madam speaker , i was absent from this chamber for 16 years after serving for 10 .  the compelling reason for me to return was the events of 9/11 .  and one of the things that i thought i would never see in the house of representatives is an alice in wonderland type atmosphere where just because you say something , you think it is true .  the fact of the matter is , many of the complaints registered by my friends on the other side of the aisle are taken care of in this conference report .  if you vote down the conference report , those sections that are not subject to sunset will continue on without any of the changes that the chairman has articulated .  so the very arguments they are making against what they do not like about the law now should compel them to vote for this conference report because we make changes .  madam speaker , it is the primary responsibility of government to protect the safety of its citizens .  the patriot act tears down that wall , that artificial wall that existed between the intelligence community and the criminal justice enterprises .  and what we did was we said it made no sense , it made us more vulnerable to attack .  some have said , look , these changes in the patriot act change what was current law .  that is true because there was a need to do so .  and some have argued all we need to do is to follow what has been the law in the past .  the distinction that must be drawn is that , in the war on terrorism , it is not good enough to collect the evidence after a terrorist attack to try and bring people to justice .  the imperative is to stop the terrorist attacks from occurring in the first place .  that is why we have the differences in this law .  yes , there is a different standard .  the standard is to allow us to stop the terrorist attacks in the first instance .  we have , as a result of oversight , and i have attended every single hearing in the subcommittee and full committee , done unbelievable oversight , reviewing every bit of evidence that has been out there .  there has not been one single example of abuse proven , not one .  the ig report could not find it .  we could not find it .  i have been to every single hearing that we have had , been with every witness .  they could not prove a one .  but because we are concerned about the possibility of abuse , we have put at least 30 additional limitations into this conference report .  and so really the question is , do you believe in the essential foundation of the patriot act which makes it is the primary responsibility of government to protect the safety of its citizens .  the patriot act is a critical element in a strategy to provide law enforcement with the necessary tools to conduct antiterrorism investigations .  this task is made all the more difficult in that unlike the traditional criminal case , our success will be measured by the ability to prevent a future terrorist attack .  the 9/11 commission report observed that `` the choice between security and liberty is a false choice , as nothing is more likely to endanger america 's liberties than the success of a terrorist attack at home. '' freedom presumes security .  the converse is equally true .  in the delicate balance of these important interests .  our concern for liberty must not discount the consequences of a failure to keep americans secure from a cataclysmic event .  while it is important to avoid hyperbole on such a serious matter , the very nature of american life -- and the traditional regard for liberty -- could itself be threatened .  at the same time , it is the solemn responsibility of committees with oversight responsibilitites to be ever diligent to assure that government does not overstep the proper limits of its authority in implementing the patriot act .  in this regard , in our oversight of the patriot act , the judiciary committee conducted 13 hearings and there was no finding of abuse .  this was evidenced by the fact that opponents of the act resorted to attacks on the circumstances at guantanamo , and the creppy memo -- issues related to the wider war on terrorism but unrelated to the patriot act itself .  the conference report contains a number of provisions which maintain the integrity of those key provisions necessary to combat terrorism , while at the same time strengthening the protection of civil liberties : as the author of the 10-year sunset provisions in the house bill relating to section 206 , roving wiretaps , and section 215 , access to business records the final language in the conference report responds to the critics of the legislation .  the conference report contains the senate language of 4-year sunsets of these same provisions and extends the sunset language to the `` lone wolf ' provisions of the bill as well .  the conference report language relating to business record access includes additional protections not contained in current law .  the conference report explicitly provides for judicial review of any section 215 order .  if the documents sought pertain to sensitive categories of records -- such as library , bookstore , tax returns , firearms sales , educational and medical records -- the fbi director , deputy director , or the official in charge of intelligence must personally sign off on the application before it can be submitted to the court .  the conference report requires that the application to the fisa court must include `` a clear statement of the facts '' that demonstrate reasonable grounds to believe the tangible things sought are relevant to the investigation .  the conference report requires the use of so-called minimization procedures to regulate the retention and dissemination of information concerning united states persons and the protection of privileged documents .  the conference report makes it explicit that a recipient of an order has the right to disclose receipt to an attorney or other parties necessary to comply with the order .  section 108 of the conference report imposes several additional safeguards on the use of roving surveillance : the conference report requires that the order describe the specific target in detail when authorizing a roving wiretap for a target whose identity is not known .  the conference report specifies that the fisa court must find that the possibility of the target thwarting surveillance is based on specific facts in the application .  the conference report requires investigators to inform the court when `` roving '' surveillance is used to target a new facility -- such as when a terrorist or spy changes to a different cell phone .  as the former chief law enforcement officer of my state of california , i want to first of all emphasize that delayed notice search warrants are not an invention of the patriot act .  the delayed notice search warrant has been available to california law enforcement for years .  the conference report adds new safeguards relating to the use of delayed notice search warrants .  the conference report places a limit of 30 days on an initial request or on a later date certain if the facts justify such a delay .  extensions of up to 90 days are possible unless the facts of a particular case justify a longer period .  the language in the conference report provides for explicit judicial review of an nsl .  the conference report provides that a recipient of an nsl may challenge any non-disclosure requirement in court .  the report clarifies that a recipient may disclose receipt of an nsl to an attorney or other necessary party .  there is a total absence of any evidence of abuse of the patrlot act .  furthermore , the conference report adds further protections against any potential abuse of the law .  the conference report represents a careful balance between our responsibility to protect americans from terrorist violence , and our responsibility to avoid any potential violations of their civil liberties .  the enactment of this legislation is critical to this endeavor .  there are those who will attempt to come here for the sole purpose of murdering innocent americans .  it is our responsibility to keep this from happening .  we must provide law enforcement with the necessary tools to carry out this task .  