# 119-hr-7816: Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act of 2026

119-hr-7816, Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act of 2026, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5] (R-AZ); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-09-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7816
- As of: 2026-09-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-hr-7816
- Congress: 119
- Title: Protect Liberty and End Warrantless Surveillance Act of 2026
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2026-03-05
- Sponsor: Rep. Biggs, Andy [R-AZ-5] (R-AZ)
- Cosponsors: 7
- Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2026-09-21

## Summary

**Curtails warrantless mass queries of Americans' communications under Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA).** This bill would restrict when agencies can query U.S. person data, tighten rules for directives to electronic communication service providers (ECSPs), expand court-appointed privacy counsel, and ban agencies from buying certain third-party records for payment. - Families and individuals: Makes it harder for agencies to retrieve Americans' communications without a warrant. Location data, web browsing history, and internet search history are placed under FISA's exclusive procedures. - Technology companies and intermediaries: Expands the definition of "online service provider" and limits what intermediary service providers may disclose. It bars law enforcement and intelligence agencies from obtaining covered customer records or illegitimately obtained information in exchange for anything of value and rolls back certain ECSP definition changes by December 31, 2026 while extending Title VII repeal rules to April 20, 2028. - Courts and privacy advocates: Requires the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) to appoint amici curiae with privacy expertise and gives them access to classified materials. The Director of National Intelligence and the Attorney General must complete a declassification review of specified FISC opinions within 180 days.

## Cosponsors (7)

- Rep. Crane, Elijah [R-AZ-2] (R-AZ), 2026-03-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Clyde, Andrew S. [R-GA-9] (R-GA), 2026-03-05T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Higgins, Clay [R-LA-3] (R-LA), 2026-03-12T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Self, Keith [R-TX-3] (R-TX), 2026-03-12T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Harris, Mark [R-NC-8] (R-NC), 2026-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Gosar, Paul A. [R-AZ-9] (R-AZ), 2026-04-06T00:00:00.000Z
- Rep. Perry, Scott [R-PA-10] (R-PA), 2026-04-16T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Limits on government searches for U.S. persons: benefit, high. If enacted, this bill would ban most government searches of Section 702 data to retrieve communications or information about U.S. persons. It would allow only narrow exceptions, such as court orders, imminent-emergency queries, case-by-case consent, and tightly limited defensive cybersecurity check…
- Stronger protections for online data and providers: benefit, high. If enacted, this bill would redefine online service providers to include many types of services, including library and school systems. It would stop the government from forcing third parties to hand over covered customer or subscriber records unless a court issues an order using the strictest appli…
- More oversight in secret surveillance courts: benefit, medium. If enacted, this bill would require the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court to appoint one or more outside amici curiae in cases that raise novel or important privacy, First Amendment, or civil liberties issues. At least one appointee should have privacy and civil‑liberties expertise unless the…
- Delay repeal of certain surveillance powers: cost, high. If enacted, this bill would push back the repeal date for Title VII authorities to April 20, 2028. The amendments would take effect on the earlier of the date of enactment or April 20, 2026. The bill would also update transition cross-references to reflect the changed repeal date.

## Related bills

- 119-hr-22: SAVE Act
- 119-hr-1301: Death Tax Repeal Act
- 119-hr-425: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act
- 119-hr-4788: To require the District of Columbia to permit Members of Congress who have a valid license or permit which is issued pursuant to the law of a State which permi…
- 119-hr-645: National Constitutional Carry Act
- 119-hr-38: Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-hr-7816 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/7816)

## Related
- [119-hr-22: SAVE Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-22)
- [119-hr-1301: Death Tax Repeal Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1301)
- [119-hr-425: Repealing Big Brother Overreach Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-425)
- [119-hr-4788: To require the District of Columbia to permit Members of Congress who have a va…](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-4788)
- [119-hr-645: National Constitutional Carry Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-645)
- [119-hr-38: Constitutional Concealed Carry Reciprocity Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-38)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7816 (as of 2026-09-21).