S.Amdt. 2808

SA 2808. Mr. WYDEN submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2025 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the end, add the following:

DIVISION E--PROTECT REPORTERS FROM EXPLOITATIVE STATE SPYING

SEC. 5001. SHORT TITLE.

This division may be cited as the ``Protect Reporters from
Exploitative State Spying Act'' or the ``PRESS Act''.

SEC. 5002. DEFINITIONS.

In this division:
(1) Covered journalist.--The term ``covered journalist''
means a person who regularly gathers, prepares, collects,
photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, investigates,
or publishes news or information that concerns local,
national, or international events or other matters of public
interest for dissemination to the public.
(2) Covered service provider.--
(A) In general.--The term ``covered service provider''
means any person that, by an electronic means, stores,
processes, or transmits information in order to provide a
service to customers of the person.
(B) Inclusions.--The term ``covered service provider''
includes--
(i) a telecommunications carrier and a provider of an
information service (as such terms are defined in section 3
of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 153));
(ii) a provider of an interactive computer service and an
information content provider (as such terms are defined in
section 230 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C.
230));
(iii) a provider of remote computing service (as defined in
section 2711 of title 18, United States Code); and
(iv) a provider of electronic communication service (as
defined in section 2510 of title 18, United States Code) to
the public.
(3) Critical infrastructure.--The term ``critical
infrastructure'' has the meaning given such term in section
1016(e) of the Critical Infrastructure Protection Act of 2001
(42 U.S.C. 5195c(e)).
(4) Document.--The term ``document'' means writings,
recordings, and photographs, as those terms are defined by
rule 1001 of the Federal Rules of Evidence (28 U.S.C. App.).
(5) Federal entity.--The term ``Federal entity'' means an
entity or employee of the judicial or executive branch or an
administrative agency of the Federal Government with the
power to issue a subpoena or issue other compulsory process.
(6) Journalism.--The term ``journalism'' means gathering,
preparing, collecting, photographing, recording, writing,
editing, reporting, investigating, or publishing news or
information that concerns local, national, or international
events or other matters of public interest for dissemination
to the public.
(7) Personal account of a covered journalist.--The term
``personal account of a covered journalist'' means an account
with a covered service provider used by a covered journalist
that is not provided, administered, or operated by the
employer of the covered journalist.
(8) Personal technology device of a covered journalist.--
The term ``personal technology device of a covered
journalist'' means a handheld communications device, laptop
computer, desktop computer, or other internet-connected
device used by a covered journalist that is not provided or
administered by the employer of the covered journalist.
(9) Protected information.--The term ``protected
information'' means any information identifying a source who
provided information as part of engaging in journalism, and
any records, contents of a communication, documents, or
information that a covered journalist obtained or created as
part of engaging in journalism.
(10) Specified offense against a minor.--The term
``specified offense against a minor'' has the meaning given
that term in section 111(7) of the Adam Walsh Child
Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (34 U.S.C. 20911(7)).

SEC. 5003. LIMITS ON COMPELLED DISCLOSURE FROM COVERED
JOURNALISTS.

In any matter arising under Federal law, a Federal entity
may not compel a covered journalist to disclose protected
information, unless a court in the judicial district in which
the subpoena or other compulsory process is, or will be,
issued determines by a preponderance of the evidence, after
providing notice and an opportunity to be heard to the
covered journalist, that--
(1) disclosure of the protected information is necessary to
prevent, or to identify any perpetrator of, an act of
terrorism against the United States;
(2) disclosure of the protected information is necessary to
prevent a threat of imminent violence, significant bodily
harm, or death, including specified offenses against a minor;
or
(3) disclosure of the protected information is necessary to
prevent the destruction or incapacitation of critical
infrastructure.

SEC. 5004. LIMITS ON COMPELLED DISCLOSURE FROM COVERED
SERVICE PROVIDERS.

