A bill 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.
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This enacted law extended the surveillance authorities of Title VII of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act — including Section 702, which allows collection of communications of non-U.S. persons abroad — by approximately six weeks, moving the expiration date from April 30, 2026 to June 12, 2026.
What this law does
What it does
This law amended the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 to push back the sunset date for Title VII of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act from April 30, 2026, to June 12, 2026. Title VII includes Section 702, which authorizes the collection of communications of non-U.S. persons believed to be outside the United States for foreign intelligence purposes. Information about U.S. persons may be incidentally collected and queried under certain circumstances.
The law makes no substantive change to the underlying surveillance authorities or to the rules governing how collected information may be used or queried. It is a short-term technical extension providing roughly six additional weeks before the authorities would otherwise expire.
Key provisions
- 1Amended Section 403(b) of the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 to extend the Title VII repeal date from April 30, 2026, to June 12, 2026, in both 50 U.S.C. 1881 note and 18 U.S.C. 2511 note.
- 2Set the effective date as the earlier of the date of enactment or April 29, 2026, ensuring no gap in authority.
Who is affected
Intelligence agencies that rely on Title VII authorities — particularly Section 702 collection programs — to gather foreign intelligence. Non-U.S. persons outside the United States who are surveillance targets, and U.S. persons whose communications may be incidentally collected and subsequently queried under the applicable legal standards.
Why it matters
Without this extension, the Title VII authorities, including Section 702 collection programs, would have lapsed on April 30, 2026. The six-week window gives Congress additional time to negotiate a longer-term reauthorization. The underlying programs are central to signals intelligence collection directed at foreign targets.
What changed
Changes to existing law
Amends FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (Public Law 110-261), Section 403(b) (Sec. 1(a))
Strikes 'April 30, 2026' and inserts 'June 12, 2026' in both the 50 U.S.C. 1881 note and 18 U.S.C. 2511 note provisions governing Title VII's expiration.
Effective dates
- Extension of Title VII authorities takes effect
- New expiration date for Title VII authorities under FISA
Legislative status & sources
Latest action
Became Public Law No: 119-87.
Official CRS summary
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This act extends the authorities of Title VII of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) until June 12, 2026.
Title VII of FISA generally addresses electronic surveillance and other methods of acquiring foreign intelligence information that are directed at targets outside the United States. Title VII includes surveillance under Section 702, which concerns acquiring communications of non-U.S. persons believed to be outside the United States to obtain foreign intelligence information. Information about U.S. persons may incidentally be acquired by this type of surveillance and subsequently queried (searched) under certain circumstances.
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Legislative subjects
Armed Forces and National Security; Citizenship and naturalization; Intelligence activities, surveillance, classified information; Telephone and wireless communication