Congress should allow an expert commission to recommend ways to resolve the contentious debate over police access to encrypted communications before passing “knee-jerk” legislation, one lawmaker said.

Even as Apple and the FBI fight in court over access to a terrorist suspect’s iPhone, a 9/11 Commission-style digital security panel should try to find a compromise between smartphone users’ privacy and law enforcement access to encrypted devices, U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said Wednesday.

“Given the complexities of this issue, there’s no legislative, knee-jerk response that will solve this problem,” McCaul, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, said during a forum hosted by the Bipartisan Policy Center, a think tank. “This is an urgent issue, and I believe [a commission] is the best vehicle.”

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