(a) Conditions for Compelled Disclosure.--In any matter
arising under Federal law, a Federal entity may not compel a
covered service provider to provide testimony or any document
consisting of any record, information, or other
communications stored by a covered provider on behalf of a
covered journalist, including testimony or any document
relating to a personal account of a covered journalist or a
personal technology device of a covered journalist, unless--
(1) a court in the judicial district in which the subpoena
or other compulsory process is, or will be, issued--
(A) determines by a preponderance of the evidence that--
(i) providing the testimony or document is necessary to
prevent, or to identify any perpetrator of, an act of
terrorism against the United States;
(ii) providing the testimony or document is necessary to
prevent a threat of imminent violence, significant bodily
harm, or death, including specified offenses against a minor;
or
(iii) providing the testimony or document is necessary to
prevent the destruction or incapacitation of critical
infrastructure; and
(B) issues an order authorizing the Federal entity to
compel the provision of the testimony or document; or
(2) the covered journalist is the target of an ongoing
acquisition conducted in accordance with section 702 of the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C.
1881a).
(b) Notice to Court.--A Federal entity seeking to compel
the provision of testimony or any document described in
subsection (a) under paragraph (1) of such subsection shall
inform the court that the testimony or document relates to a
covered journalist.
(c) Notice to Covered Journalist and Opportunity To Be
Heard.--
(1) In general.--A court may authorize a Federal entity to
compel the provision of testimony or a document under
subsection (a)(1) that will include the disclosure of
protected information only after the Federal entity seeking
the testimony or document provides the covered journalist to
whom the testimony relates or on behalf of whom the document
is stored--
(A) notice of the subpoena or other compulsory request for
such testimony or document from the covered service provider
not later than the time at which such subpoena or request is
issued to the covered service provider; and
(B) an opportunity to be heard before the court before the
time at which the provision of the testimony or document is
compelled.
(2) Exception to notice requirement.--
(A) In general.--Notice and an opportunity to be heard
under paragraph (1) may be delayed for not more than 45 days
if the court involved determines there is clear and
convincing evidence that such notice would pose a clear and
substantial threat to the integrity of a criminal
investigation, or would present an imminent risk of death or
serious bodily harm, including specified offenses against a
minor.
(B) Extensions.--The 45-day period described in
subparagraph (A) may be extended

[[Page S5054]]

by the court for additional periods of not more than 45 days
if the court involved makes a new and independent
determination that there is clear and convincing evidence
that providing notice to the covered journalist would pose a
clear and substantial threat to the integrity of a criminal
investigation, or would present an imminent risk of death or
serious bodily harm, including specified offenses against a
minor, under current circumstances.

SEC. 5005. LIMITATION ON CONTENT OF INFORMATION.

The content of any testimony, document, or protected
information that is compelled under section 5003 or 5004
shall--
(1) not be overbroad, unreasonable, or oppressive; and
(2) be narrowly tailored in subject matter and period of
time covered so as to avoid compelling the production of
peripheral, nonessential, or speculative information.

SEC. 5006. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

Nothing in this division shall be construed to--
(1) apply to civil defamation, slander, or libel claims or
defenses under State law, regardless of whether or not such
claims or defenses, respectively, are raised in a State or
Federal court;
(2) prevent the Federal Government from compelling the
disclosure of protected information from, or related to, a
covered journalist who is--
(A) suspected of committing a crime, other than a crime
relating to the seeking, solicitation, receipt, possession,
communication, or withholding of protected information;
(B) an agent of a foreign power, as defined in section 101
of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50
U.S.C. 1801);
(C) an individual or organization designated under
Executive Order 13224 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relating to
blocking property and prohibiting transactions with persons
who commit, threaten to commit, or support terrorism);
(D) a specially designated terrorist, as that term is
defined in section 595.311 of title 31, Code of Federal
Regulations (or any successor thereto);
(E) a terrorist organization, as that term is defined in
section 212(a)(3)(B)(vi)(II) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(B)(vi)(II)); or
(F) a member or affiliate of a foreign terrorist
organization designated under section 219(a) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189(a));
(3) authorize the intentional targeting of a covered
journalist under section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence
Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1881a) for the objective
of suppressing or burdening criticism, dissent, or the free
expression of ideas or political opinions by individuals or
the press;
(4) authorize the Federal Government to compel, without
complying with the requirements of this division, the
disclosure of protected information from, or related to, a
covered journalist who has only sought, solicited, received,
possessed, or published information of the Federal
Government, including classified information, in the course
of engaging in journalism;
(5) establish any additional authority to conduct
surveillance or compel a person to provide testimony,
documents, or information; or
(6) limit the authority of the Government to seek or obtain
an order under title I or III of the Foreign Intelligence
Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1801 et seq., 1831 et
seq.).
______