WASHINGTON-The House Republican leadership sent a letter to their colleagues last week stating strong support for a House bill to relax export controls on encryption products.
“H.R. 850, the Security and Freedom through Encryption (SAFE) Act is a balanced and bipartisan solution to the current problem with U.S. encryption policy. The SAFE Act preserves, protects, and defends American citizens and businesses,” wrote Reps. Dick Armey (R-Texas), majority leader; Tom DeLay (R-Texas), majority whip; and J.C. Watts (R-Okla.), chair of the Republican Conference.
Encryption technology is used to scramble computer data. The computer industry has been trying for years to relax export controls on encryption technology but has met resistance from the FBI and National Security Agency.
The debate over controls on encryption products has been waging since 1996 when the Clinton administration moved encryption export control policy from State Department jurisdiction to the Commerce Department. Today’s export control policy says U.S. computer companies cannot export encryption products with bit strengths greater than 56 bits with restrictions and 40 bits without restrictions. These bit strengths are considered weak by the computer industry, which has developed products with bit strengths of at least 128 bits.
Also last week, the Congressional Internet Caucus listed encryption as one of its four priorities for 1999. Questions about the security of Internet is the second-most-stated reason people do not use the Internet, said Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), a sponsor of the SAFE Act and Internet Caucus co-chair.
