In March, two Democrats and two Republicans who oppose the law’s sweeping spying authority introduced a bill to limit the government’s ability to obtain Americans’ private communications without a warrant. This week, lawmakers also failed to pass a short-term extension of FISA amid controversy over proposed surveillance reforms and President Trump’s selection of Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence. Pulte has no national security experience; He previously led the Federal Housing Finance Agency and used the position to accuse Trump critics of mortgage fraud.
While some Republicans have called for reform of FISA, House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) told Politico that “anyone who votes ‘no’ is casting a dangerous vote to put American lives at risk.”
The argument that expiration of the law even before March 2027 could harm surveillance efforts requires some speculation. As NPR writes, electronic communications service providers “would still be legally required to hand over materials to intelligence agencies. Still, some lawmakers worry that companies forced to hand over communications might attempt to challenge the law in court, potentially leading to an indefinitely long period during which they would stop providing intelligence.”
FISA is not the only US spying authority
House members went for recess following yesterday’s efforts to extend the legislation. No further House votes are expected until June 23. While there is still plenty of time between now and March 2027 to finalize a FISA extension, the Electronic Frontier Foundation says the government has other spying authorities it could use even if a deal is not reached.
EFF said, “If Section 702 expires after March 2027, the United States government will take back the possibility of using other programs and authorities to justify surveillance of foreign national security targets, namely 12333, an obscure executive order from the 1980s that gives the U.S. government nearly unlimited power to spy on people in foreign countries.”
Executive Order 12333 is not simply an optional spying power, wrote Addington, who focuses on homeland security and civil liberties at the Cato Institute. He wrote, this order gives more intelligence than Section 702.
Eddington wrote, “The overwhelming majority of foreign signals intelligence had never before relied on Section 702.” “It operates under Executive Order 12333, the daily operating charter for the intelligence components of the Executive Branch, which requires no statute and no FISC order. A Title VII lapse does not remove a single 12333 collection platform.”
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