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S.L.C.

AMENDMENT NO.llll

Calendar No.lll

Purpose: To provide for the expeditious disclosure of unidentified anomalous phenomena records.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES—118th Cong., 1st Sess.

S. 2226
To authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2024 for militaryactivities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel
strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes.
Referred to the Committee on llllllllll andordered to be printed
Ordered to lie on the table and to be printed
AMENDMENT intended to be proposed by Mr. SCHUMER (forhimself, Mr. ROUNDS, Mr. RUBIO, and Mrs. GILLIBRAND)
Viz:
1

At the appropriate place, insert the following:

TITLE l—UNIDENTIFIED ANOM3
ALOUS PHENOMENA DISCLO4
SURE
2

5
6

SEC. ll01. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the ‘‘Unidentified Anoma-

7 lous Phenomena Disclosure Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘UAP
8 Disclosure Act of 2023’’.

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1
2

SEC. ll02. FINDINGS, DECLARATIONS, AND PURPOSES.

(a) FINDINGS AND DECLARATIONS.—Congress finds

3 and declares the following:
4(1) All Federal Government records related to5unidentified anomalous phenomena should be pre-6served and centralized for historical and Federal

7

Government purposes.

8(2) All Federal Government records concerning

9

unidentified anomalous phenomena should carry a

10

presumption of immediate disclosure and all records

11should be eventually disclosed to enable the public to12

become fully informed about the history of the Fed-13eral Government’s knowledge and involvement sur-14rounding unidentified anomalous phenomena.

15(3) Legislation is necessary to create an en-

16

forceable, independent, and accountable process for17

the public disclosure of such records.

18(4) Legislation is necessary because credible

19

evidence and testimony indicates that Federal Gov-

20

ernment unidentified anomalous phenomena records

21

exist that have not been declassified or subject to22mandatory declassification review as set forth in Ex-

23

ecutive Order 13526 (50 U.S.C. 3161 note; relating24

to classified national security information) due in25part to exemptions under the Atomic Energy Act of261954 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.), as well as an over-BAG23A78 JDP

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3
1

broad interpretation of ‘‘transclassified foreign nu-

2

clear information’’, which is also exempt from man-3

datory declassification, thereby preventing public

4

disclosure under existing provisions of law.

5(5) Legislation is necessary because section 552

6

of title 5, United States Code (commonly referred to7

as the ‘‘Freedom of Information Act’’), as imple-

8mented by the Executive branch of the Federal Gov-

9ernment, has proven inadequate in achieving the10timely public disclosure of Government unidentified

11

anomalous phenomena records that are subject to12mandatory declassification review.

13(6) Legislation is necessary to restore proper

14

oversight over unidentified anomalous phenomena

15

records by elected officials in both the executive and16legislative branches of the Federal Government that17

has otherwise been lacking as of the enactment of

18

this Act.

19(7) Legislation is necessary to afford complete

20

and timely access to all knowledge gained by the21

Federal Government concerning unidentified anoma-

22

lous phenomena in furtherance of comprehensive

23

open scientific and technological research and devel-

24

opment essential to avoiding or mitigating potentialBAG23A78 JDP

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4
1

technological surprise in furtherance of urgent na-

2tional security concerns and the public interest.

3(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this title are—4

(1) to provide for the creation of the unidenti-

5

fied anomalous phenomena Records Collection at the

6

National Archives and Records Administration; and7(2) to require the expeditious public trans-8

mission to the Archivist and public disclosure of

9such records.

10

SEC. ll03. DEFINITIONS.

11
12
13

In this title:(1) ARCHIVIST.—The term ‘‘Archivist’’ means
the Archivist of the United States.

14(2) CLOSE OBSERVER.—The term ‘‘close ob-

15

server’’ means anyone who has come into close prox-

16

imity to unidentified anomalous phenomena or non-17

human intelligence.

18

(3)

COLLECTION.—The

term‘‘Collection’’19means the Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena

20

Records Collection established under section ll04.

21

(4)

CONTROLLEDDISCLOSURECAMPAIGN

22

PLAN.—The term ‘‘Controlled Disclosure Campaign

23Plan’’ means the Controlled Disclosure Campaign

24Plan required by section ll09(c)(3).

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5
1(5)

CONTROLLINGAUTHORITY.—The

term

2

‘‘controlling authority’’ means any Federal, State, or3

local government department, office, agency, com-4

mittee, commission, commercial company, academic

5

institution, or private sector entity in physical pos-6

session of technologies of unknown origin or biologi-

7

cal evidence of non-human intelligence.

8(6) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Executive

9

agency’’ means an Executive agency, as defined in

10

subsection 552(f) of title 5, United States Code.

11(7) GOVERNMENT OFFICE.—The term ‘‘Govern-

12

ment office’’ means any department, office, agency,

13committee, or commission of the Federal Govern-

14

ment and any independent office or agency without

15

exception that has possession or control, including

16

via contract or other agreement, of unidentified

17

anomalous phenomena records.

18(8) IDENTIFICATION AID.—The term ‘‘identi-

19

fication aid’’ means the written description prepared20

for each record, as required in section ll04.

2122(9) LEADERSHIPOF

CONGRESS.—The‘‘leadership of Congress’’ means—

23(A) the majority leader of the Senate;

24(B) the minority leader of the Senate;term

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6(C) the Speaker of the House of Rep-12

resentatives; and(D) the minority leader of the House of3
4

Representatives.

