Key facts
- The U.S. House of Representatives failed to renew the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) before its expiration.
- The failure to renew the law is partly due to lawmaker protests against the appointment of Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence.
- FISA, which allows U.S. intelligence agencies to collect information on foreign threats, including Americans' communications, was set to expire on Friday.
- The Trump administration withdrew Pulte's nomination and appointed Jay Clayton as his replacement.
- Despite the law's expiration, surveillance programs approved by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court remain authorized until March 2027.
The U.S. House of Representatives has failed to renew the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) before its scheduled expiration, a development that will cause the law to lapse for the first time. The failure stems from lawmaker protests against the Trump administration's appointment of Bill Pulte as the acting director of national intelligence.
The House voted 218-198 on the renewal bill, which required a two-thirds majority to pass, with 19 Republican lawmakers voting against it. FISA, also known as Section 702, allows U.S. intelligence agencies to collect information on foreign hackers, spies, and terrorists, and has been considered critical for national security.
Bipartisan efforts to renew the law had stalled over calls for reform, including requiring warrants before accessing Americans' private communications. However, the appointment of Pulte, described as a Trump ally with no intelligence experience, became a new obstacle. Democrats warned that Pulte's potential use of the position against political opponents posed a greater risk than the law's expiration.
The Trump administration later withdrew Pulte's nomination and appointed Jay Clayton, former head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to the role. However, by the time this news broke, many lawmakers had already departed the capital, making a last-minute deal to salvage FISA unlikely.
FISA gained public attention in 2013 following Edward Snowden's leaks, which revealed the NSA's extensive global surveillance programs, including access to data from tech giants like Apple and Google. Despite the law's expiration, surveillance programs authorized under FISA remain approved by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court until March 2027, though phone companies may be hesitant to share data without a clear legal framework.