madam speaker , i thank the chairman for yielding me this time . 
i want to commend him for a great process here . 
often we do not have a deliberative process when we pass major pieces of legislation . 
that is not the case here . 
we had 12 hearings over a year on these provisions , and i want to point out what the chairman has already said , that we are not just dealing with those sections that are sunsetted but we are dealing with those that are not as well . 
we had some substantive reforms to the nsl process . 
after the passage of the first patriot act , i and others formed the patriot act reform caucus because we felt we needed additional protections . 
that process yielded about a half dozen amendments which we offered during the house version of the bill , and each of those amendments was accepted and remains part of the legislation . 
one amendment that we dealt with during consideration of the house bill clarified that a recipient of an nsl , or national security letter , may discuss the nsl with his or her attorney and may disclose that request to an individual whose help is necessary for compliance with the nsl . 
that is an important safeguard . 
and for those who say there is a gag rule that prohibits people from even mentioning the nsl , that is no longer true . 
if an nsl is challenged , it requires a recertification by either the fbi director or another official confirmed by the senate . 
this reform increases accountability in using nsls , and it clarifies that judicial review exists and challenges to both the nsl and the prohibition on disclosure are now allowed . 
it also , as the chairman mentioned , establishes additional reporting requirements to the house and senate judiciary and intelligence committees on the frequency and use of nsls . 
these are commonsense reforms and clarifications . 
in addition to these safeguards on nsl authorities , the reauthorization also will add significant safeguards in a number of other areas , as the chairman mentioned . 
there are now strict time limits for those who are put on delayed notification as well as new reporting requirements to the house and senate judiciary committees . 
madam speaker , these are reforms that are important , and i am happy to support it , and i hope that we will codify these in the bill . 
