A state law enforcement center set up to collect, analyze and share suspicious activity reports has taken a step toward addressing some of the concerns raised about it by privacy and civil rights advocates. The governing board of the Minnesota Joint Analysis Center (MNJAC) unanimously voted on Monday to approve a new privacy policy for the center, according to Janell Rasmussen, government relations administrator for the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. The policy is unchanged from a draft policy written by a privacy committee that’s been advising the center on these issues, which we reported on earlier this week.

The privacy policy lays out several rules for how the center collects and retains information, much of which is submitted to the center by partnering law enforcement agencies. Among the restrictions: The source of information must be "reliable and verifiable." (The center recently removed a form on its website that allowed users to anonymously submit terrorism tips.) A case file involving First Amendment protected activities cannot be opened unless there is specific information indicating the individual or organization "has, is about to, or has threatened to" commit a crime. Information must be collected "in a lawful manner," and must be kept accurate and current."

Media attorney Mark Anfinson previously told the Minnesota Independent he thinks it’s a strong policy. However, "It’s still just a piece of paper. It’s a pretty good piece of paper at this point. I think it’s well balanced in terms of law enforcement needs and these other concerns, but it doesn’t enforce itself, and so the second part of the equation is still to be solved, which is will the Department of Public Safety and MNJAC follow their policy?"