House Approves Three-Year FISA Section 702 Renewal with CBDC Ban Provision

The House of Representatives voted 235-191 to pass a bill renewing Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act for three years, with 42 Democrats voting in support and 22 Republicans voting against it. The bill includes language permanently banning the Federal Reserve from issuing central bank digital currencies, a provision added to win over conservative holdouts.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune stated the House bill is dead on arrival in the Senate and warned that the CBDC ban will be interpreted as a poison pill.

Senate Democrats oppose the CBDC ban, and the Senate requires 60 votes to overcome a filibuster on the House bill. Thune signaled plans to move forward with a 45-day extension of Section 702. Speaker Mike Johnson stated he speaks with Leader Thune all the time and hopes the Senate can process the House bill.

The House is set to break for a two-week recess at the end of Thursday. U.S.

Platforms, including communications involving Americans. m. on Thursday. The House voted to extend Section 702 before a Friday midnight expiration deadline. The House's three-year extension requires the FBI to submit monthly reports justifying searches of Americans' data and expands criminal penalties for abusing Section 702 up to five years in prison.

Department of War Secretary Pete Hegseth stated the department strongly supports the reauthorization of FISA 702 and that many important missions could not have happened without intelligence gathered through FISA 702. During debate, Rep. Jim Himes stated there is no way to replace the value that Section 702 provides, that intelligence from Section 702 saved lives, and that there is no evidence that the Trump administration is misusing Section 702.

Rep. Andre Carson stated he is suspicious of the FISA renewal bill under this administration and was more comfortable voting for it in 2024. Rep.