House Speaker Mike Johnson unveiled his third attempt at reauthorising Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act on Thursday, five days before the programme’s 30 April expiry. The bill proposes a three-year extension but does not include the warrant requirement that privacy advocates in both parties have demanded.
Why it matters: FISA 702 allows US intelligence agencies to intercept communications of roughly 350,000 foreign targets abroad. Some of those targets communicate with Americans, whose calls, texts, and emails can be searched by federal agents without a court order. The debate pits national security against Fourth Amendment protections.
What changed from earlier attempts
Johnson’s previous proposals failed in a pair of after-midnight votes on 18 April. Republican hardliners joined Democrats in blocking both a five-year reauthorisation and a shorter 18-month extension, both of which lacked a warrant requirement.
The new bill adds two concessions. The FBI would be required to submit monthly explanations for each search of Americans’ data to a designated oversight official. The bill also introduces criminal penalties for wilful abuse of the search authority.
Why opponents say it is not enough
A former NSA general counsel described the changes as “not a lot of really substantive changes to the statute, but some gestures to people who are worried about privacy and civil liberties.”
Representative Scott Perry of Pennsylvania, a former Freedom Caucus chair, posted a video to X on Thursday saying “we’re not there yet.” The core demand from privacy-focused Republicans remains a judicial warrant before the FBI can query Americans’ information.
The administration’s position
Trump administration officials argue that a warrant requirement would overburden law enforcement and create dangerous intelligence gaps, particularly during the ongoing Iran conflict. The intelligence community has warned that any lapse in Section 702 authority would immediately degrade collection capabilities.
President Trump signed the 10-day extension on 20 April but has not publicly endorsed Johnson’s latest version.
What happens next
The House Rules Committee meets Monday morning, the first step toward a floor vote. If the bill passes the House, it must still clear the Senate before the 30 April deadline. A second short-term patch remains possible if votes fall short again.
Democrats face their own pressure. Key members are being urged by civil liberties groups to reject any extension that lacks a warrant requirement, but some national security-focused Democrats have signalled openness to a clean extension given the geopolitical environment.