Johnson aims to cut provision in measure ending shutdown allowing senators to sue over phone data

House Speaker Mike Johnson said that the lower chamber will vote next week to undo a provision in the government funding bill that allows senators to sue the government if their cellphone data is obtained without them being notified.

Johnson said Wednesday regarding the provision that he "found out about it last night," NBC News reported.

“I was surprised. I was shocked by it, and I was angry about it, to be honest,” he also said.

Florida GOP Rep. Greg Steube reportedly said he voted no on the Senate-to-House measure over the provision.

The provision would benefit eight Republican senators whose phone records were accessed as part of the investigation that led to former special counsel Jack Smith’s probe of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.

Late Wednesday, the House passed the package to reopen the government, which President Trump signed, ending the historic 43-day government shutdown.

"House Republicans are introducing standalone legislation to repeal this provision that was included by the Senate in the government funding bill. We are putting this legislation on the fast track suspension calendar in the House for next week," Johnson posted on X on Wednesday.

The process will require the support of two-thirds of House members to pass the legislation before it moves on to the Senate.

The provision appears to apply only to senators and applies to data requests that were made on or after Jan. 1, 2022, and it requires that senators be notified if their data is disclosed. If the senators are not notified, and they successfully sue, then the court would be required to award “the greater of statutory damages of $500,000 or the amount of actual damages” for each violation.

This doesn't apply if the senator is the target of a criminal investigation or if a court ordered that the notification be delayed.

The call data includes who was called, when and the length of a call, but not its content.