S. 1339Senate115th Congress (2017-2019)In Committee

Liberty Through Strength Act

Sponsored by Tom CottonSen. Tom Cotton (R-AR)
Introduced June 12, 2017

AI-Generated Summary

Updated April 15, 2026 at 4:10 PM UTC

The Liberty Through Strength Act would expand and make permanent several intelligence‑gathering powers. It lets the National Security Agency keep using business records collected under the 1978 Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) before November 29 2015, makes roving surveillance and the ability to treat individual terrorists as foreign agents permanent, and removes the sunset on Title VII of the FISA Amendments Act. It also changes the FBI’s rules for requesting telephone‑toll and transaction records from service providers.

Key Provisions

  • Allows the NSA director to access all business records gathered under FISA section 501 before Nov 29 2015, requires the NSA to retain each record for five years, and sets this authority to last five years from the law’s enactment.
  • Amends the wording of the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act to keep the existing authority for roving surveillance under FISA.
  • Eliminates the limitation that prevented treating an individual terrorist as an agent of a foreign power, making that authority permanent.
  • Repeals the sunset provision for Title VII of the FISA Amendments Act, so that its provisions remain in effect indefinitely.
  • Updates FBI certification requirements for obtaining telephone‑toll and transactional records, specifying which FBI officials can request the data, what types of information may be requested, and that investigations cannot rely solely on First‑Amendment‑protected activity.

Legislative Activity

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1 earlier action
SenateIntro Referral Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

June 12, 2017

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SenateIntro Referral

Introduced in Senate

June 12, 2017

SenateIntro Referral

Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.

June 12, 2017

Bill Text

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Introduced in SenateIssued June 12, 2017

II

115th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. 1339

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

June 12, 2017

Mr. Cotton (for himself, Mr. Burr, Mr. Rubio, Mr. Cornyn, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Thune, and Mr. Perdue) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

A BILL

To provide authority for access to certain business records collected under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 prior to November 29, 2015, to make the authority for roving surveillance, the authority to treat individual terrorists as agents of foreign powers, and title VII of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 permanent, and to modify the certification requirements for access to telephone toll and transactional records by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Liberty Through Strength Act.

2.

Access to certain business records collected under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 prior to November 29, 2015

(a)

In general

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Director of the National Security Agency shall have access to all business records collected under section 501 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1861) prior to November 29, 2015, in the same manner and for the same purposes that the Director had access to such records prior to such date.

(b)

Requirement To maintain business records

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Director of the National Security Agency shall maintain each business record referred to in subsection (a) for the 5-year period beginning on the date that such record was acquired under section 501 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1861).

(c)

Effective period

The authority for access to business records under subsection (a) shall be in effect during the 5-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.

3.

Authority for roving surveillance under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978

Section 102(b)(1) of the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005 (Public Law 109–177; 50 U.S.C. 1805 note, 50 U.S.C. 1861 note, and 50 U.S.C. 1862 note) is amended by striking and section 105(c)(2) read as they and inserting reads as it.

4.

Permanent authority for individual terrorist to be treated as agents of foreign powers under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978

Section 6001 of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 (50 U.S.C. 1801 note) is amended by striking subsection (b).

5.

Repeal of sunset of title VII of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978

(a)

Repeal

Section 403 of the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–261; 122 Stat. 2474) is amended by striking subsection (b).

(b)

Conforming amendment

Section 404 of the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 (Public Law 110–261; 50 U.S.C. 1801 note) is amended by striking subsection (b).

6.

Counterintelligence access to telephone toll and transactional records

Subsection (b) of section 2709 of title 18, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:

(b)

Required certification

(1)

In general

The Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, or his or her designee in a position not lower than Deputy Assistant Director at Bureau headquarters or a Special Agent in Charge in a Bureau field office designated by the Director, may, using a term that specifically identifies a person, entity, telephone number, or account as the basis for a request, request information and records described in paragraph (2) of a person or entity, but not the contents of an electronic communication, if the Director (or his or her designee) certifies in writing to the wire or electronic communication service provider to which the request is made that the information and records sought are relevant to an authorized investigation to protect against international terrorism or clandestine intelligence activities, provided that such an investigation of a United States person is not conducted solely on the basis of activities protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

(2)

Obtainable types of information and records

The information and records described in this paragraph are the following:

(A)

Name, physical address, e-mail address, telephone number, instrument number, and other similar account identifying information.

(B)

Account number, login history, length of service (including start date), types of service, and means and sources of payment for service (including any card or bank account information).

(C)

Local and long distance toll billing records.

(D)

Internet Protocol (commonly known as IP) address or other network address, including any temporarily assigned IP or network address, communication addressing, routing, or transmission information, including any network address translation information, and session times and durations for an electronic communication, except that such information and records shall not include cell site location information, location information derived from a global navigation satellite system, or domain name information beyond the fully qualified domain name.

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