Evergreen Community Safety Act of 2026
New Bill Requires Large Tech Companies to Comply With Data Warrants Within 72 Hours
Legislative Progress
Key Points
- This bill, introduced by Ms. Pettersen, requires large tech companies to hand over user data to law enforcement within 72 hours of receiving a court order or warrant. This is designed to speed up criminal investigations that rely on digital evidence like emails, private messages, or location history.
- The rules apply to "covered providers," which are companies like social media platforms, email services, or cloud storage providers that have at least 1 million users. This means almost every major tech company Americans use daily would be subject to these strict new deadlines.
- If a data request is massive or very complicated, a judge can grant the company an extra 7 days to comply. If the company believes the request is illegal and wants to challenge it, they must file their legal objection within 48 hours of receiving the warrant.
- A major change in this bill allows regular people to sue tech companies for money if the company's delay in providing data causes them harm. This adds a new layer of accountability, as companies could face expensive lawsuits for missing their 72-hour deadline.
- This policy addresses a common problem where law enforcement waits weeks or months for tech companies to process warrants. By setting a strict federal timeline, the bill aims to ensure that digital evidence is available while investigations are still fresh.
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
The bill only applies to providers with 1 million or more users, so most small tech businesses are excluded. However, growing companies approaching that threshold would face new compliance burdens, potentially needing to invest in legal teams and faster data-retrieval systems to meet the 72-hour mandate. This creates an additional cost consideration as small tech companies scale up.
Broader Impacts
Milestones
Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in House
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
News
No related news coverage found for this legislation yet.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Evergreen Community Safety Act of 2026
Data Sources
Sponsor
Analysis generated by AI. Always verify with official sources.