5(10) LEGACYPROGRAM.—Theterm ‘‘legacy

6

program’’ means all Federal, State, and local gov-

7

ernment, commercial industry, academic, and private

8

sector endeavors to collect, exploit, or reverse engi-

9neer technologies of unknown origin or examine bio-

10

logical evidence of living or deceased non-human in-

11

telligence that pre-dates the date of the enactment

12of this Act.

13(11) NATIONAL

ARCHIVES.—Theterm ‘‘Na-

14

tional Archives’’ means the National Archives and15

Records Administration and all components thereof,

16

including presidential archival depositories estab-

17

lished under section 2112 of title 44, United States

18

Code.

19

(12) NON-HUMAN INTELLIGENCE.—The term

20‘‘non-human intelligence’’ means any sentient intel-

21

ligent non-human lifeform regardless of nature or ul-

22

timate origin that may be presumed responsible for23

unidentified anomalous phenomena or of which the24

Federal Government has become aware.

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71(13) ORIGINATINGBODY.—The

term ‘‘origi-

2nating body’’ means the Executive agency, Federal

3

Government commission, committee of Congress, or4other Governmental entity that created a record or

5particular information within a record.

6(14) PROSAIC ATTRIBUTION.—The term ‘‘pro-7

saic attribution’’ means having a human (either for-8

eign or domestic) origin and operating according to9current, proven, and generally understood scientific10and engineering principles and established laws-of-

11

nature and not attributable to non-human intel-

12ligence.

13(15) PUBLIC INTEREST.—The term ‘‘public in-

14

terest’’ means the compelling interest in the prompt

15

public disclosure of unidentified anomalous phe-16nomena records for historical and Governmental

17

purposes and for the purpose of fully informing the18

people of the United States about the history of the

19

Federal Government’s knowledge and involvement

20

surrounding unidentified anomalous phenomena.

21(16) RECORD.—The term ‘‘record’’ includes a22book, paper, report, memorandum, directive, email,23

text, or other form of communication, or map, pho-24

tograph, sound or video recording, machine-readable

25

material, computerized, digitized, or electronic infor-

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81

mation, including intelligence, surveillance, recon-2

naissance, and target acquisition sensor data, re-3

gardless of the medium on which it is stored, or4other documentary material, regardless of its phys-

5ical form or characteristics.

6(17) REVIEWBOARD.—Theterm ‘‘Review

7

Board’’ means the Unidentified Anomalous Phe-8

nomena Records Review Board established by sec-

9tion ll07.

10(18) TECHNOLOGIES OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN.—

11

The term ‘‘technologies of unknown origin’’ means

12

any materials or meta-materials, ejecta, crash de-13bris, mechanisms, machinery, equipment, assemblies

14

or sub-assemblies, engineering models or processes,

15

damaged or intact aerospace vehicles, and damaged

16

or intact ocean-surface and undersea craft associ-17

ated with unidentified anomalous phenomena or in-

18

corporating science and technology that lacks prosaic

19

attribution or known means of human manufacture.

20

(19)

21

JECTS.—TEMPORARILYNON-ATTRIBUTED

OB-

22

(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘temporarily

23

non-attributed objects’’ means the class of ob-

24

jects that temporarily resist prosaic attribution

25

by the initial observer as a result of environ-BAG23A78 JDP

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91

mental or system limitations associated with the2observation process that nevertheless ultimately

3

have an accepted human origin or known phys-

4ical cause. Although some unidentified anoma-

5

lous phenomena may at first be interpreted as

6

temporarily non-attributed objects, they are not7

temporarily non-attributed objects, and the two8categories are mutually exclusive.

9
10
11
12
13
14

(B) INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘temporarily
non-attributed objects’’ includes—(i) natural celestial, meteorological,
and undersea weather phenomena;(ii) mundane human-made airborne
objects, clutter, and marine debris;

15(iii) Federal, State, and local govern-

16

ment, commercial industry, academic, and17

private sector aerospace platforms;

18(iv) Federal, State, and local govern-

19ment, commercial industry, academic, and20

private sector ocean-surface and undersea

21

vehicles; and22(v) known foreign systems.

23(20) THIRD AGENCY.—The term ‘‘third agen-24

cy’’ means a Government agency that originated aBAG23A78 JDP

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1

unidentified anomalous phenomena record that is in2

the possession of another Government agency.

3

(21)

UNIDENTIFIED

4NOMENA.—

ANOMALOUS

PHE-

5(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘unidentified

6

anomalous phenomena’’ means any object oper-

7

ating or judged capable of operating in outer-8

space, the atmosphere, ocean surfaces, or un-

9dersea lacking prosaic attribution due to per-10

formance characteristics and properties not pre-11

viously known to be achievable based upon com-12

monly accepted physical principles. Unidentified

13

anomalous phenomena are differentiated from14

both attributed and temporarily non-attributed

15

objects by one or more of the following

16

observables:

17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25

(i) Instantaneous acceleration absent
apparent inertia.
(ii) Hypersonic velocity absent a thermal signature and sonic shockwave.
(iii) Transmedium (such as space-toground and air-to-undersea) travel.
(iv) Positive lift contrary to known
aerodynamic principles.
(v) Multispectral signature control.

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111(vi) Physical or invasive biological ef-

2fects to close observers and the environ-

3

ment.

4

(B) INCLUSIONS.—The term ‘‘unidentified

5

anomalous phenomena’’ includes what were pre-6

viously described as—

7(i) flying discs;

8(ii) flying saucers;

9(iii) unidentified aerial phenomena;

10

(iv)

11

(UFOs); andflyingobjects(v) unidentified submerged objects

12(USOs).

13
14

unidentified(22) UNIDENTIFIED ANOMALOUS PHENOMENA

15

RECORD.—The

16

nomena record’’ means a record that is related to17

unidentified anomalous phenomena, technologies of18

unknown origin, or non-human intelligence (and all

19

equivalent subjects by any other name with the spe-20cific and sole exclusion of temporarily non-attributed

21

objects) that was created or made available for use

22

by, obtained by, or otherwise came into the posses-

23

sion of—24

term ‘‘unidentified anomalous phe-(A) the Executive Office of the President;

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121(B) the Department of Defense and its

2progenitors, the Department of War and the3

Department of the Navy;

4(C) the Department of the Army;

5(D) the Department of the Navy;

6(E) the Department of the Air Force, spe-7cifically the Air Force Office of Special Inves-

8

tigations;

9(F) the Department of Energy and its pro-10

genitors, the Manhattan Project, the Atomic

11

Energy Commission, and the Energy Research

12and Development Administration;

1314(G) the Office of the Director of National
Intelligence;

15(H) the Central Intelligence Agency and16

its progenitor, the Office of Strategic Services;17(I) the National Reconnaissance Office;18(J) the Defense Intelligence Agency;

19(K) the National Security Agency;

20(L) the National Geospatial-Intelligence

21
22
23

Agency;(M) the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration:

24(N) the Federal Bureau of Investigation;

25(O) the Federal Aviation Administration;

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13(P) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric

1

Administration;23(Q) the Library of Congress;

4(R) the National Archives and Records Administration;

56(S) any Presidential library;

7(T) any Executive agency;

8(U) any independent office or agency;

9(V) any other department, office, agency,

10committee, or commission of the Federal Gov-

11

ernment;

12(W) any State or local government depart-

13

ment, office, agency, committee, or commission

14

that provided support or assistance or per-15

formed work, in connection with a Federal in-

16

quiry into unidentified anomalous phenomena,

17

technologies of unknown origin, or non-human18

intelligence; and

19(X) any private sector person or entity for-20

merly or currently under contract or some other21

agreement with the Federal Government.

22

SEC.

ll04.

UNIDENTIFIEDANOMALOUS

PHENOMENA

23

RECORDS COLLECTION AT THE NATIONAL

24

ARCHIVES AND RECORDS ADMINISTRATION.

25(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—BAG23A78 JDP

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141(1) IN GENERAL.—(A) Not later than 60 days

2

after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ar-

3chivist shall commence establishment of a collection

4of records in the National Archives to be known as

5the ‘‘Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Records

6Collection’’.

7(B) In carrying out subparagraph (A), the Ar-

8chivist shall ensure the physical integrity and origi-

9

nal provenance (or if indeterminate, the earliest his-10

torical owner) of all records in the Collection.

11(C) The Collection shall consist of record copies

12of all Government, Government-provided, or Govern-

13

ment-funded records relating to unidentified anoma-

14

lous phenomena, technologies of unknown origin,15

and non-human intelligence (or equivalent subjects

16

by any other name with the specific and sole exclu-

17sion of temporarily non-attributed objects), which

18

shall be transmitted to the National Archives in ac-

19

cordance with section 2107 of title 44, United States

20

Code.

21
22
23
24

(D) The Archivist shall prepare and publish asubject guidebook and index to the Collection.
(2) CONTENTS.—The Collection shall include
the following:BAG23A78 JDP

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15
1(A) All unidentified anomalous phenomena

2

records, regardless of age or date of creation—

3(i) that have been transmitted to the4

National Archives or disclosed to the public

5in an unredacted form prior to the date of6

the enactment of this Act;789(ii) that are required to be transmitted to the National Archives; and(iii) that the disclosure of which is

10

postponed under this Act.

11(B) A central directory comprised of iden-

12tification aids created for each record trans-13

mitted to the Archivist under section ll05.

14(C) All Review Board records as required15

by this Act.

16(b) DISCLOSURE

OF

RECORDS.—All unidentified

17 anomalous phenomena records transmitted to the National
18 Archives for disclosure to the public shall—
19(1) be included in the Collection; and20(2) be available to the public—

21(A) for inspection and copying at the Na-

22tional Archives within 30 days after their trans-23

mission to the National Archives; andBAG23A78 JDP

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161(B) digitally via the National Archives on-

2line database within a reasonable amount of

3time not to exceed 180 days thereafter.

4(c) FEES FOR COPYING.—The Archivist shall—(1) charge fees for copying unidentified anoma-

5
6

lous phenomena records; and

7(2) grant waivers of such fees pursuant to the8standards established by section 552(a)(4) of title 5,9United States Code.

10(d) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS.—

11(1) USE OF FUNDS.—The Collection shall be

12preserved, protected, archived, digitized, and made13

available to the public at the National Archives and14

via the official National Archives online database15

using appropriations authorized, specified, and re-16

stricted for use under the terms of this Act.

17(2) SECURITY OF RECORDS.—The National Se-

18

curity Program Office at the National Archives, in

19

consultation with the National Archives Information

20

Security Oversight Office, shall establish a program21

to ensure the security of the postponed unidentified

22

anomalous phenomena records in the protected, and23

yet-to-be disclosed or classified portion of the Collec-

24

tion.

25

(e) OVERSIGHT.—BAG23A78 JDP

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1(1) SENATE.—Unless otherwise determined by2

the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate,3

the Committee on Homeland Security and Govern-

4

mental Affairs of the Senate shall have continuing

5

legislative oversight jurisdiction in the Senate with6

respect to the Collection.

7(2) HOUSEOF

REPRESENTATIVES.—Unless

8

otherwise determined appropriate by the Permanent

9

Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of10

Representatives, the Committee on Oversight and11

Accountability of the House of Representatives shall12

have continuing legislative oversight jurisdiction in13

the House of Representatives with respect to the14

Collection.

15

SEC. ll05. REVIEW, IDENTIFICATION, TRANSMISSION TO

16

THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES, AND PUBLIC DIS-

17

CLOSURE

18

PHENOMENA RECORDS BY GOVERNMENT OF-

19

FICES.

20
21

OF

UNIDENTIFIEDANOMALOUS(a) IDENTIFICATION, ORGANIZATION, AND PREPARATION FOR TRANSMISSION.—

22(1) IN GENERAL.—As soon as practicable after

23

the date of the enactment of this Act, each head of24

a Government office shall—

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18
1(A) identify and organize records in the2

possession of the Government office or under3

the control of the Government office relating to

4unidentified anomalous phenomena; and5(B) prepare such records for transmission

6

to the Archivist for inclusion in the Collection.

7(2) PROHIBITIONS.—(A) No unidentified anom-

8

alous phenomena record shall be destroyed, altered,9or mutilated in any way.

10(B) No unidentified anomalous phenomena

11

record made available or disclosed to the public prior12

to the date of the enactment of this Act may be

13

withheld, redacted, postponed for public disclosure,14

or reclassified.

15(C) No unidentified anomalous phenomena

16

record created by a person or entity outside the Fed-17

eral Government (excluding names or identities con-18

sistent with the requirements of section ll06)

19

shall be withheld, redacted, postponed for public dis-20

closure, or reclassified.

21(b) CUSTODY OF UNIDENTIFIED ANOMALOUS PHE-

22

NOMENA

RECORDS PENDING REVIEW.—During the re-

23 view by the heads of Government offices under subsection
24 (c) and pending review activity by the Review Board, each
25 head of a Government office shall retain custody of theBAG23A78 JDP

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19
1 unidentified anomalous phenomena records of the office
2 for purposes of preservation, security, and efficiency, un3 less—
4(1) the Review Board requires the physical

5transfer of the records for purposes of conducting an

6independent and impartial review;

789(2) transfer is necessary for an administrative
hearing or other Review Board function; or(3) it is a third agency record described in sub-10

section (c)(2)(C).

11(c) REVIEW BY HEADS OF GOVERNMENT OFFICES.—

12(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 300 days

13

after the date of the enactment of this Act, each14

head of a Government office shall review, identify,

15

and organize each unidentified anomalous phe-16nomena record in the custody or possession of the17

office for—18(A) disclosure to the public;

19(B) review by the Review Board; and20(C) transmission to the Archivist.

21(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In carrying out para-

22

graph (1), the head of a Government office shall—

23(A) determine which of the records of the24

office are unidentified anomalous phenomena

25

records;

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201(B) determine which of the unidentified

2

anomalous phenomena records of the office3

have been officially disclosed or made publicly

4

available in a complete and unredacted form;

5(C)(i) determine which of the unidentified

6

anomalous phenomena records of the office, or7particular information contained in such a8

record, was created by a third agency or by an-

9other Government office; and10(ii) transmit to a third agency or other11

Government office those records, or particular

12

information contained in those records, or com-13

plete and accurate copies thereof;

14(D)(i) determine whether the unidentified

15

anomalous phenomena records of the office or

16particular information in unidentified anoma-

17

lous phenomena records of the office are cov-

18

ered by the standards for postponement of pub-19

lic disclosure under this title; and20(ii) specify on the identification aid re-21

quired by subsection (d) the applicable post-

22

ponement

23

ll06;

provisioncontained

insection24(E) organize and make available to the Re-

25view Board all unidentified anomalous phe-

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1

nomena records identified under subparagraph

2(D) the public disclosure of, which in-whole or3

in-part, may be postponed under this title;

4(F) organize and make available to the Re-5view Board any record concerning which the of-6

fice has any uncertainty as to whether the7

record is an unidentified anomalous phenomena

8

record governed by this title;

9(G) give precedence of work to—

10(i) the identification, review, and11transmission of unidentified anomalous

12

phenomena records not already publicly

13

available or disclosed as of the date of the14

enactment of this Act;

15(ii) the identification, review, and16transmission of all records that most un-

17

ambiguously and definitively pertain to un-18

identified anomalous phenomena, tech-

19

nologies of unknown origin, and non-20

human intelligence;

21(iii) the identification, review, and22transmission of unidentified anomalous

23

phenomena records that on the date of the24

enactment of this Act are the subject ofBAG23A78 JDP

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22
1

litigation under section 552 of title 5,2

United States Code; and3(iv) the identification, review, and4transmission of unidentified anomalous

5

phenomena records with earliest prove-6nance when not inconsistent with clauses

7(i) through (iii) and otherwise feasible; and8(H) make available to the Review Board

9

any additional information and records that the10

Review Board has reason to believe the Review

11

Board requires for conducting a review under

12

this title.

13(3) PRIORITY OF EXPEDITED REVIEW FOR DI-

14

RECTORS OF CERTAIN ARCHIVAL DEPOSITORIES.—

15

The Director of each archival depository established16

under section 2112 of title 44, United States Code,17

shall have as a priority the expedited review for pub-18

lic disclosure of unidentified anomalous phenomena

19

records in the possession and custody of the deposi-

20

tory, and shall make such records available to the21

Review Board as required by this title.

22(d) IDENTIFICATION AIDS.—

23(1) IN GENERAL.—(A) Not later than 45 days

24

after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Ar-

25chivist, in consultation with the heads of such Gov-

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231

ernment offices as the Archivist considers appro-2

priate, shall prepare and make available to all Gov-

3

ernment offices a standard form of identification, or4

finding aid, for use with each unidentified anoma-

5

lous phenomena record subject to review under this6

title whether in hardcopy (physical), softcopy (elec-

7

tronic), or digitized data format as may be appro-

8

priate.

9(B) The Archivist shall ensure that the identi-

10

fication aid program is established in such a manner11

as to result in the creation of a uniform system for

12

cataloging and finding every unidentified anomalous

13

phenomena record subject to review under this title

14

where ever and how ever stored in hardcopy (phys-

15ical), softcopy (electronic), or digitized data format.

16(2) REQUIREMENTS

FOR

GOVERNMENT

OF-

17

FICES.—Uponcompletion of an identification aid

18

using the standard form of identification prepared19

and made available under subparagraph (A) of para-

20

graph (1) for the program established pursuant to

21

subparagraph (B) of such paragraph, the head of a

22

Government office shall—

23(A) attach a printed copy to each physical24

unidentified anomalous phenomena record, and25

an electronic copy to each softcopy or digitizedBAG23A78 JDP

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241

data unidentified anomalous phenomena record,2

the identification aid describes;

3(B) transmit to the Review Board a print-

4

ed copy for each physical unidentified anoma-

5

lous phenomena record and an electronic copy

6

for each softcopy or digitized data unidentified

7

anomalous phenomena record the identification

8

aid describes; and9(C) attach a printed copy to each physical

10

unidentified anomalous phenomena record, and11

an electronic copy to each softcopy or digitized

12

data unidentified anomalous phenomena record

13

the identification aid describes, when trans-14

mitted to the Archivist.

15(3) RECORDS

OF

THE

NATIONAL

ARCHIVESAVAILABLE.—Unidentified

16

THAT

17

anomalous phenomena records which are in the pos-18

session of the National Archives on the date of the19

enactment of this Act, and which have been publicly

20

available in their entirety without redaction, shall be

21

made available in the Collection without any addi-

22

tional review by the Review Board or another au-

23

thorized office under this title, and shall not be re-24

quired to have such an identification aid unless re-25

quired by the Archivist.

ARE

PUBLICLYBAG23A78 JDP

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251(e) TRANSMISSION TO THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES.—

2 Each head of a Government office shall—
3(1) transmit to the Archivist, and make imme-

4

diately available to the public, all unidentified anom-

5

alous phenomena records of the Government office

6that can be publicly disclosed, including those that7

are publicly available on the date of the enactment

8of this Act, without any redaction, adjustment, or

9withholding under the standards of this title; and

10(2) transmit to the Archivist upon approval for

11

postponement by the Review Board or upon comple-

12

tion of other action authorized by this title, all un-

13

identified anomalous phenomena records of the Gov-

14

ernment office the public disclosure of which has

15been postponed, in whole or in part, under the

16

standards of this title, to become part of the pro-17

tected, yet-to-be disclosed, or classified portion of18

the Collection.

19(f) CUSTODY OF POSTPONED UNIDENTIFIED ANOMA-

20

LOUS

PHENOMENA RECORDS.—An unidentified anoma-

21 lous phenomena record the public disclosure of which has
22 been postponed shall, pending transmission to the Archi23 vist, be held for reasons of security and preservation by
24 the originating body until such time as the information

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26
1 security program has been established at the National Ar2 chives as required in section ll04(d)(2).
34(g) PERIODIC REVIEW OF POSTPONED UNIDENTIFIED ANOMALOUS PHENOMENA RECORDS.—

5(1) IN GENERAL.—All postponed or redacted

6

records shall be reviewed periodically by the origi-

7

nating agency and the Archivist consistent with the8

recommendations of the Review Board in the Con-

9trolled Disclosure Campaign Plan under section10

ll09(c)(3)(B).

11(2) REQUIREMENTS.—(A) A periodic review

12

under paragraph (1) shall address the public disclo-

13

sure of additional unidentified anomalous phe-14

nomena records in the Collection under the stand-15

ards of this title.

