Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark joined a group of 17 state attorneys general on Mar. 24, urging Congress to act against the use of commercially purchased data and artificial intelligence tools by federal agencies that allow for mass surveillance of Americans without judicial or public oversight.
The letter sent by the coalition calls for closing what they describe as a “data broker loophole” that enables federal agencies to obtain detailed information about individuals’ movements, associations, political activities, and daily lives—information that would typically require a warrant or other legal process. The attorneys general argue that these practices undermine privacy protections and call for comprehensive reforms.
In their communication to the leadership of both the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, Clark and her colleagues warn about recent examples where federal agencies have bought billions of airline ticketing records and mobile location data from commercial brokers. These purchases have allowed government tracking without warrants, drawing bipartisan concern in Congress after media reports highlighted the government’s ability to monitor travel patterns, movements, and daily routines.
The letter also points out that existing laws such as the Privacy Act of 1974 and the E-Government Act are outdated. The attorneys general say these statutes do not account for current technologies like AI tools capable of re-identifying supposedly anonymous datasets or creating detailed profiles without individuals’ knowledge or consent. They further note that Inspector General reports show repeated failures by federal agencies to comply with current privacy requirements.
Clark is joined in this effort by attorneys general from California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington. A copy of their letter is available on their website.
