Former UT Gov Leavitt mum on MATRIX involvement | SL Tribune

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Leavitt mum on MATRIX involvement


Mike Leavitt

By Kirsten Stewart
The Salt Lake Tribune

Former Gov. Mike Leavitt is refusing to discuss his involvement in the controversial MATRIX database of personal information about Utah residents -- a program he approved allegedly without informing lawmakers but which recently has raised invasion-of-privacy concerns.

MATRIX -- Multistate Anti-Terrorism Information Exchange -- has become the talk of the 2004 legislative session, where lawmakers are voicing privacy and security worries about the Orwellian-sounding system, which collects and shares comprehensive state-gathered information on Utahns. Leavitt's successor, Gov. Olene Walker, who claims she knew nothing about it until tipped by reporters, has halted Utah's participation and appointed a panel to investigate.

The program has raised concerns by civil libertarians and those opposed to big government.

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