- 1 - February 7, 2017 Hon. Ajit Pai, Chairman Federal Communications Commission 445 12th St. SW Washington, DC 20554 Dear Chairman Pai: I am writing to request information regarding the FCC’s policies and practices with respect to discharging the agency’s responsibility for protecting the privacy of communications pursuant to the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA), Pub. L. No. 103-414, 108 Stat. 4279, 47 U.S.C. §1001- 1010). CALEA prohibits telecommunications carriers from disclosing customer information to law enforcement agencies unless they have legal authorization to do so. See 47 U.S.C. § 229. It has come to my attention, however, that there is substantial publicly available evidence suggesting that carriers have turned over call identifying information to the National Security Agency (NSA) and received fees for providing this information. See, e.g., Unclassified Report on the President’s Surveillance Program prepared by the Offices of the Inspectors General of the Department of Defense, Department of Justice, CIA, NSA, and Office of the Director of National Intelligence submitted to Congress in July 2009; March 2009 Working Draft ST-09-002 of the NSA’s Office of the Inspector General, first published by The Guardian in June 2013; and “AT&T Helped U.S. Spy on Internet on a Vast Scale,” New York Times, August 16, 2015. During its review of the AT&T-DirecTV merger, the FCC was made aware, but did not act upon, credible allegations that AT&T violated customer privacy by improperly disclosing customer information to the NSA. Further, the FCC 185 - 2 - declined to include in its order approving the merger any provisions requiring the new entity to ensure that consumer privacy is protected. The failure to include such conditions raises concerns as to whether the FCC is adequately protecting the privacy rights of Americans regarding their communications pursuant as required by the CALEA. These issues continue to be important as the Congress works to develop policy that balances the protection of individual privacy and the interests of law enforcement in obtaining access to information, including encrypted communications, in furtherance of its investigative processes. Accordingly, I am requesting to meet with you to discuss this subject in greater detail and to learn how the FCC is ensuring compliance by regulated carriers with CALEA’s requirement that customer privacy be protected. Thank you for your immediate attention to this request. If you have questions or need further information, contact me through my Chief of Staff, Glenn Rushing, at Glenn.Rushing@mail.house.gov or 202-225-3816. Very truly yours, J Sheila Jackson Lee MEMBER OF CONGRESS