What does Preamble of SAFE Act do?

This bill amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. The bill aims to reauthorize and reform certain authorities within the Act. The bill intends to provide greater transparency and oversight related to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act.

What does QUERY PROCEDURE REFORM. of SAFE Act do?

This section mandates audits of United States person queries conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) under section 702(f) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. The Department of Justice must complete these audits within 90 days of each 180-day period and submit the unredacted results to Congress within 30 days of completion. The legislation restricts the FBI's querying procedures, requiring training for personnel, prior approvals for certain queries, and written justifications for covered queries. It prohibits warrantless access to communications and information of United States persons and persons located in the United States acquired through certain means, with specific exceptions. The bill amends section 702(f) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to implement these changes and repeals a superseded audit requirement.

What does ANNUAL REPORTS. of SAFE Act do?

This section amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to establish annual reporting requirements. The Attorney General, in consultation with the Director of National Intelligence, must submit an annual report to specified congressional committees. The report must include disaggregated data from each agency conducting queries under section 702 of FISA. Required information includes the total number of queries, instances of accessing communications contents, applications for orders, asserted exceptions, and use of batch query technology. The report also details queries run by agencies with access to unminimized information on behalf of other agencies. The annual report will be made publicly available in April, following declassification review, and will cover the previous calendar year.

What does ACCOUNTABILITY AND REPORTING PROCEDURES FOR COMPLIANCE of SAFE Act do?

This section amends Title VII of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 by adding Section 710. The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is required to establish procedures to hold FBI employees accountable for violations of law, guidance, and procedure related to queries of information acquired pursuant to section 702. These procedures must include centralized tracking of employee performance incidents involving violations. Consequences for incidents will escalate, including suspension of access to information and documentation in personnel files for initial incidents. Subsequent incidents may result in indefinite suspension of access, reassignment, and referral to the FBI's Inspection Division. The procedures also clarify requirements for referring intentional misconduct and reckless conduct to the Inspection Division for investigation and disciplinary action.

What does PROHIBITION ON REVERSE TARGETING OF UNITED STATES PERSONS AND of SAFE Act do?

This section amends Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. The amendments modify the conditions under which foreign intelligence acquisitions can be authorized. The revisions restrict targeting of United States persons or persons reasonably believed to be located in the United States. Acquisitions are now limited to targeting persons reasonably believed to be non-United States persons located outside the United States. The amendments apply to subsections (b)(2), (d)(1), (h)(2)(A)(i), and (j)(2)(B) of Section 702.

What does FISA COURT REVIEW OF TARGETING DECISIONS. of SAFE Act do?

This section amends Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. It modifies subsection (h)(2) to include a random sample of targeting decisions and supporting written justifications. The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court must approve the sample size and methodology. Subsection (j)(1) is also amended to reference subsection (h) and include reviewing the random sample of targeting decisions.

What does SUNSET OF CHANGES TO DEFINITION OF ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATION of SAFE Act do?

This section modifies the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978. Amendments are made to sections 701(b)(4) and 801(6) of the Act. Subparagraph (E) is struck in both sections 701(b)(4) and 801(6). Subparagraphs (F) and (G) in section 801(6) are redesignated as (E) and (F) respectively. The term 'custodian' is removed from redesignated subparagraph (E) in both sections. References to '(D), or (E)' are changed to '(D) or (E)' in section 701(b)(4) and to '(E), or (F)' are changed to '(E) or (F)' in section 801(6).

What does LIMITATION ON DIRECTIVES UNDER FOREIGN INTELLIGENCE of SAFE Act do?

This section amends Section 702(i) of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to add limitations relating to directives issued to certain electronic communication service providers. It defines 'appropriate committees of Congress' as including congressional intelligence committees and the Senate and House Judiciary Committees. The term 'covered electronic communication service provider' is defined, with exclusions for certain providers providing assistance to the U.S. Government. It establishes a limitation stating that a directive may not be issued to a covered electronic communication service provider unless it relates to the type of service at issue in specific Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court opinions. The Director of National Intelligence, in consultation with the Attorney General, must complete a declassification review within 180 days of enactment and make information publicly available. Directives issued to covered providers must include a summary description of the services at issue in the covered opinions, unless a summary has been previously provided. The Attorney General must notify the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and provide additional information about directives, and the Court may review these directives. The Attorney General must also notify the appropriate committees of Congress and submit quarterly reports on directives issued and provided to the Court. These provisions are set to expire on December 31, 2026.

What does EXTENSION OF TITLE VII OF FISA; EXPIRATION OF FISA of SAFE Act do?

This section amends the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 to extend certain authorities. Specifically, it modifies sections 403(b) and 404(b) of the FISA Amendments Act of 2008. The amendments set expiration dates for these authorities to April 20, 2028. The text also updates references to previous amendments, replacing phrases referencing prior acts with 'as most recently amended'.

What does REQUIRED DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION AND LIMITS ON USE OF of SAFE Act do?

This section amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) to require disclosure of relevant information in FISA applications. The Attorney General or other federal officers must provide courts with all government information material to determining if an application satisfies FISA requirements, including exculpatory information. Section 702(h)(2) of FISA is amended to include a new requirement that the person making a certification attest that the Attorney General and Director of National Intelligence have been informed of information that could question the accuracy of the certification or raise doubts about required findings.

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SAFE Act

Last updated: 2/23/2026 · Introduced: 2/23/2026

Author: Mike Lee (R-UT)

TL;DR (AI)

The bill amends the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 to reauthorize and reform certain authorities, providing greater transparency and oversight.
It mandates audits of United States person queries conducted by the FBI and restricts the FBI's querying procedures, requiring training and prior approvals for certain queries.
The bill establishes annual reporting requirements, including disaggregated data from each agency conducting queries under section 702 of FISA, and makes these reports publicly available.
It prohibits warrantless access to communications and information of United States persons and persons located in the United States acquired through certain means, with specific exceptions.
The bill also limits the intelligence community's acquisition of data related to United States persons, restricts law enforcement agencies from obtaining personal data from data brokers, and enhances reporting requirements for the Director of National Intelligence.

119th Congressin committeeS. 4280(Introduced)Official page

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