In almost 12 years since then President George W. Bush signed the controversial Patriot Act into law, it’s fair to say that the US government has gotten a little carried away with its mission to sniff out terrorists through digital surveillance. What with the extent of the NSA’s dragnet fully illustrated by a certain Mr. Snowden earlier this year, its clear that this surveillance program is not just about catching terrorists anymore. Love it or hate it, the Patriot Act has grown far beyond its original scope, into a Big Brother-like monstrosity. Even its creator seems to agree, and that’s exactly why he’s set about slaying this monster with a brand new piece of legislation – the Uniting and Strengthening America by Fulfilling Rights and Ending Eavesdropping, DragnetCollection, and Online Monitoring (USA FREEDOM) Act.

On Wednesday, Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner, who helped to draft the original Patriot Act, stated that he wants to use his new legislation to try and curb the old legislation, stripping away many of the powers it grants to the NSA. In a rare act of bipartisanship – which illustrates just how unpopular the NSA’s surveillance is – the bill has been co-authored by a Democrat, Sen. Patrick Leahy.

The USA Freedom Act has four main aims:

• To end the bulk gathering of US citizens’ emails and phone records
• To reform the controversial FISA court
• To increase transparency
• To standardize National Security letters

Sensenbrenner’s bill doesn’t aim to completely dismantle the Patriot Act, but specifically it seems to be targeted at Section 215, one of the most invasive parts of the legilsation. The Freedom Act, if it passes into law, will “require that tangible things sought are relevant to an authorized investigation into international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities.” In addition, the Freedom Act would give greater protection to American citizens by something called “reverse targeting,” the practice of targeting a foreign national with the goal of acquiring a US citizen’s communications. Finally, the bill would also force the NSA to filter data collected on Americans “more aggressively”, and to discard data that’s accidentally scooped up by PRISM and its related programs.

It’s not clear if the bill will make it into law, as it’s likely to face stern opposition from Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, whose alternative proposed legislation to reform the NSA’s surveillance adds transparency to its operations but doesn’t prohibit it from bulk data collection.

Check this story out and more in our collection of NSA stories on Springpad.