Rep. LaMalfa Votes to Curtail NSA Spying on Americans, Protect Tech Products

Washington, DC – Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) voted on Thursday evening in favor of an amendment to the Department of Defense Appropriations Act for 2015, H.R. 4870, which protects the Fourth Amendment rights of American citizens and prevents the government from inserting "backdoors" into technology products. Currently, the National Security Agency (NSA) is able to search vast databases for information about U.S. citizens without obtaining a warrant. The amendment, submitted by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), passed with a veto-proof bipartisan majority of 293-123.

"From the beginning of this debate about NSA domestic surveillance, I have made it clear that I will not support domestic spying on American citizens unless probable cause can be demonstrated. The fundamental protections provided to all Americans in our Constitution do not magically disappear when it comes to our phone records, e-mails, and other electronic communications," said LaMalfa. "This measure provides the intelligence community and federal law enforcement agencies the tools they need to combat foreign terrorist threats in a way that does not violate the rights of innocent Americans."

"I have also been very troubled by the insertion of ‘backdoors' into American technology products, which compromises the security of our data. These flaws have been taken advantage of by hackers and have had negative consequences for American technology companies," LaMalfa added. "It is time for President Obama to embrace these overwhelmingly bipartisan reforms."

LaMalfa previously supported an effort by Rep. Justin Amash (R-MI) to prohibit collection of Americans' electronic data and passed an amendment to a national cyber-security bill, H.R. 624, prohibiting warrantless domestic surveillance of Americans.

Doug LaMalfa is a lifelong farmer representing California's First Congressional District, including Butte, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou and Tehama Counties.