To amend the USA PATRIOT ACT to extend the sunset of certain provisions of such Act.
Public Law 109-170 · H.R. 4659 · 109th Congress · began in the House
Signed by George W. Bush (R) on Feb 3, 2006 · Crime and Law Enforcement
Sponsor: Rep. James Sensenbrenner (R-WI-5)
Cosponsors: None
Passage votesYeaNay
- HouseVoice vote
- SenateRecorded vote: 95 yea, 1 nay95–1
Data notes
The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.
Summary
The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.
Amends the Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT ACT) Act of 2001 to extend from February 3, 2006, to March 10, 2006, provisions of that Act and the "lone wolf" provision of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004. (The lone wolf provision redefined "agent of a foreign power" to permit issuance of Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) orders targeting terrorists without a showing that they are members of a terrorist group or agents of such a group or of any other foreign power.)
Who voted for it
Every senator of the 109th Congress on the ideology compass. Highlighted: the 95 who voted yea on final passage. Faded: everyone else, including those who voted nay, did not vote, or had not yet taken office.
95 yea1 nay4 present or did not vote
Democrats who voted yea(43)
Sen. Barbara BoxerD-CA
Sen. Tom HarkinD-IA- Sen. Mark DaytonD-MN
Sen. Ted KennedyD-MA
Sen. Richard DurbinD-IL
Sen. Daniel AkakaD-HI
Sen. Frank LautenbergD-NJ- Sen. Paul SarbanesD-MD
Sen. Carl LevinD-MI
Sen. Patrick LeahyD-VT
Sen. Barbara MikulskiD-MD
Sen. Jack ReedD-RI
Sen. John KerryD-MA
Sen. Bob MenendezD-NJ
Sen. Debbie StabenowD-MI
Sen. Robert ByrdD-WV
Sen. Hillary ClintonD-NY
Sen. Byron DorganD-ND
Sen. Barack ObamaD-IL
Sen. Ron WydenD-OR
Sen. Patty MurrayD-WA
Sen. Harry ReidD-NV
Sen. Christopher DoddD-CT
Sen. Chuck SchumerD-NY- Sen. Jim JeffordsD-VT
Sen. Jay RockefellerD-WV
Sen. Daniel InouyeD-HI
Sen. Dianne FeinsteinD-CA
Sen. Maria CantwellD-WA
Sen. Evan BayhD-IN
Sen. Kent ConradD-ND
Sen. Joseph BidenD-DE
Sen. Ken SalazarD-CO
Sen. Herb KohlD-WI
Sen. Joseph LiebermanD-CT
Sen. Tim JohnsonD-SD
Sen. Blanche LincolnD-AR
Sen. Bill NelsonD-FL
Sen. Mark PryorD-AR
Sen. Mary LandrieuD-LA
Sen. Max BaucusD-MT
Sen. Thomas CarperD-DE
Sen. Ben NelsonD-NE
Republicans who voted yea(52)
- Sen. Lincoln ChafeeR-RI
Sen. Olympia SnoweR-ME
Sen. Susan CollinsR-ME
Sen. Arlen SpecterR-PA- Sen. Mike DeWineR-OH
Sen. Norm ColemanR-MN
Sen. Gordon SmithR-OR
Sen. John WarnerR-VA
Sen. George VoinovichR-OH
Sen. Richard LugarR-IN- Sen. Jim TalentR-MO
Sen. Lisa MurkowskiR-AK
Sen. Ted StevensR-AK
Sen. Kay HutchisonR-TX
Sen. Robert BennettR-UT
Sen. Mel MartinezR-FL- Sen. Conrad BurnsR-MT
- Sen. Rick SantorumR-PA
Sen. John McCainR-AZ
Sen. Thad CochranR-MS
Sen. John ThuneR-SD
Sen. Orrin HatchR-UT
Sen. Lamar AlexanderR-TN
Sen. Chuck HagelR-NE
Sen. Pat RobertsR-KS
Sen. Kit BondR-MO
Sen. Chuck GrassleyR-IA
Sen. Elizabeth DoleR-NC
Sen. Lindsey GrahamR-SC- Sen. Bill FristR-TN
Sen. Sam BrownbackR-KS
Sen. Richard ShelbyR-AL
Sen. Larry CraigR-ID- Sen. George AllenR-VA
Sen. Mike CrapoR-ID
Sen. Mitch McConnellR-KY
Sen. Judd GreggR-NH
Sen. Saxby ChamblissR-GA
Sen. Johnny IsaksonR-GA
Sen. Richard BurrR-NC
Sen. John SununuR-NH
Sen. John CornynR-TX
Sen. John EnsignR-NV
Sen. Michael EnziR-WY
Sen. David VitterR-LA
Sen. Jon KylR-AZ
Sen. Jim BunningR-KY
Sen. Wayne AllardR-CO
Sen. Jeff SessionsR-AL
Sen. Jim DeMintR-SC
Sen. Jim InhofeR-OK
Sen. Thomas CoburnR-OK
Data notes