16(B) All postponed unidentified anomalous phe-17nomena records determined to require continued

18

postponement shall require an unclassified written

19

description of the reason for such continued post-

20

ponement relevant to these specific records. Such de-21

scription shall be provided to the Archivist and pub-22

lished in the Federal Register upon determination.

23(C) The time and release requirements specified

24

in the Controlled Disclosure Campaign Plan shall be

25revised or amended only if the Review Board is stillBAG23A78 JDP

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27
1

in session and concurs with the rationale for post-2

ponement, subject to the limitations in section

3

ll09(d)(1).

4(D) The periodic review of postponed unidenti-

5

fied anomalous phenomena records shall serve to

6downgrade and declassify security classified informa-

7

tion.

8

(E) Each unidentified anomalous phenomena

9

record shall be publicly disclosed in full, and avail-10

able in the Collection, not later than the date that11

is 25 years after the date of the first creation of the

12

record by the originating body, unless the President

13

certifies, as required by this title, that—

14(i) continued postponement is made nec-

15

essary by an identifiable harm to the military16

defense, intelligence operations, law enforce-

17

ment, or conduct of foreign relations; and18(ii) the identifiable harm is of such gravity

19that it outweighs the public interest in disclo-

20

sure.

21

(h) REQUIREMENTS FOR EXECUTIVE AGENCIES.—

22 Executive agencies shall—
23(1) transmit digital records electronically in ac-

24

cordance with section 2107 of title 44, United States

25

Code;

BAG23A78 JDP

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2812(2) charge fees for copying unidentified anomalous phenomena records; and3(3) grant waivers of such fees pursuant to the4standards established by section 552(a)(4) of title 5,5United States Code.

6

SEC. ll06. GROUNDS FOR POSTPONEMENT OF PUBLIC7

DISCLOSURE OF UNIDENTIFIED ANOMALOUS

8

PHENOMENA RECORDS.

9Disclosure of unidentified anomalous phenomena

10 records or particular information in unidentified anoma11 lous phenomena records to the public may be postponed
12 subject to the limitations of this title if there is clear and
13 convincing evidence that—14(1) the threat to the military defense, intel-

15

ligence operations, or conduct of foreign relations of

16

the United States posed by the public disclosure of17

the unidentified anomalous phenomena record is of18

such gravity that it outweighs the public interest in

19

disclosure, and such public disclosure would reveal—

20(A) an intelligence agent whose identity

21

currently requires protection;

22(B) an intelligence source or method which

23

is currently utilized, or reasonably expected to24

be utilized, by the Federal Government and25

which has not been officially disclosed, the dis-BAG23A78 JDP

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29
1

closure of which would interfere with the con-2

duct of intelligence activities; or

3(C) any other matter currently relating to4

the military defense, intelligence operations, or5conduct of foreign relations of the United

6

States, the disclosure of which would demon-

7

strably and substantially impair the national se-

8curity of the United States;

9(2) the public disclosure of the unidentified

10

anomalous phenomena record would reveal the name11

or identity of a living person who provided confiden-

12tial information to the Federal Government and13

would pose a substantial risk of harm to that per-

14

son;

15

(3) the public disclosure of the unidentified

16

anomalous phenomena record could reasonably be

17

expected to constitute an unwarranted invasion of18

personal privacy, and that invasion of privacy is so

19

substantial that it outweighs the public interest; or20(4) the public disclosure of the unidentified

21

anomalous phenomena record would compromise the22existence of an understanding of confidentiality cur-23

rently requiring protection between a Federal Gov-

24

ernment agent and a cooperating individual or a for-

BAG23A78 JDP

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30
1eign government, and public disclosure would be so

2

harmful that it outweighs the public interest.

3

SEC. ll07. ESTABLISHMENT AND POWERS OF THE UN-

4

IDENTIFIED

5RECORDS REVIEW BOARD.

6

ANOMALOUS

PHENOMENA(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established as an

7 independent agency a board to be known as the ‘‘Unidenti8 fied Anomalous Phenomena Records Review Board’’.
9(b) APPOINTMENT.—

10(1) IN GENERAL.—The President, by and with11

the advice and consent of the Senate, shall appoint,

12

without regard to political affiliation, 9 citizens of

13

the United States to serve as members of the Review

14

Board to ensure and facilitate the review, trans-15

mission to the Archivist, and public disclosure of16

government records relating to unidentified anoma-

17

lous phenomena.

18(2) PERIODFORNOMINATIONS.—(A)

The

19

President shall make nominations to the Review

20

Board not later than 90 calendar days after the date

21of the enactment of this Act.

22(B) If the Senate votes not to confirm a nomi-

23

nation to the Review Board, the President shall24

make an additional nomination not later than 30

25

days thereafter.

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31
1(3) CONSIDERATION OF RECOMMENDATIONS.—

2(A) The President shall make nominations to the3

Review4ommended by the following:

Board

after

considering

personsrec-5(i) The majority leader of the Senate.

6(ii) The minority leader of the Senate.

7(iii) The Speaker of the House of Rep-8910

resentatives.
(iv) The minority leader of the House ofRepresentatives.

11(v) The Secretary of Defense.

12(vi) The National Academy of Sciences.

13(vii) The UAP Disclosure Foundation.

14(viii) The American Historical Association.

15(ix) Such other persons and organizations

16

as the President considers appropriate.

