April 13 (Bloomberg) -- The Bush administration proposed legislation today that would expand potential surveillance targets to include people in the U.S. suspected of possessing significant information on terrorist or enemy government plots.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act now allows the government to get court approval for eavesdropping only if it shows a clear link to an enemy government or terrorist group.

While the proposal would expand the pool of surveillance targets, to get a warrant the government would still have to offer evidence that the person would yield important intelligence, administration officials said.

The legislation is an attempt to modernize the 1978 FISA law to take into account the development of cell phones and e- mail, which have made it easier for terrorists to communicate, administration officials said.

Lawmakers and civil liberties groups have protested the administration's National Security Agency program that conducted surveillance without warrants. They are likely to oppose the new legislation, said Steven Aftergood, who directs a project on government secrecy for the Federation of American Scientists in Washington.

``Every proposed change is potentially controversial,'' Aftergood said.

The administration said it authorized the warrantless surveillance because the law was outdated and would slow the pursuit of terrorists after the Sept. 11 attacks.

Senate Hearing Set

``Congress shouldn't reward a president who continuously disregards the rule of law,'' said Caroline Fredrickson, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Washington legislative office. The 1978 law ``doesn't need to be modernized. It needs to be followed,'' she said.

Administration officials will appear before the Senate Intelligence Committee on April 17 to discuss the legislative proposal.

Senator Jay Rockefeller, a West Virginia Democrat who is the panel's chairman, won't comment on the legislation until the hearing, said spokeswoman Wendy Morigi.

The administration measure also would provide liability protection to telecommunications companies that have aided the government in surveillance since the Sept. 11 attacks. Companies such as AT&T Inc. are defending themselves against class-action lawsuits stemming from their alleged work with the government.

`Cooperate'

``Companies that cooperate with the government on the war on terror deserve our appreciation and protection -- not litigation,'' according to the proposed legislation.

Aftergood said the liability shield would ``short-circuit the judicial process.''

The legislation also would:

-- Allow the government to seek warrants to eavesdrop on anyone connected to a plot involving nuclear, chemical or biological weapons.

-- Change the focus of the law from how surveillance is conducted to the potential subject for surveillance. This revision would allow the government without a warrant to listen in on telephone calls between people in other countries that are routed through the U.S.

-- Expand to seven days from three days the time in which the government needs to get court authorization for electronic surveillance in emergencies.

To contact the reporters on this story: Jeff Bliss in Washington jbliss@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 13, 2007 18:16 EDT