April 30th and the FISA Court
José Angel Gutiérrez
joseangelgutierrezbooks.com
voiceofthemainland.blogspot.com/voces-index
Usually April has some of the most provocative dates like April Fool’s Day on the 1st, Federal Income Tax deadline day on the 15th , and now we have the 30th. On that day, at this writing, the US Federal Intelligence Surveillance Court will hear the case of Section 702’s extension of the actual Federal Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA-92 Stat.1783). This surveillance and collection of foreign intelligence on US soil was first made possible under the Carter Administration on October 28, 1978. The main sponsor was Democratic Party, US Senator Edward “Ted” Kennedy.
What made it controversial then and now is that it allows the CIA, FBI, and the National Security Agency (NSA) to collect and analyze data of overseas communications without a warrant. US parties at this end of any overseas communication do not have to be notified or charged with a crime. Once any of these agencies wants to continue the surveillance within the US, it must seek authorization from the FISA Court called a “warrant.” In the 33 years of existence and 33, 942 warrants later, the FISA Court has only denied 12 requests; a 0.03 percent rate. There are two main reasons for this gross imbalance in the data. One, no attorneys for the persons targeted are allowed to make an appearance. Two, the Court only hears from the agency seeking the warrant. If there is an appeal, which is very rare, it first happened in 2002 (In re Sealed Case No. 02-001).
In April 2024, Congress passed a new bill, Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act (RISAA), extending Section 702 for two years. Many abuses under FISA and RISAA have been made public. Many US citizens and residents have been targeted for warrantless surveillance such as the Black Lives Matter protestors, US government officials, journalists, political commentators, and 19,000 donors to the campaign of a single member of Congress. In 2026, these abuses continue. In March 2026, the public learned of the use of a loophole used to
purchase sensitive data on Americans from public internet platforms. In April 2026, more abuses by the FBI were found and reported to still be underway in domestic surveillance much like the COINTELPRO operations of the late 1960s and 1979s. I’ve written extensively on this type of surveillance of Chicanos and Mexicans. See my book covers and reviews at joseangelgutierrezbooks.com/
Trump Taco had signed an emergency extension of FISA but it has expired. This new extension is begin sought with revisions to accommodate some of the criticisms of its Congressional critics. At the moment, the FISA Court is operating under a stopgap extension. April 30th is the day for argument and we will learn if Section 702 will be allowed to expire of the FISA Court will kick the can back to Congress asking they close these violations and perhaps the entire RISAA legislation.
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