Bill of Rights Procedures Act
Latest action. Referred to Senate Committee on Judiciary.
Bill of Rights Procedure Act - States that the purpose of this Act is to prohibit any interception of communication, other electronic surveilance, surreptitious entry, mail opening, or the inspection of and procuring of the records of telephone, bank, credit, medical, or other business or private transaction of any individual without a court order issued upon probable cause that a crime has been or is about to be committed, supported by oath or affirmation and particularly describing the place to be searched and the persons or things to be seized. Provides that any officer, agent, or employee of the United States or any department or agency thereof who willfully (1) searches any private dwelling used and occupied as a dwelling without a warrant directing such search or maliciously and without reasonable cause searches any other building or property without a search warrant; (2) procures or inspects the records of telephone calls, bank, credit, medical, or other business or private transactions of any individual without a search warrant or the consent of the individual; (3) opens any foreign or domestic mail not directed to him without a search warrant directing such opening or without the consent of the sender or addressee of such mail; (4) intercepts, endeavors to intercept, or procures any other person to intercept any wire or oral communication except as authorized; shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than one year, or both. Requires that within thirty days after the date of an order authorizing the interception of a wire or oral communication or the opening of mail the person seeking such order or warrant shall report to the Administration Office of the United States Courts and to the Committees on the Judiciary of the Senate and House of Representatives certain specified information, including: (1) the fact that an order or extension was applied for; (2) the kind of order or extension applied for; and (3) the fact that the order or extension was granted as applied for, was modified, or was denied.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in Senate" stage on May 2, 1974. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on May 2, 1974: Referred to Senate Committee on Judiciary.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the Senate
- Passage by the House
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 93rd Congress (1973-74), 651 of the 23,396 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
CHARLES MATHIAS (R-MD) introduced it on May 2, 1974, and 5 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 3 Democrats, 2 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on May 2, 1974, 19124 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 19124 days ago, on May 2, 1974.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 93rd Congress has not finished by January 3, 1975 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- SenateIn committee, no floor vote yet
- HouseAwaits Senate passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers