Despite a recent decision by the Des Moines City Council to pass an anti-Patriot Act resolution, Iowa City councilors do not plan to follow suit.

Iowa City Council members were swarmed with letters and verbal petitions about one year ago requesting they pass a resolution opposing the act. But the council rejected the requests based on its limited jurisdiction. Instead, councilors instructed city staff to send a letter to Congress expressing their concern about the act, which was enacted just six weeks after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001.

"We sent a letter to Congress that was signed by all seven councilors," Mayor Ernie Lehman said Wednesday. "That is probably the extent to which we will act."

The act gives law enforcement officials unprecedented power to access information about suspected terrorists. Among the many concerns residents have raised is the ease with which authorities can gain citizens' records, including those held by doctors, libraries, bookstores, universities and Internet service providers.

Because officials with the Iowa City Public Library have traditionally emphasized their efforts to keep all records confidential, they began posting signs last fall warning customers that the level of security was no longer as high as it had been.

"Now these records are perhaps not as confidential as people had assumed them to be," said Library Director Susan Craig, adding that while staff has not yet reposted the signs since opening the new and larger library, they plan to. "As library director, I believe the provision allowing government officials to look at library records is wrong. I don't agree with it at all."

That doesn't mean she will urge the council toward a resolution opposing the Patriot Act. She said that should be a community-led effort.

"But as to how effective it is for the city to pass a resolution, I'm ambiguous," Craig said.

Ben Stone, executive director of the Iowa Civil Liberties Union, who lobbied the Des Moines City Council to pass its resolution, said in a release Tuesday that the increasing number of communities adopting anti-Patriot Act resolutions helps "generate bi-partisan efforts in Congress to amend portions of the Patriot Act."

According to Stone, since the Patriot Act was adopted in 2001, four states and 338 cities have passed resolutions of opposition representing more than 53 million people. Only Ames and Des Moines have passed resolutions in Iowa.

"When you see Des Moines, which is not associated with a partisan leaning on this issue, it empowers Republicans," Stone said. "Too many politicians need to see convincing evidence that people will not retaliate against them if they show leadership."

Stone said that since 2002, the number of cities passing resolutions has more than doubled, a trend he expects to continue.