DORAL, Florida — House Republican leaders plan to advance an 18-month extension of a key surveillance law ahead of an expiration deadline next month, Intelligence Chair Rick Crawford (R-Ark.) and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise said in interviews Tuesday.
The White House is backing the extension of the spy powers in question, known as Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, as the April 20 deadline approaches. The renewal would not include new restrictions on intelligence agencies supported by some lawmakers.
Scalise did not give specifics on when it would come up for a vote, but two people granted anonymity to discuss internal planning said GOP leaders are eyeing a floor vote the week of April 13.
“We’re going to be talking to all our members, like on any big issue,” Scalise said. “But the president’s made it clear why it’s important.”
President Donald Trump mentioned the renewal in his remarks to lawmakers gathered for the annual House GOP retreat Monday. But he threw a wrench into the plans for advancing a clean extension when he endorsed the idea of attaching the FISA reauthorization to the updated elections bill he called his “No. 1 priority.”
“Maybe you put them together, because a lot of people feel very strongly about FISA,” Trump said.
The surveillance measure is one of several must-pass bills Speaker Mike Johnson laid out for 2026 in a closed-door meeting with House Republicans Tuesday morning, according to four people in the room.
Crawford and Scalise did not rule out the possibility of attaching the GOP elections overhaul, known as the SAVE America Act, to the FISA extension.
“I’m open to whatever it takes to get things done and sometimes, you’ve got to be creative to get things done,” Crawford said. “It’s definitely a strategic way of getting it across the finish line potentially. We just have to see if that’s the appropriate course of action.”
Section 702, which allows the government to collect the data of noncitizens abroad without a warrant, could be an issue for hard-line conservatives, who were upset when it was extended in 2024.
Asked Tuesday if there plans to discuss the matter at the retreat, which continues till Wednesday, Crawford said, “Not yet, but the day is still young.”
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