OVER 10,000 letters ROCK the Capitol in support of SB1572 Fusion Center
Privacy Policy
The Texas Bikers had their first committee hearing in the Senate on the
all important SB1572- Fusion Center Privacy Policy Bill. One of the best
Calls to Action yet from Texas bikers in all the rights groups. Dozer
reported while on the phone late Monday afternoon with Senator Tommy
Williams office “The bikers have burned up the fax machine”, with all of
the Senators offices receiving a record number of over 10,000 letters
primarily from the US Defenders. The system works and it works well.
I was in the hearing room at 6:30am and over heard one senator say, the
only phone calls I received on all the bills today were in support of this
Fusion Center bill.
Within thirty minutes the hearing room was completely filled with civil
rights activist groups, bikers, law enforcement, and district attorneys.
They were all there to battle it out on many bills presented that day.
The most controversial bill SB9, a massive ominous bill to solve problems
on the Texas border was taking off the table and put aside for the
evening. This helped free up four hours of testimony allowing the bikers
who were taking breaks from work to come by and actually tell their
stories themselves. Timing is everything at these hearings. We were very
glad that SB1572 was brought before the senators with half the testimony
completed before the senators went onto the floor and the other half after
lunch.
All morning and afternoon streams of bikers came through completing their
testimony in writing and verbally. Bandido One Wire had great testimony
that morning on behalf of the Christian motorcycle community and Veterans.
Paul Landers and I testified along side APD officer David Carter and ACLU
attorney Matt Simpson, who were in favor of the bill. TMRA2 member, Bart
Luck, testified on the many times he was put into the Fusion Data Base
because of the motorcycle funerals he has attended over the years.
We also submitted testimony from Circuit Rider MM, Roy Blalock, in writing
stating he had been pulled out of a bike shop while purchasing a
motorcycle for his wife and put in the Fusion Data base because the police
thought he was robbing the bike shop due to his long hair and tattoo’s.
Broken hearted and embarrassed Roy states “I thought they wanted to ask me
about my Christian ministry. I never thought they would treat me so
badly.
The most compelling was the testimony from Rebel Rider Ben Newner, JB and
Tank from the Legacy Vets MC, and another biker Louis from the Regulators
MC in the Houston area.
These gentlemen, all veterans, bravely sat in front of the most powerful
senators of our state nailing testimony on what it feels like to fight
against the terrorist in Iraq just to come back to Texas and be put in a
Fusion Data because they are military and they now know how to make bombs.
In testimony the comments: appalling, disgraceful, unconstitutional, and
against my civil rights, came up over and over again in each hearing.
By the time the last Legacy Vet MC member testified, you could hear a pin
drop in that meeting and see three shades of white quickly covering the
faces of the senators who sat listening. I have been to a lot of
committee hearings but I have never seen the senators respond to testimony
as I did yesterday, they were disgusted. I could not have worded it any
better than those brave men. It was the perfect committee hearing.
When everyone was finished speaking, Senator Kirk Watson, the very person
who introduced this bill, turned to me and said, “We have to get through
some of the changes in the language on this bill and work the bill out
with all sides, but this bill will come out of committee.
Many, Many Thanks to all who wrote letters, to everyone who helped post
the information on Face book/internet, and to those who came to the
capitol. To the US Defenders, COC&I, COIR, Abate, TMRA2 (and its Task
Force), and to all of the coalition partners who provided the legal
language for the bill.
If you get a chance, thank Kirk Watson and his staff-Sefronia Thompson and
her staff for taking on and introducing the hardest bill TMRA2 has ever
worked.
The Freedom Fighters of Texas can not do this work at the capitol
successfully without the backing of the biker community. You ALL are the
ones who make things happen.
And to those brave warriors who testified, God Bless you every day of your
life for having the guts to stand up to real change while you were at war
and now here in Texas. You are our Hero’s!
Terri Williams
TMRA2 Legislative Task Force
What’s next: The second Fusion Center bill we have on the house side is
HB3219 will bill coming up on the house side in the next week. Check your
e-mail for the date and time; we may only get two days notice. We will
need testimony again on the house side as well to support the second bill
HB3219. Below is the hand out that explains each bill.
Fusion Center Reform Bills Introduced this Session -
Thompson - HB3219
http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/tlodocs/82R/billtext/pdf/HB03219I.pdf#navpanes=0
HB 3219 is essentially the language drafted by TAG, the ACLU, and the TMRA2.
HB3219 does the following:
1. Prohibits Texas fusion centers from reviewing, collecting, or
maintaining non-criminal information about the political, religious, or
social views, associations, military history, or activities of any
individual or any group, association, corporation, business, partnership,
or other organization.
2. Prohibits Texas fusion centers from reviewing, collecting, or
maintaining protected health information, biometric information, or
personally identifiable information.
3. Requires standards of information sharing and best practices for
participating fusion centers.
4. Requires Texas fusion centers to submit reports to the standing
committees of each house of the legislature with primary jurisdiction over
criminal justice.
5. Requires the Attorney General to provide oversight of the data and
privacy protection function of criminal intelligence systems operating in
Texas.
6. Requires every fusion center in Texas to establish and maintain an
oversight board.
http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/82R/billtext/pdf/HB03324I.pdf#navpanes=0Sen.
Watson - SB1572
http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/82R/billtext/pdf/SB01572I.pdf#navpanes=0
SB1572 does the following:
1. Prohibits Texas fusion centers from reviewing, collecting, or
maintaining non-criminal information about the political, religious, or
social views, associations, military history, or activities of any
individual or any group, association, corporation, business, partnership,
or other organization.
2. Prohibits Texas fusion centers from reviewing, collecting, or
maintaining protected health information, biometric information, or
personally identifiable information.
We want to thank the TMRA2 DFW Chapter for putting on the Fish Fry in
February. And to DA Tom Maddux and the TOG Chapter for all their hard
work on the Texas Independence Day Rally. These events are what keep us
going.
THIS WEEKEND: Come out and celebrate with us this weekend at the Bikers
and Bass Rally at Lake Livingston, it is a blast.
Paul Landers
National Lt. Commander
US Defenders
State Chairman
Texas Motorcycle Rights Association
www.usdefenders.org
www.tmra2.org
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