Shutdown Market Reaction

Storm clouds hang over Capitol Hill in Washington, Friday, Sept. 27, 2013. U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, R-Cascade Township, is threatening to attach an amendment to an annual defense authorization bill to curb the National Security Agency's domestic spying programs.

(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

U.S. Rep. Justin Amash, R-Cascade Township

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Rep. Justin Amash warns he's considering attaching an amendment to an authorization bill should the National Security Agency continue collecting bulk phone records, according to a recent report.

Amash, R-Cascade Township, argues he and his coalition working to curb the NSA's domestic spying capabilities are prepared to defund the agency by amending the annual defense authorization bill. That's expected to go to a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives in three weeks, and it's possible NSA supporters could attach an amendment of their own in an effort to appease opponents.

“If leadership on both sides decide that they want to push through pseudo-reforms through the NDAA, [the defense bill], or through another piece of legislation, than we’re certainly prepared to offer an amendment like we offered before to any piece of legislation that requires it,” Amash told the Guardian.

The Amash camp did not immediately respond for comment.

More than 140 cosponsors support a more comprehensive bill that aims to to end the NSA's capabilities to collect private citizens' phone records and other information. Titled the "USA Freedom Act," it is another attempt in reaction to last year's Guardian report that the NSA intercepts the communications of American citizens unbeknownst to the public.

In July 2013, the House narrowly defeated an Amash-backed proposal to defund the spying programs by a close 217-205 vote.

Andrew Krietz covers breaking, politics and transportation news for MLive | The Grand Rapids Press. Email him at akrietz@mlive.com or follow him on Twitter.