[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 76 (Thursday, April 30, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S2158]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
AMENDING THE FISA AMENDMENTS ACT OF 2008 TO EXTEND THE AUTHORITIES OF
TITLE VII OF THE FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE SURVEILLANCE ACT OF 1978
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to the immediate consideration of S. 4465, which is at the
desk.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the bill by title.
The senior assistant legislative clerk read as follows:
A bill (S. 4465) to amend the FISA Amendments Act of 2008
to extend the authorities of title VII of the Foreign
Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978, and for other
purposes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from Oregon.
Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, reserving the right to object, let me pick
up on where I think the majority leader wants to go as well. We have
been working hard on the 702 legislation with the kind of lodestar that
we want to prove that, for the first time, the government is saying
that liberty and security are not mutually exclusive; that we can do
both.
To do that, we now have a letter that will be sent very shortly from
Chairman Cotton and Ranking Member Warner to the DNI and the Attorney
General. I just want to read this--it is very short--into the Record
that will reflect this, and then we will have a brief colloquy, the
majority leader and I, that is along the lines of what we talked about.
So Chairman Cotton and Ranking Member Warner write to the DNI and the
Attorney General:
Earlier this month, the Department of Justice delivered to
Congress a classified Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
(FISC) opinion and order, dated March 17, 2026. Under the
law, your offices are currently conducting a declassification
review for the purposes of making this FISC opinion and order
publicly available, consistent with the protection of sources
and methods, as soon as practicable. In order to inform the
Senate debate on reauthorization of section 702 of the
Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, we expect that this
declassification review will be completed, and the FISC
opinion released publicly, within 15 days.
So, again, this is coming from the chairman of our committee,
Chairman Cotton, and Senator Warner, our vice chairman. It is going to
the DNI and the Attorney General, and to make sure that everybody
understands the state of play here, a formal letter is being written,
and we are just getting the signatures on that now. Everyone is waiting
to hear where things stand.
And with that, let me yield to my colleague the majority leader.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection to proceeding?
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the bill.
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, the Senator from Oregon has referenced a
letter, and my understanding is that both the chair of the Intelligence
Committee Senator Cotton and the ranking member on the Senate
Intelligence Committee Senator Warner have agreed to this letter, and
it reflects what the Senator from Oregon is asking for.
And so I think that, hopefully, at this point, we will be able to
proceed and allow for additional time and consideration so that we can
come to an agreement that, hopefully, this body and the House can agree
upon to reauthorize the FISA Program.
I think there is a discussion going on about reforms to that. But
this will allow additional time to do that. In the meantime, I think,
again, my understanding is, the chair and ranking member have signed
off on the letter to which the Senator from Oregon refers.
Mr. WYDEN. Mr. President, the majority leader states it correctly.
That is my understanding as well. The point of this is to have some
additional time. This is a very new period in this debate with, for
example, AI driving so much of this. And you know, new tools require
new rules, and we are going to be able to think about how to proceed
with that in the future.
I yield my time. I thank the majority leader for, in effect,
reaffirming what we have been working on. I think that this letter from
the chair and the ranking member of the Intelligence Committee, where I
am proud to serve, to DNI and the Attorney General is a step in the
right direction.
I yield the floor.
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the bill be
considered read a third time.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
The bill was ordered to be engrossed for a third reading and was read
the third time.
Mr. THUNE. I know of no further debate on the bill.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. If there is no further debate on the bill, the
bill having been read the third time, the question is, Shall the bill
pass?
The bill (S. 4465) was passed as follows:
S. 4465
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. EXTENSION OF AUTHORITIES OF TITLE VII OF THE
FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE SURVEILLANCE ACT OF 1978.
(a) Extension of Repeal Date of Title VII.--Section 403(b)
of the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-261) is
amended--
(1) in paragraph (1) (50 U.S.C. 1881 note), by striking
``April 30, 2026'' and inserting ``June 12, 2026''; and
(2) in paragraph (2) (18 U.S.C. 2511 note), in the matter
preceding subparagraph (A), by striking ``April 30, 2026''
and inserting ``June 12, 2026''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section
shall take effect on the earlier of the date of the enactment
of this Act or April 29, 2026.
Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the motion to
reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.
____________________