Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) speaks during U.S. Trade Representative Jamison Greer’s testimony during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on President Donald Trump’s trade policy at the Capitol in Washington, April 8, 2025.
Kevin Mohatreuter
The House and Senate on Friday approved a short-term expansion of a section of federal law that allows for warrantless surveillance and collection of foreign information, but updates beyond the end of this month remain in jeopardy.
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 is scheduled to expire on Monday and allows the government to collect the communications of people outside the United States, including when they interact with Americans. Friday’s vote extends the program through April 30.
The short-term extension passed the House after hardline Republicans quickly introduced separate five-year and 18-month proposals to extend the program early Friday.
Why is Section 702 controversial?
Supporters argue that warrantless surveillance programs are an invaluable tool in protecting U.S. interests and thwarting potential threats. The CIA announced this month that the program helped thwart a planned terrorist attack on a Taylor Swift concert in Austria in 2024.
But an extension that makes no changes to the program is widely opposed by many Republican hardliners and some Democrats like Sen. Ron Wyden of Oregon. Sen. Wyden briefly put a short-term extension on hold Friday, but relented in hopes of striking a deal that would make more sweeping changes to the oversight program.
“Americans understand that abuses of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act occur every day,” Wyden said on the Senate floor Friday, arguing that a straight extension is unacceptable. “So it’s clear that the time has come for real reform to protect Americans from a government they can’t legitimately trust.”
What does the White House say?
President Donald Trump posted support on Truth Social on Wednesday, calling for a clear 18-month extension of the program, citing the need for a strong defense, especially as the war in Iran continues.
“The fact is, whether you like FISA or not, FISA is very important to our military. I’ve talked to a lot of generals about this, and they think it’s important. No one is saying, even implicitly, that we can do without FISA, especially now with the incredible military operations in Iran,” Trump said.
What’s next?
Both the House and Senate left town on Friday after moving forward with short-term extensions. Leaders of both chambers will need to resume negotiations when they return to Washington next week. And they will have to contend with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle who want stronger privacy protections for Americans.
The top Democrats on the House Intelligence, Judiciary and Rules committees, Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) and Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.), issued a joint statement Friday condemning their Republican colleagues’ overnight attempts to block the five-year extension.
“In agreeing to a two-week extension of this authority, Democrats must be clear that this must be a truly bipartisan process and work with us in good faith to reach an agreement that introduces important reforms and security measures,” the lawmakers wrote. “And because every member and citizen deserves a meaningful role in this process, consistent with the rules of the House, we insisted, and Republicans agreed, that the results of the negotiations be made public at least 72 hours before the vote.”
Correction: This article has been revised to reflect Congress’ expansion of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. A previous version incorrectly stated the year the law went into effect.
