Congress extends controversial surveillance powers for 10 days : NPR
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and his Republican colleagues celebrate GOP tax policy during an event in front of the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, April 15, 2026.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
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J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Congress voted to extend a controversial surveillance program until April 30.
The extension, which initially passed overnight in the House, came after Republican Party leaders failed to secure a five-year renewal, as well as an 18-month renewal demanded by President Trump. Both votes fell.
That left a stopgap measure for Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which was set to expire Monday. The Senate approved the extension by voice vote Friday morning.
The tool allows U.S. intelligence agencies to intercept the electronic communications of foreign nationals located outside the United States.
Like previous reauthorizations, the renewal of FISA 702 has sparked a lengthy debate on Capitol Hill over whether and how the tool should be changed.
Some of the approximately 350,000 targets whose communications are collected under FISA 702 authority are in contact with Americans, whose calls, texts and emails could end up in the trove of information available to the federal government for review.
For nearly two decades, privacy-minded lawmakers from both parties have sought to reform the program to require specific court approval before federal law enforcement or intelligence agents are allowed to review an American’s information.
The intelligence community argued that this would undermine the tool’s effectiveness and endanger national security.
The fight over these changes — responsible for weeks of turmoil in the House — ultimately resulted in limited changes that failed to satisfy privacy advocates.
If lawmakers fail to reach a compromise by April 30 and FISA 702 lapses, intelligence collection could continue but would likely be subject to legal action from the technology and telecommunications industry that is obligated to provide communications to the government.
