Holding signs that stated “Don’t spy on me” and “The president is not above the law,” about 30 protesters marched into the Public Utilities Commission’s weekly meeting Wednesday, demanding an investigation into whether phone companies illegally shared customer data with the federal government.
The American Civil Liberties Union presented regulators with more than 1,800 petitions and said they may file a formal complaint with the PUC if action isn’t taken.
“The time for an investigation is now,” ACLU attorney Taylor Pendergrass told PUC commissioners at the agency’s offices in downtown Denver. “The residents of the state of Colorado want to get to the bottom of this issue.”
Commission chairman Greg Sopkin told Pendergrass that the PUC may look into the issue.
“We will provide the (ACLU) paperwork to our legal counsel and go from there,” PUC spokeswoman Deborah Collette said after Pendergrass addressed the commissioners. “(The ACLU) told us that they may submit a complaint at a later time.”
USA Today reported in May that AT&T, Verizon and BellSouth provided the National Security Agency with information on customer calls after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. The information included what calls customers made and received but not what was discussed.
Denver-based Qwest, which serves Colorado and 13 other states in its region, refused to provide the information on the grounds that it violated its customers’ privacy rights, according to the USA Today report. A lawyer for former Qwest chief executive Joe Nacchio, in charge at Qwest through mid-2002, confirmed that.
Verizon and BellSouth have denied providing the information to the NSA. AT&T said it has not given customer information to the government without legal authorization.
“The PUC has a duty to protect Coloradoans’ phone records,” said Cathryn Hazouri, executive director of the ACLU.
The ACLU has made similar requests in 22 other states.
Staff writer Andy Vuong can be reached at 303-820-1209 or avuong@denverpost.com.
