California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly Joint Resolution No. 26

Introduced by Assembly Member Allen

June 13, 2013

Assembly Joint Resolution No. 26—Relative to the protection of civil liberties.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AJR 26, as introduced, Allen. Civil liberties.

This measure would urge Congress and the President of the United States to make the protection of civil liberties and national security equal priorities, to immediately discontinue any practices contrary to the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, and to instruct national security agencies to ensure that national security is achieved without invasive violations of civil liberties.

Fiscal committee: no.

WHEREAS, The United States of America was founded on the
principles of protecting individual liberties and inalienable rights
of people from infringement by oppressive government; and

WHEREAS, The Fourth Amendment to the United States
Constitution states, “The right of the people to be secure in their
persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches
and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue,
but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and
particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons
or things to be seized”; and

WHEREAS, Public safety, national security, and the protection
of civil liberties are of the utmost importance and highest priority
of government; and

WHEREAS, Civil liberties and personal privacy must remain
secure and protected, and should not be abridged to pursue
politically or bureaucratically desired initiatives without oversight
and public knowledge; and

WHEREAS, In recent weeks, there have been news reports
regarding an ever-pervasive and ever-expansive government
intrusion into the lives of innocent Americans; and

WHEREAS, The National Security Administration has allegedly
been operating a clandestine surveillance program that mined user
data transmitted through the servers of nine major Internet entities
for over a decade; and

WHEREAS, A mass collection and storage of the Internet, email,
and telephone records of innocent American citizens, as alleged,
would be contrary to the Fourth Amendment to the United States
Constitution and a violation of the civil rights of all Americans;
and

WHEREAS, The potential justification for mass data collection
as increasing national security and thwarting terrorists should not
take precedence over the United States Constitution and the
protection of the civil liberties of American citizens; and

WHEREAS, It is incumbent on our offices to lead by example
in the protection of Americans so as to steer the actions of
government agencies down a path that holds the citizens and their
conscience in the highest regard; and

WHEREAS, A democratic society is based on a social contract
entered into by two parties that must equally trust in the other, and
it is incumbent upon our government as one of these parties to live
up to our highest ideals; and

WHEREAS, James Madison once noted, “Since the general
civilization of mankind, I believe there are more instances of the
abridgement of the freedom of the people by gradual and silent
encroachments of those in power than by violent and sudden
usurpations”; and

WHEREAS, Henry David Thoreau once wrote, “There will
never be a really free and enlightened state until the state comes
to recognize the individual as a higher and independent power,
from which all its own power and authority are derived, and treats
him accordingly”; and

WHEREAS, In today’s modern, technologically advanced
society, the personal information of the citizenry can be easily
obtained and cataloged, and it is therefore incumbent on everyone
to be constantly vigilant in the protection of our civil liberties; and

WHEREAS, It is of the utmost importance that governance be
done transparently with the highest emphasis on integrity and the
appropriate establishment of checks and balances; and

WHEREAS, Our first President, George Washington, once may
have said, in a quote often attributed to him, “Government is not
reason, it is not eloquence, it is force; like fire, a troublesome
servant and a fearful master. Never for a moment should it be left
to irresponsible action”; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Assembly and the Senate of the State of
California, jointly, That the Legislature of the State of California
urges Congress and the President of the United States to make the
protection of civil liberties and national security equal priorities,
to immediately discontinue any practices that are contrary to the
Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution, and to
instruct our national security agencies to ensure that national
security will be achieved without invasive violations of civil
liberties; and be it further

Resolved, That this is not a partisan issue, but rather a constant
concern that has been in the hearts of every American since the
creation of our great nation and the ratification of the United States
Constitution; and be it further

Resolved, That the Chief Clerk of the Assembly transmit copies
of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United
States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the
Majority Leader of the Senate, to each Senator and Representative
from California in the Congress of the United States, and to the
author for appropriate distribution.