Protecting Americans from Unauthorized Surveillance Act

This bill aims to strengthen oversight of surveillance activities conducted under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) by establishing a new FISA Oversight Office within the Department of Justice. This Office is tasked with evaluating every application filed under Title I of FISA to ensure compliance with legal standards. A key provision mandates that if an application targets a United States person and the probable cause standard is not clearly met, the Office shall petition to join the case and file a motion challenging the application. For other applications where probable cause may not be met, the Office has the discretion to intervene. The Office will also report annually to Congress on its activities, including the number of challenges made and declined. Furthermore, the bill amends FISA to require the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISC) to appoint an amicus curiae for every application for an order or review under Title I. This change removes the court's discretion, making the appointment of an independent legal advisor mandatory for all such proceedings to ensure robust scrutiny.