Supporters of its renewal stress that it is important not to let the surveillance equipment deplete as the war with Iran continues. National security officials have long argued that Section 702 is necessary to prevent terrorist attacks. But opponents from both parties worry that it allows federal officials to look at Americans’ communications without a search warrant.
House GOP leaders postponed the floor vote until days before the April 20 deadline because several factions in the lower chamber are opposed to its renewal without additional reforms, making its passage uncertain.
Section 702 was last renewed for two years in 2024 after a series of Abuse by the FBI It was brought to the brink of extinction. This provision was first authorized in 2008 and allows the government to collect communications of non-citizens located outside the US without a warrant, although it can also steal data from Americans who are in contact with the targeted foreigners.
The Trump administration is pushing to reauthorize the law for another 18 months without any changes. President Trump on Tuesday urged Republican unity to help advance the cleanup expansion through a party-line procedural vote on Wednesday.
The president met with some skeptical GOP lawmakers Tuesday night. A White House official told CBS News that it was “a productive discussion and we look forward to additional conversations.” CIA Director John Ratcliffe attended the House Republican Conference meeting Wednesday morning as the administration continues to advocate for a clean renewables.
GOP Rep. Andy Harris of Maryland, chairman of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, said he expected the procedural vote to fail.
“If it’s clean … he doesn’t have the votes,” Harris said Tuesday.
House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, said Tuesday that amendment votes would not be allowed because “it jeopardizes its passage.”
“It’s very important right now,” Johnson said.
But Johnson appeared open to an extension of less than 18 months, telling reporters, “The timing is not that important to me.”
Mr. Trump’s request came just hours before a House Rules Committee meeting, where GOP Representative Jim Jordan of Ohio, the House Judiciary Committee chairman who was once a leading voice for FISA reforms, defended a clean extension. Jordan said dozens of reforms implemented in 2024 have drastically reduced abuses.
“It’s a different program today,” Jordan said, pointing to reforms that included greater oversight of FBI questions and approval requirements before questioning a U.S. citizen.
Conservatives on the Rules Committee ultimately allowed the measure to advance out of committee late Tuesday, setting it up for consideration in the House.
The renewal still faces opposition from members on both sides of the aisle, who have cited a number of reasons why they can’t support it, with warrantless surveillance of Americans at the top of the list. GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert’s stance on renewal is “warrant or bust” — she and other lawmakers are seeking a judicial warrant if intelligence officials want to search Americans’ messages.
Ratcliffe told the House Intelligence Committee during a March hearing that “some reforms” to the law “should be considered,” but “warrants are not one of them.”
“A warrant won’t do,” Ratcliffe said. “You have to make decisions very quickly, and sometimes within a matter of hours.”
Some Democrats are also hesitant to renew the legislation without additional checks on the Trump administration. The top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, Representative Jamie Raskin of Maryland, said Tuesday that it would be “foolish” to trust the Trump administration to keep the law as intended and that he would not vote to renew it without reforms.
Republican Representative Anna Paulina Luna of Florida has called for tying the reauthorization to an election-related bill called the Save America Act to gain support.
Lawmakers across the political spectrum also want to prevent intelligence agencies from buying Americans’ data from third-party brokers without a warrant. The top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut, said Tuesday that the issue is “really important” for Congress to debate, but he added that “it has nothing to do with FISA 702.”
He said, “FISA 702 does not authorize the purchase of any commercially available data.”
Himes said it was important for Congress to reauthorize the program, which he called “the most important intelligence authorization.”
“There is no alternative to Section 702 and allowing it to lapse would be disastrous,” he said.
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