Compliance Management, Network Security

House bill introduced to block government from forcing tech companies to build Muslim registry

A bill is about to be introduced in the House to block government attempts at requiring tech companies from assisting in the building of a registry of Muslims entering the country, according to a report in ZDNet.

During the presidential campaign, President-elect Trump repeatedly called for the banning of Muslims from entering the U.S. The No Religious Registry Act will be reintroduced by Rep. Suzan DelBene, the U.S. Representative for Washington's 1st congressional district, following a failed attempt days after the presidential election. 

The legislation would block government officials from establishing or referring to a registry in order to profile or monitor U.S. nationals, visa applicants, or lawful aliens, based on their religious affiliations.

The bill contains provisions to block government attempts to contract with the private sector to assist in the creation of such a registry. Last month, nearly 3,000 Silicon Valley engineers pledged to not participate in the building of any such registry. "We refuse to participate in the creation of databases of identifying information for the United States government to target individuals based on race, religion, or national origin," the letter stated.

"It's unfortunate I even have to introduce the No Religious Registry Act to prohibit this administration from violating the constitutional rights of Americans, but intolerance and hate have no place in our government," DelBene said.

The full text of the bill is here.

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