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ACLU Says Colorado Public Utilities Commission Has Delayed Long Enough, Calls for Immediate Investigation

ACLU delivers over 1,800 petitions to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission calling for an investigation into allegations that phone companies are divulging private phone records to the National Security Agency

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 23, 2006

In response to the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) stating that it would delay any investigation into reports that telephone companies have been voluntarily divulging Coloradoans private phone records to the National Security Agency (NSA), the ACLU of Colorado (ACLU) today renewed calls for a vigorous and thorough investigation of those allegations.

Flanked by over forty ACLU members and staff, this morning Staff Attorney Taylor Pendergrass presented over 1,800 signatures to the CPUC calling for an immediate investigation. People packed the CPUC hearing room and held signs at the meeting which read “Stop the Abuse,” “Accountability Now,” “Hang up on the NSA,” “Don't Spy on Me,” and “Warrantless Spying is Un-American.” Pendergrass gave a comment to the CPUC commissioners, recounting previous correspondence between the ACLU and the PUC, and outlining the immediate need for an investigation.

On May 24, 2006, shortly after news reports revealed allegations about phone companies voluntarily sharing private phone records with the NSA, the ACLU of Colorado, joining more than twenty other ACLU affiliates across the country, sent letters to the CPUC and Attorney General requesting an investigation

According to CPUC Director Doug Dean, the CPUC elected to “defer” any investigation until a ruling was given in Hepting v. AT&T, a California lawsuit challenging telephone companies’ involvement in the program. At the time of Director Dean’s June 19, 2006 letter to the ACLU, the federal government had a pending motion asking the court to dismiss the case based upon a legal doctrine known as the states secrets privilege. On July 20, 2006, the California federal court rejected the government’s arguments and ruled that the case should proceed.

“The CPUC’s decision to delay their investigation simply because the government had raised a mere objection in a entirely different state was a questionable one,” said ACLU Staff Attorney Taylor Pendergrass. “Nevertheless, the court in California has now given Director Dean the “green light” that he was waiting for, and the CPUC should now begin an investigation immediately.”

The ACLU of Colorado is waiting to hear from the Colorado Attorney General’s office, who has still not yet reported on the status of their investigation.

In response to CPUC Director Dean’s statement that he would not begin an investigation “at this time,” the ACLU of Colorado gathered signatures for a “Demand the Facts” petition, calling on the AG and CPUC to uphold their obligation to investigate Colorado telephone companies’ role in the NSA program.

“The CPUC’s delay in investigating this potentially massive violation of Coloradoans’ fundamental privacy rights is unacceptable,” said Cathryn Hazouri, ACLU of Colorado Executive Director. “Coloradoans must know if their private phone records are illegally being divulged to the NSA, and if so, the CPUC and the AG, which residents of our state have entrusted with protecting these private records, must act immediately.”

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