Minnesota Legislators Hope to Update Constitution for Digital Data Privacy

Pioneer Press ^ | 2-20-15 | David Montgomery

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(TNS) -- Pick another issue -- maybe any other issue -- and they'd be at each other's throats. But on Monday, the Minnesota Tea Party Alliance shared a stage with Occupy Minnesota, with the American Civil Liberties Union and an anti-Affordable Care Act advocacy group, with liberal DFLers and conservative Republicans. These unnatural allies agreed on one thing: limiting the ability of government to access electronic data. "There won't be many opportunities for you to see a group this ideologically diverse and bipartisan," said state Sen. Branden Petersen, R-Andover. Petersen, a Republican with libertarian leanings, wants to amend Minnesota's constitution to extend the existing protection against unreasonable search and seizure to electronic data. It's an issue that cuts across the usual partisan battle lines, but even this odd coalition faces an uphill battle to bring their "data privacy" amendment to a popular vote next year. An amendment to the Minnesota constitution requires a majority from both houses of the Legislature, followed by approval from voters at the next general election. Unlike normal laws, it doesn't need a signature from the governor.

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Latz will probably never let it be heard. He's a petty tyrant.