Senate reauthorizes Section 702 without warrant requirement as amendment fails, extending warrantless FBI database searches

The Senate voted in April 2026 to reauthorize Section 702 of FISA ahead of its April 20 sunset, rejecting a warrant requirement amendment and extending the FBI's authority to search a database of foreign-targeted communications for Americans' records without a warrant. Reform advocates including Sen. Ron Wyden argued the reauthorization codified a constitutional violation — allowing intelligence agencies to access Americans' communications through the back door without the probable cause showing the Fourth Amendment requires. The vote marked the third consecutive reauthorization cycle in which Congress declined to impose a warrant requirement.