USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020
Latest action. Message on House action received in Senate and at desk: House requests a conference.
USA FREEDOM Reauthorization Act of 2020
This bill reauthorizes through December 1, 2023, provisions related to intelligence gathering under the Foreign Intelligence and Surveillance Act (FISA) and amends FISA-related provisions.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation may not seek certain FISA-authorized orders to obtain (1) call detail records on an ongoing basis, (2) a tangible thing where a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy and a warrant would typically be required, or (3) cellular or GPS location information.
A tangible thing obtained under FISA may be retained for no longer than five years except in certain instances, such as when a tangible thing is reasonably believed to be evidence of a crime. If the government intends to use information from a tangible thing obtained under FISA in a trial or other proceeding, it shall be treated as information obtained through electronic surveillance, unless a U.S. authority finds that notifying the person targeted would harm national security. (There are existing protections related to electronic surveillance, such as allowing the targeted person to move to suppress the disclosure of the obtained information in court.)
In applications for certain FISA-authorized orders to obtain information or conduct surveillance, the applicant must certify that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has received any information that might raise doubts about the application. The bill imposes additional requirements on FISA-authorized orders targeting (1) a U.S. person, or (2) a federal elected official or candidate.
The bill increases criminal penalties for violations related to electronic surveillance conducted under color of law or false statements made to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA court). A U.S. government employee, officer, or contractor who engages in deliberate misconduct before a FISA court shall be subject to adverse actions, such as removal from the individual's position.
The bill broadens the criteria for when a FISA court decision shall be declassified and requires the declassification review and release of such opinions within 180 days of an opinion being issued.
The summary continues for 4 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Passed Senate" stage on May 14, 2020. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Message on House action received in Senate and at desk: House requests a conference.
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The record's latest action, on June 1, 2020: Message on House action received in Senate and at desk: House requests a conference.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 116th Congress (2019-20), 344 of the 14,345 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.4 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one has no outstanding steps listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
JERROLD NADLER (D-NY) introduced it on March 10, 2020, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Democrat.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on March 10, 2020, 2375 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 2292 days ago, on June 1, 2020.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 116th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2021 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseMessage on House action received in Senate and at desk: House requests a conference.
- SenateNot stated in the latest action
- PresidentNot stated in the latest action