The Omnibus Counterterrorism Act of 1995, or US Senate bills S.390 and S.761. were two bills introduced by Senator Joe Biden and Senator Tom Daschle on behalf of the Clinton Administration on February 10, 1995. The bill was co sponsored by Senators Alfonse D'Amato,

Dianne Feinstein Dianne Goldman Berman Feinstein ( ; born Dianne Emiel Goldman; June 22, 1933) is an American politician who serves as the senior United States senator from California, a seat she has held since 1992. A member of the Democratic Party, she wa ...

Bob Kerrey Joseph Robert Kerrey (born August 27, 1943) is an American politician who served as the 35th Governor of Nebraska from 1983 to 1987 and as a United States Senator from Nebraska from 1989 to 2001. Before entering politics, he served in the Vietna ...

, Herb Kohl, Jon Kyl, Barbara A. Mikulski and

Arlen Specter Arlen Specter (February 12, 1930 – October 14, 2012) was an American lawyer, author and politician who served as a United States Senator from Pennsylvania from 1981 to 2011. Specter was a Democrat from 1951 to 1965, then a Republican fr ...

. Representative

Chuck Schumer Charles Ellis Schumer ( ; born November 23, 1950) is an American politician serving as Senate Majority Leader since January 20, 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Schumer is in his fourth Senate term, having held his seat since 1999, an ...

sponsored the bill (H.R. 896) in the US House of Representatives. Both bills were never put to a vote, although a significantly altered version of the House bill became law as the

Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA), , was introduced to the United States Congress in April 1995 as a Senate Bill (). The bill was passed with broad bipartisan support by Congress in response to the bombings of th ...

. Following closely on the heels of Executive Order 12947, prohibiting transactions with terrorists, President Clinton described the bill as a "comprehensive effort to strengthen the ability of the United States to deter terrorist acts and punish those who aid or abet any international terrorist activity in the United States" and requested "the prompt and favorable consideration of this legislative proposal by the Congress".https://fas.org/irp/congress/1995_cr/h950209-terror.htm Congressional Record It contained the following seven provisions:http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d104:SN00390:@@@L&summ2=m&#summary Summary Title I: Substantive Criminal Law Enhancements Title II: Immigration Law Improvements Title III: Controls Over Terrorist Fund-Raising Title IV: Convention on the Marking of Plastic Explosives Title V: Nuclear Materials Title VI: Procedural and Technical Corrections and Improvements Title VII: Antiterrorism Assistance According to the summary by President Clinton, the bill was intended to establish federal criminal jurisdiction over acts of international terrorism. Civil liberty advocacy groups opposed the bill on the grounds that it would violate fundamental civil liberties, including the right to confront one's accuser. Another source of opposition was the government's ability to use evidence from secret sources in deportation proceedings for suspected terrorists.

References

{{Joe Biden Terrorism laws in the United States 104th United States Congress United States proposed federal legislation Joe Biden

See also

References