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ACLU of Rhode Island Files Open Records Lawsuit Against North Smithfield (06/01/2005)
NORTH SMITHFIELD, RI -- For the third time in two years, the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island has taken legal action against the town of North Smithfield, this time for a violation of the state's open records law. Today's lawsuit challenges a requirement by the town that any individual seeking access to an online database of public records must first provide personal information.

ACLU of Rhode Island Sues DMV Over Driver's License Procedures For Immigrants (05/23/2005)
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The ACLU of Rhode Island today filed a lawsuit against the Division of Motor Vehicles, charging the agency with a complete failure to comply with an important state law designed to ensure open and responsive government. The Administrative Procedures Act requires state agencies to provide advance public notice and seek public comment before they adopt rules and regulations governing their activities.

ACLU of Alaska Seeks Court Order to Stop State from Publicizing Private Information of Licensed Nurses (04/18/2005)
ANCHORAGE -- Acting on behalf of a local nurse, the Alaska affiliate of the American Civil Liberties Union today filed a lawsuit seeking to bar state officials from publishing contact information for licensed nurses in its online searchable database, on its website, or on informational CDs.

ACLU Announces International Project to Stop "Policy Laundering" (04/13/2005)
SEATTLE -- The American Civil Liberties Union, in concert with the European civil liberties groups Privacy International and Statewatch, today announced the formation of a new international ""Policy Laundering Project"" to monitor and influence the increasingly common formation of civil liberties-sensitive security policies through international organizations.

GAO Fails to Green-Light Controversial Secure Flight Program; ACLU Points to Recent Privacy Failures of Agency (03/28/2005)
WASHINGTON - In its much-anticipated review of the controversial Secure Flight passenger-screening program, the Government Accountability Office today effectively put a halt on the Transportation Security Administration's screening program.

House Includes Asylum and Privacy Assault in 'Must Pass' Funding Bill; ACLU Urges Senate to Reject Sensenbrenner Measure (03/16/2005)
WASHINGTON - The House of Representatives today attached controversial anti-immigration legislation to an emergency military funding bill. The American Civil Liberties Union urged the Senate to reject the House's efforts to evade regular legislative order, saying that the REAL ID Act would make it more difficult to seek asylum, lay the foundation for a national ID card and chill free speech.

ACLU Applauds Michigan's Withdrawal From MATRIX Program (03/08/2005)
NEW YORK - The American Civil Liberties Union applauds the decision by the Michigan State Police to drop out of the MATRIX interstate public-private information -sharing program. The decision not only appears to reflect a recognition that Michigan's participation in the program is forbidden under state law, but is in fact in the best interests of the residents of Michigan. We hope that the other four states that continue to participate in this project - Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Connecticut - will follow suit.

New ACLU Legislative Counsel To Focus on Privacy Issues in Post 9/11 America (02/28/2005)
WASHINGTON - Timothy D. Sparapani today joined the Washington Legislative Office as Legislative Counsel on Privacy Issues. Sparapani will be a key member of the ACLU's "Safe and Free" team and will work closely with the ACLU's Technology & Liberty Project.

House Approves Assault on Immigrants' Rights and Privacy; ACLU Urges Senate to Reject Sensenbrenner Measure (02/10/2005)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union strongly urged the Senate to reject legislation approved by the House today that would make it more difficult to seek asylum, lay the foundation for a national ID card and chill free speech in America.

Sensenbrenner Renews Assault on Immigrants' Rights; ACLU Says Measure Would Hurt Persecuted Seeking Sanctuary (01/26/2005)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today opposed legislation introduced by House Judiciary Committee Chairman James Sensenbrenner (R-WI), calling it an unnecessary assault on immigrants. The Sensenbrenner legislation includes several controversial provisions that were pulled from the intelligence reform legislation adopted by Congress last year.

ACLU Announces Online Complaint Form For Airline Security Groping, Warns That Women Are Still Vulnerable (12/22/2004)
NEW YORK-As Americans head into the holiday travel rush, the American Civil Liberties Union today warned that women still remain susceptible to sexual harassment at airline security gates, and announced that it has posted an online complaint form that travelers can use to describe any abuses that take place.

ACLU Challenges California Law Permitting Government Seizure of DNA Samples from Innocent People (12/07/2004)
SAN FRANCISCO -- I'm an Air Force veteran with 12 years of service and a graduate of the federal law enforcement facility in Glynco, Georgia. I worked as a border patrol agent for the Immigration and Naturalization Service where I was stationed in Brownsville, Texas. After I left the INS I then volunteered with Americorp and the Peace Corp.

ACLU Challenges California Law Permitting Government Seizure of DNA Samples from Innocent People (12/07/2004)
SAN FRANCISCO - The California affiliates of the American Civil Liberties Union today filed a class-action lawsuit challenging portions of a new initiative, Proposition 69, that requires DNA testing of people who are arrested for but never convicted of a crime.

Documents Show U.S. Ignored Security and Privacy Warnings On Passports; Decisions Will Leave Americans Vulnerable to Violence, ID Theft, ACLU Says (11/24/2004)
NEW YORK -- The Bush Administration spurned warnings by privacy and security experts and foreign governments when pushing new remotely readable biometric passports, according to State Department documents obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union. Because of the U.S. action, passports issued to Americans in coming years will contain Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chips that will broadcast all the personal information on a passport to anyone who comes within range with an RFID reader.

ACLU Says Pending Test of Secure Flight Would Violate Law, Congress Required GAO Report Before Allowing Private Data To Be Used (11/19/2004)
WASHINGTON - Days before the nation's busiest travel season starts, the American Civil Liberties Union today asked the Department of Homeland Security to clarify its plans to begin testing the "Secure Flight" airline passenger screening program. Government officials had indicated that testing of the controversial program will begin shortly even though a congressionally mandated pre-launch review of the program has yet to be completed.

Court Hears Arguments in ACLU No-Fly Class-Action Lawsuit (11/04/2004)
SEATTLE--At a hearing here today, the American Civil Liberties Union presented arguments to advance the first nationwide class-action lawsuit challenging the government's controversial No-Fly lists, which are distributed to all airlines with instructions to detain or interrogate passengers whose names match thousands of names listed.

ACLU Urges Virginia Legislators Not To Put Radio Computer Chip in Driver's Licenses (10/06/2004)
NEW YORK-The American Civil Liberties Union today urged Virginia not to become the first state in the nation to place radio frequency identification (RFID) chips in its driver's licenses.

ACLU Calls for Protection of Privacy and Freedom As Congress Continues Examination of 9/11 Commission Recommendations (08/16/2004)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union today urged caution as three key Senate committees convened special recess hearings to examine some of the 9/11 Commission findings. At issue are proposals that, if enacted, would have a long lasting negative impact on the privacy and freedoms of future generations of Americans.

Emerging "Surveillance-Industrial Complex" Is Turbo-Charging Government Monitoring, ACLU Warns in New Report (08/09/2004)
NEW YORK - The government is rapidly increasing its ability to monitor average Americans by tapping into the growing amount of consumer data being collected by the private sector, according to a major report released today by the American Civil Liberties Union.

ACLU Links Pizza Delivery to Privacy Erosion in New Online Video (07/26/2004)
NEW YORK--In a new online video unveiled today, the American Civil Liberties Union takes a break from its serious side to illustrate how new technologies and weak privacy laws can be used to reveal sensitive information about a person involved in even the most mundane of business transactions, including ordering a pizza.