Official U.S. Government information about theGeolocation Privacy and Surveillance Act
Updated August 6, 2012
The Geolocation Privacy and Surveillance Act, or "GPS Act," seeks to establish a legal framework that gives government agencies, commercial entities, and private citizens clear guidelines for when and how personal geolocation information can be accessed and used.
The bill would require federal, state, and local authorities to cite probable cause and obtain a warrant from a judge before conducting GPS-enabled surveillance, such as the secret placement of tracking devices on the cars of suspected terrorists and criminals. It would also require a warrant to obtain tracking data about individuals from wireless companies.
In addition, the GPS Act would prohibit businesses from disclosing geographical tracking data about its customers to other companies without the customers' permission.
Bill Status
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) introduced the legislation in June 2011 as parallel Senate and House bills (S. 1212 and H.R. 2168). The bills were referred to various committees but saw no action there.
Update
On July 31, 2012, Sen. Wyden reintroduced the GPS Act on the Senate floor as a proposed amendment (S.AMDT. 2688) to the Cybersecurity Act of 2012 (S. 3414). However, S. 3414 failed in the Senate later that week.
Download PDF of amendment at wyden.senate.gov...