17(B) If an individual or organization described in

18

subparagraph (A) does not recommend at least 2

19

nominees meeting the qualifications stated in para-

20

graph (5) by the date that is 45 days after the date

21of the enactment of this Act, the President shall22

consider for nomination the persons recommended

23

by the other individuals and organizations described24

in such subparagraph.

BAG23A78 JDP

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32
1(C) The President may request an individual or2organization described in subparagraph (A) to sub-3

mit additional nominations.

45(4) QUALIFICATIONS.—Persons nominated to
the Review Board—

6(A) shall be impartial citizens, none of7

whom shall have had any previous or current

8

involvement with any legacy program or con-9

trolling authority relating to the collection, ex-

10ploitation, or reverse engineering of technologies

11of unknown origin or the examination of bio-

12

logical evidence of living or deceased non-13

human intelligence;

14(B) shall be distinguished persons of high15

national professional reputation in their respec-16

tive fields who are capable of exercising the17

independent and objective judgment necessary

18

to the fulfillment of their role in ensuring and19

facilitating the review, transmission to the pub-

20

lic, and public disclosure of records related to21

the government’s understanding of, and activi-

22

ties associated with unidentified anomalous phe-23

nomena, technologies of unknown origin, and24

non-human intelligence and who possess an ap-

BAG23A78 JDP

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33
1

preciation of the value of such material to the2

public, scholars, and government; and3(C) shall include at least—

4
5
6
7

(i) 1 current or former national security official;(ii) 1 current or former foreign service
official;

8(iii) 1 scientist or engineer;

9(iv) 1 economist;

10(v) 1 professional historian; and11(vi) 1 sociologist.

12(c) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—

13(1) IN GENERAL.—All Review Board nominees

14

shall be granted the necessary security clearances

15

and accesses, including any and all relevant Presi-

16

dential, departmental, and agency special access pro-17

grams, in an accelerated manner subject to the18

standard procedures for granting such clearances.

19(2) QUALIFICATION FOR NOMINEES.—All nomi-

20

nees for appointment to the Review Board under21

subsection (b) shall qualify for the necessary security

22

clearances and accesses prior to being considered for

23

confirmation by the Committee on Homeland Secu-

24

rity and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.

25(d) CONFIRMATION HEARINGS.—BAG23A78 JDP

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34
1(1) HOLDING HEARINGS.—Unless the Senate2

designates a different committee of jurisdiction, the3Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental

4

Affairs of the Senate shall hold confirmation hear-5

ings, and do so within 30 days after the first date

6

in which the Senate is in session after the nomina-

7

tion of a minimum of 3 individuals for appointment

8

to the Review Board, including the Executive Direc-

9

tor established under section ll08(a).

10(2) COMMITTEE VOTING.—Unless the Senate

11

designates a different committee of jurisdiction, the12Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental

13

Affairs of the Senate shall vote on the nominations,14and do so within 14 days after the first date on

15

which the Senate is in session after the confirmation

16

hearings, and shall report its results to the full Sen-17

ate immediately.

18(3) SENATE VOTING.—The Senate shall vote on

19each nominee to confirm or reject within 14 days

20

after the first date on which the Senate is in session

21

after reported by the Committee on Homeland Secu-

22

rity and Governmental Affairs or by a different com-23

mittee as determined by the Senate.

BAG23A78 JDP

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351(e) VACANCY.—A vacancy on the Review Board shall

2 be filled in the same manner as specified for original ap3 pointment within 30 days of the occurrence of the vacancy.
45(f) REMOVAL OF REVIEW BOARD MEMBER.—(1) IN GENERAL.—No member of the Review

6

Board shall be removed from office, other than—7(A) by impeachment and conviction; or

8(B) by the action of the President for inef-

9

ficiency, neglect of duty, malfeasance in office,10

physical disability, mental incapacity, or any

11other condition that substantially impairs the12

performance of the member’s duties.

13(2) NOTICE OF REMOVAL.—(A) If a member of

14

the Review Board is removed from office, and that15

removal is by the President, not later than 10 days

16

after the removal, the President shall submit to the17leadership of Congress, the Committee on Homeland

18

Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate

19

and the Committee on Oversight and Reform of the

20

House of Representatives, or to alternative commit-

21

tees of jurisdiction as determined by the Senate and22

the House of Representatives, a report specifying

23

the facts found and the grounds for the removal.

24(B) The President shall publish in the Federal

25

Register a report submitted under subparagraphBAG23A78 JDP

S.L.C.

361(A), except that the President may, if necessary to

2protect the rights of a person named in the report3or to prevent undue interference with any pending

4

prosecution, postpone or refrain from publishing any

5or all of the report until the completion of such6

pending cases or pursuant to privacy protection re-7quirements in law.

8(3) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—(A) A member of the9

Review Board removed from office may obtain judi-

10cial review of the removal in a civil action com-11

menced in the United States District Court for the12District of Columbia.

13(B) The member may be reinstated or granted

14

other appropriate relief by order of the court.

15(g) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—

16(1) IN GENERAL.—A member of the Review

17

Board, other than the Executive Director under sec-

18

tion ll08(c)(1), shall be compensated at a rate19

equal to the daily equivalent of the annual rate of20

basic pay prescribed for level IV of the Executive

21

Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United

22

States Code, for each day (including travel time)

23

during which the member is engaged in the perform-

24

ance of the duties of the Review Board.

