Month: February 2017

CCDL/NRA-ILA/NSSF Joint Press Conference to address the potential Impact on Pistol Permit Holders (250,000+) via Governor Malloy’s Budget Proposal 2017 Facilitating this Event will be State Rep Rob Sampson and State Rep Doug Dubitsky and other Legislators who support the 2 nd Amendment February 17 th , 2017 Connecticut Legislative Office Building 300 Capitol Ave Hartford, CT06106 (Room 1C 11: 00am To address the potential financial Impact on Pistol Permit Holders (250,000+) via Governor Malloy’s Budget Proposal

About This Event:

The Connecticut Citizens Defense League, National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action and the National Shooting Sports Foundation will present information that counters Governor Malloy’s claims of increased revenue streams outlined in his 2017 budget proposal. This proposal includes the increase of state fees for pistol permits and background checks. Individuals who are disabled, on fixed incomes and middle class families that simply will not be able to afford the proposed fee increases will take part in this event.

 

Washington, DC – Today the House passed the Email Privacy Act, a bipartisan bill led by New Dem Vice-Chairs Jared Polis (CO-02) and Suzan DelBene (WA-01). This bipartisan bill, highlighted in the New Democrat Coalition Prosperity Agenda: Winning the Future, modernizes America’s digital privacy laws by establishing protections against warrantless searches of private emails. All present New Dem Members supported this bill which was co-sponsored New Dem Chair Jim Himes, New Dem Vice-Chair Derek Kilmer, and New Dem Members Tony Cardenas, Gerry Connolly, Annie Kuster, Kathleen Rice, and Cedric Richmond.

 

The Email Privacy Act would update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) so that all government agencies must obtain a warrant to search Americans’ online communications. Previously, under ECPA, emails older than 180 days stored on a third-party server could be obtained without a warrant. The Email Privacy Act will also protect information stored in the cloud, aligning outdated policies with changes in current Department of Justice and FBI policies that require law enforcement to obtain a warrant.

 

“Updating our laws to reflect the way the world works in the 21st century has been one of my top priorities in Congress. When current law affords more protections for a letter in a filing cabinet than an email on a server, it’s clear our policies are woefully outdated,” New Democrat Coalition Vice-Chair DelBene said. “I’ve supported a number of different proposals to reform our electronic privacy laws and will continue to push for those, but today’s passage of the Email Privacy Act is a great step forward for Americans’ civil liberties. Now it’s up to the Senate to act and ensure Americans are guaranteed the privacy protections most think they already have.”

 

“By passing this law unanimously, it’s crystal clear that Americans expect privacy protections for their emails,” said New Democrat Coalition Vice-Chair Polis.  “It’s unacceptable that while technology has progressed from the floppy disk to the cloud, email privacy laws remain stuck in a decade where dial-up Internet was the standard. The Email Privacy Act will update these archaic laws for the 21^st century, and protect Americans’ right to privacy. The public shouldn’t have to wait any longer for basic privacy protections to be applied to their emails.”

 

“This bipartisan bill, which has broad support from lawmakers, conservative and liberal groups, tech companies, and civil liberties organizations will ensure that the American people are afforded their due Constitutional protections,” said New Democrat Coalition Chair Jim Himes. “The New Democrats are leaders in cybersecurity and online privacy, and pragmatic legislation like this is a smart way to move the ball forward in these areas. I’m grateful to Reps. Polis and DelBene for leading the effort.

(Press Release)

 

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Congressman Jim Himes (CT-04) introduced a bill to commemorate the 208th anniversary of the birthday of Charles Darwin on February 12, 2017 and made the accompanying statement:

 

In celebrating Darwin, the bill highlights the human curiosity and ingenuity he exemplified that has promoted new scientific discoveries that have helped humanity solve many problems and improve living conditions. The bill also warns that the advancement of science must be protected from those unconcerned with the adverse impacts of global warming and climate change, and that the teaching of creationism in some public schools compromises the scientific and academic integrity of the United States education systems.

 

“The efforts to understand our world and our universe through science are at the very fundamental core of what makes us human,” said Himes. “From our earliest ancestors who looked up at the stars in wonder to modern physicists manipulating three-dimensional magnetic waves in an effort to control nuclear fusion, the drive to know, to explore, has defined us.”

 

“The American Humanist Association is proud to have worked with Rep. Jim Himes on this important resolution. Support for settled scientific facts such as climate change and the theory of evolution should be uncontroversial,” said Roy Speckahrdt, executive director of the American Humanist Association. “We need more members of Congress like Rep. Himes who will stand up for science and the education of our country’s future doctors, engineers and technological entrepreneurs.”

 

“In our modern political climate, when the very facts and truths revealed by science are under attack, honoring the efforts of scientists, the true heroes of human history, is vitally important,” Himes continued. “By celebrating and commemorating today, the anniversary of the birth of Charles Darwin, we not only acknowledge his enormous contributions to our better understanding of the origins of life, but send a message that we value education, knowledge and science as our guiding principles.”

(Congressman Himes Press Release)

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