The Patriot Act's clock is ticking

THREE IMPORTANT provisions of the USA Patriot Act are on the verge of expiring, and the House on Tuesday did not muster the votes to preserve them. If lawmakers fail to act, they risk stripping the government of important anti-terrorism tools.

The Patriot Act's lone-wolf provision allows law enforcement agents to seek court approval to surveil a non-U.S. citizen who is believed to be involved in terrorism but who may not yet have been identified as a member of a foreign group. A second provision allows the government to use roving wiretaps to keep tabs on a suspected foreign agent even if he repeatedly switches cellphone numbers or communication devices, relieving officers of the obligation of going back for court approval every time the suspect changes his means of communications. The third endangered provision permits the government to obtain a court order to seize "any tangible item" deemed relevant to a national security investigation.

The failed House legislation would have extended the provisions only until the end of the year. The Senate's more sensible and serious approach should guide the discussion. Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), joined by Republican Sens. Charles E. Grassley (Iowa) and Saxby Chambliss (Ga.), would permanently extend the measures. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) would renew the provisions until 2013 and would also extend 2008 amendments to the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act until that time.

Sen. Patrick J. Leahy (D-Vt.) offers the most attractive overall package because he couples the provisions' extension with important tweaks to enhance civil liberties protections. The Leahy bill also would require the attorney general and the Justice Department inspector general to provide periodic reports to congressional overseers to ensure that the tools are being used responsibly.

Mr. Leahy's bill is not flawless. It, too, would only extend the provisions until 2013 and it unnecessarily tinkers with national security letters - the powerful investigative tools that are most often served on Internet service providers, credit-rating agencies, financial institutions and telecommunications companies. National security letters, which are issued without a court order, require businesses to turn over client information such as telephone records and e-mail logs, but they may not be used to obtain the content of these communications.

Mr. Leahy's proposal rightly calls for limits on the FBI's use of national security letters and would give recipients a better shot at challenging the gag orders that routinely accompany the letters. But he proposes a sunset provision for the tool - a new requirement that would force Congress to consider renewal every few years. This measure should be excised, and Mr. Leahy should consider making the extensions permanent.