is growing more dependent on technology, we need to take every step possible to make the Internet safer and more reliable.  This begins with restoring the trust and consumer confidence that has been eroded by the prevalence of deceptive emails and websites that are defrauding the American people. Read more...

At midnight on Feb. 16, the nation's terrorist surveillance law expired because House Democratic Leadership refused to bring up bipartisan national security legislation. At that moment, intelligence officials who spend their days listening in on phone calls between terrorists overseas were legally barred from following new leads without first following outdated and cumbersome warrant procedures — even if neither caller is calling from within the U.S.

House Democrats refused to pass the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, ignoring a majority in Congress as well as the views of the Director of National Intelligence, Adm. Mike McConnell, whom Democrats and Republicans tapped three years ago to "connect the dots.

Faced with an urgent warning by Adm. McConnell, House Democrats closed up shop and went home. That decision, according to top intelligence officials, left the U.S. more vulnerable to attack. Read more...

We need to make some changes with FISA (Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act), and I believe that it can be done. I also believe that it will be done.

James Lewis of the Center for International & Strategic Studies says oversight by the FISA court and Congress' Intelligence Committees will preserve liberty while allowing necessary, broad surveillance techniques by the National Security Administration (NSA).