A White House review on Monday recommended removing the FBI’s ability to conduct non-national security queries under a controversial FISA surveillance law.
Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act allows the U.S. government to collect digital communications from foreigners.
Section 702 expires at the end of this year unless it is reauthorized. Some lawmakers, both Democrats and Republicans, are calling for major reforms based on concerns that it has been abused.
The president’s Intelligence Advisory Board concluded that, if Congress fails to reauthorize Section 702, history may judge it one of the worst intelligence failures of all time.
According to the 42-page report, changes are necessary because the Justice Department audit of the FBI’s use of Section 702 in 2021 found that some “noncompliant queries included individuals arrested during the January 6 Capitol breach” – the uprising of supporters of then-President Trump in 2021.
A review recommended that Attorney General Merrick Garland “remove FBI’s authority to query Section 702 data for evidence of a non-national security crime.”
“The FBI’s use of Section 702 should be limited to foreign intelligence purposes, and FBI personnel should receive additional training on what foreign intelligence entails,” the review said.
In spite of the fact that there were no instances of the FBI willfully misusing Section 702, the review found that the “FBI’s conduct has nevertheless undermined public confidence in its ability to use Section 702 in the intended manner.”
In conjunction with the release of the White House review, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan and his deputy, Jon Finer, issued a statement saying reauthorizing Section 702 is necessary to combat foreign threats.