50 U.S.C. § 1871 — Semiannual report of the Attorney General
submitted 22 years ago by Pub. L. 95-511 to r/title-50-WAR-AND-NATIONAL-DEFENSE · 719 words · no verdicts yet
Every six months, the Attorney General must report specified surveillance targeting, orders, uses, legal interpretations, and court decisions to four congressional committees. The section also requires prompt submissions of significant court materials and permits limited redactions to protect national security.
(a) Report. Every six months, the Attorney General must report to the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, and the House and Senate Judiciary Committees, in a way consistent with protecting national security, for the preceding 6 months: (1) the total people targeted by orders under this chapter, broken down into (A) electronic surveillance under § 1805, (B) physical searches under § 1824, (C) pen registers under § 1842, (D) access to records under § 1861, (E) acquisitions under § 1881b, and (F) acquisitions under § 1881c; (2) individuals covered by an order under § 1801(b)(1)(C); (3) times the Attorney General authorized information obtained under this chapter, or derived from it, for use in a criminal proceeding; (4) a summary of significant legal interpretations involving matters before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court or its Court of Review, including Department of Justice interpretations in applications or pleadings; and (5) copies of all decisions, orders, or opinions of either court significantly construing this chapter.
(b) Frequency. The first report was due no later than 6 months after December 17, 2004. Later reports are due every 6 months.
(c) Submissions to Congress. The Attorney General must submit to those committees (1) within 45 days after either court issues a decision, order, or opinion that significantly construes law, changes this chapter’s application, or applies it in a novel way—including a denial or modification of an application—a copy and related pleadings, applications, and legal memoranda; (2) copies of each such item issued in the 5 years ending July 10, 2008, not previously reported; (3) for a proceeding with a court-reporter transcript, within 45 days after the government receives the final transcript or the matter is resolved, whichever is later, notice that the transcript exists, and, within 3 business days after a committee asks to review it, facilitation of the request; and (4) each declassified document reviewed under § 1872.
(d) Protection of national security. After consulting the Director of National Intelligence, the Attorney General may authorize redactions of subsection (c) materials when necessary to protect national security. Redactions must be limited to sensitive sources-and-methods information or target identities.
(e) Definitions. (1) “Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court” means the court established under § 1803(a). (2) “Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review” means the court established under § 1803(b).
On a semiannual basis, the Attorney General shall submit to the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives, the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate, and the Committees on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Senate, in a manner consistent with the protection of the national security, a report setting forth with respect to the preceding 6-month period—
the aggregate number of persons targeted for orders issued under this chapter, including a breakdown of those targeted for—
electronic surveillance under section 1805 of this title;
physical searches under section 1824 of this title;
pen registers under section 1842 of this title;
access to records under section 1861 1 of this title;
acquisitions under section 1881b of this title; and
acquisitions under section 1881c of this title;
the number of individuals covered by an order issued pursuant to section 1801(b)(1)(C) 1 of this title;
the number of times that the Attorney General has authorized that information obtained under this chapter may be used in a criminal proceeding or any information derived therefrom may be used in a criminal proceeding;
a summary of significant legal interpretations of this chapter involving matters before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court or the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review, including interpretations presented in applications or pleadings filed with the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court or the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review by the Department of Justice; and
copies of all decisions, orders, or opinions of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court or Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review that include significant construction or interpretation of the provisions of this chapter.
The first report under this section shall be submitted not later than 6 months after December 17, 2004. Subsequent reports under this section shall be submitted semi-annually thereafter.
The Attorney General shall submit to the committees of Congress referred to in subsection (a)—
not later than 45 days after the date on which the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court or the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review issues a decision, order, or opinion, including any denial or modification of an application under this chapter, that includes significant construction or interpretation of any provision of law or results in a change of application of any provision of this chapter or a novel application of any provision of this chapter, a copy of such decision, order, or opinion and any pleadings, applications, or memoranda of law associated with such decision, order, or opinion;
a copy of each such decision, order, or opinion, and any pleadings, applications, or memoranda of law associated with such decision, order, or opinion, that was issued during the 5-year period ending on July 10, 2008, and not previously submitted in a report under subsection (a);
for any hearing, oral argument, or other proceeding before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court or Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review for which a court reporter produces a transcript, not later than 45 days after the government receives the final transcript or the date on which the matter of the hearing, oral argument, or other proceeding is resolved, whichever is later, a notice of the existence of such transcript. Not later than three business days after a committee referred to in subsection (a) requests to review an existing transcript, the Attorney General shall facilitate such request; and
a copy of each declassified document that has undergone review under section 1872 of this title.
The Attorney General, in consultation with the Director of National Intelligence, may authorize redactions of materials described in subsection (c) that are provided to the committees of Congress referred to in subsection (a), if such redactions are necessary to protect the national security of the United States and are limited to sensitive sources and methods information or the identities of targets.
In this section:
The term “Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court” means the court established under section 1803(a) of this title.
The term “Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review” means the court established under section 1803(b) of this title.
Source credit: (Pub. L. 95–511, title VI, § 601, as added Pub. L. 108–458, title VI, § 6002(a)(2), Dec. 17, 2004, 118 Stat. 3743; amended Pub. L. 110–261, title I, §§ 101(c)(2), 103, title IV, § 403(b)(2)(B), July 10, 2008, 122 Stat. 2459, 2460, 2474; Pub. L. 114–23, title VI, § 604, June 2, 2015, 129 Stat. 297; Pub. L. 118–49, § 8(b), Apr. 20, 2024, 138 Stat. 874.)
- 2004Enacted · Pub. L. 95-511 · 118 Stat. 3743
- 2008Amended · Pub. L. 110-261 · 122 Stat. 2459, 2460, 2474
- 2015Amended · Pub. L. 114-23 · 129 Stat. 297
- 2024Amended · Pub. L. 118-49 · 138 Stat. 874
A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by Pub. L. 95-511 on 2004-12-17.
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