The Senate’s recorded vote on the final version of the law (roll call 377 in Voteview), matched to the vote the record cites and checked against its totals. Positions are each member’s DW-NOMINATE score for that Congress, as on the Ideology page; left to right is more liberal to more conservative. Paired and announced yea votes count as yea. Lists follow the compass, most liberal first. A name links to a profile only for members of the current Congress. A law passed by voice vote or unanimous consent has no member list, and neither does a vote Voteview has not yet recorded.
Committees
The committees the bill was sent to, and what each did with it.
Data notes
A committee links to its page only where it exists in the current Congress; older and renamed committees are named without a link.
Related bills
5 bills the Library of Congress relates to this one.
H.R. 4506Related bill
To amend the USA PATRIOT ACT to extend the sunset of certain provisions of that Act and the lone wolf provision of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to March 31, 2006.
H.R. 4647Related bill
To amend the USA PATRIOT ACT to extend the sunset of certain provisions of such Act.
S. 2082Related bill
A bill to amend the USA PATRIOT ACT to extend the sunset of certain provisions of that Act and the lone wolf provision of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to March 31, 2006.
S. 2118Related bill
A bill to amend the USA PATRIOT ACT to extend the sunset of certain provisions of the Act and the lone wolf provision of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to March 31, 2006 and to combat metha…
S. 2167 · became Public Law 109-160Related bill
A bill to amend the USA PATRIOT ACT to extend the sunset of certain provisions of that Act and the lone wolf provision of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004 to July 1, 2006.
Data notes
Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.
Timeline
From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 18 actions.
- Feb 3, 2006Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 109-170.
- Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
- FloorFloor · Presented to President.
- FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Feb 2, 2006FloorFloor · Passed Senate without amendment by Yea-Nay Vote. 95 - 1. Record Vote Number: 11.Senate roll call 11
- FloorFloor · Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent.
- OtherOther · Cleared for White House.
- Feb 1, 2006FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.
- FloorFloor · Considered as unfinished business.
- FloorFloor · VACATING DEMAND FOR YEAS AND NAYS - Mr. Sensenbrenner asked unanimous consent that the demand for the Yeas and Nays on the adoption of the motion to suspend the rules and pass H.R. 4659 be vacated to the end that the Chair put the question de novo. Agreed to without objection.
- FloorFloor · At the conclusion of debate, the Yeas and Nays were demanded and ordered. Pursuant to the provisions of clause 8, rule XX, the Chair announced that further proceedings on the motion would be postponed.
- FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 4659.
- FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
- FloorFloor · Mr. Sensenbrenner moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- CommitteeCommittee · Received in the Senate.
- Jan 31, 2006CommitteeCommittee · Referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Intelligence (Permanent Select), for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerne…
- IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in House
Data notes
Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.
Amendments
No amendments to this bill are on record.
Data notes
Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.
Official record
The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.