BAG23A78 JDP

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37
1(2) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—A member of the Re-2view Board shall be allowed reasonable travel ex-3penses, including per diem in lieu of subsistence, at

4

rates for employees of agencies under subchapter I

5of chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, while

6

away from the member’s home or regular place of7business in the performance of services for the Re-8view Board.

9(h) DUTIES OF THE REVIEW BOARD.—

10(1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Board shall con-11

sider and render decisions on a determination by a

12

Government office to seek to postpone the disclosure

13

of unidentified anomalous phenomena records.

14(2) CONSIDERATIONS AND RENDERING OF DE-

15

CISIONS.—In carrying out paragraph (1), the Review

16

Board shall consider and render decisions—

1718(A) whether a record constitutes a unidentified anomalous phenomena record; and19(B) whether a unidentified anomalous phe-20

nomena record or particular information in a

21

record qualifies for postponement of disclosure

22

under this title.

23(i) POWERS.—BAG23A78 JDP

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38
1(1) IN

GENERAL.—The

Review Board shall2

have the authority to act in a manner prescribed3

under this title, including authority—

4(A) to direct Government offices to com-5

plete identification aids and organize unidenti-

6

fied anomalous phenomena records;

7(B) to direct Government offices to trans-

8

mit to the Archivist unidentified anomalous

9

phenomena records as required under this title,

10

including segregable portions of unidentified

11

anomalous phenomena records and substitutes

12and summaries of unidentified anomalous phe-13

nomena records that can be publicly disclosed

14

to the fullest extent;

15(C)(i) to obtain access to unidentified

16

anomalous phenomena records that have been

17

identified and organized by a Government of-

18

fice;

19

(ii) to direct a Government office to make20

available to the Review Board, and if necessary

21

investigate the facts surrounding, additional in-

22

formation, records, or testimony from individ-23

uals which the Review Board has reason to be-

24

lieve are required to fulfill its functions and re-25

sponsibilities under this title; andBAG23A78 JDP

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39
1(iii) request the Attorney General to sub-2

poena private persons to compel testimony,3

records, and other information relevant to its

4

responsibilities under this title;

5(D) require any Government office to ac-

6

count in writing for the destruction of any

7records relating to unidentified anomalous phe-8

nomena, technologies of unknown origin, or

9

non-human intelligence;

10(E) receive information from the public re-11

garding the identification and public disclosure

12of unidentified anomalous phenomena records;

1314(F) hold hearings, administer oaths, andsubpoena witnesses and documents;

15(G) use the Federal Acquisition Service in16

the same manner and under the same condi-

17

tions as other Executive agencies; and18(H) use the United States mails in the19same manner and under the same conditions as

20

other Executive agencies.

21(2) ENFORCEMENTOFSUBPOENA.—A

sub-

22

poena issued under paragraph (1)(C)(iii) may be en-23

forced by any appropriate Federal court acting pur-24

suant to a lawful request of the Review Board.

BAG23A78 JDP

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401(j) WITNESS IMMUNITY.—The Review Board shall be

2 considered to be an agency of the United States for pur3 poses of section 6001 of title 18, United States Code. Wit4 nesses, close observers, and whistleblowers providing infor5 mation directly to the Review Board shall also be afforded
6 the protections provided to such persons specified under
7 section 1673(b) of the James M. Inhofe National Defense
8 Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (50 U.S.C.
9 3373b(b)).
10(k) OVERSIGHT.—

11(1) SENATE.—Unless otherwise determined by

12

the Senate, the Committee on Homeland Security

13

and Governmental Affairs of the Senate shall have

14

continuing legislative oversight jurisdiction in the15

Senate with respect to the official conduct of the Re-

16view Board and the disposition of postponed records

17

after termination of the Review Board, and shall18

have access to any records held or created by the

19

Review Board.

20(2) HOUSEOF

REPRESENTATIVES.—Unless

21

otherwise determined appropriate by the House of

22

Representatives, the Committee on Oversight and23

Accountability of the House of Representatives shall24

have continuing legislative oversight jurisdiction in25

the House of Representatives with respect to the of-BAG23A78 JDP

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41
1

ficial conduct of the Review Board and the disposi-

2tion of postponed records after termination of the3

Review Board, and shall have access to any records

4

held or created by the Review Board.

5(3) DUTY TO COOPERATE.—The Review Board

6

shall have the duty to cooperate with the exercise of7

oversight jurisdiction described in this subsection.

8(l) SUPPORT SERVICES.—The Administrator of the

9 General Services Administration shall provide administra10 tive services for the Review Board on a reimbursable basis.
11(m) INTERPRETIVE REGULATIONS.—The Review

12 Board may issue interpretive regulations.
13(n) TERMINATION AND WINDING DOWN.—

14(1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Board and the15terms of its members shall terminate not later than16

September 30, 2030, unless extended by Congress.

17(2) REPORTS.—Upon its termination, the Re-

18view Board shall submit to the President and Con-19

gress reports, including a complete and accurate ac-

20

counting of expenditures during its existence and21

shall complete all other reporting requirements

22

under this title.

23(3) TRANSFER

OF

RECORDS.—Upon

termi-

24

nation and winding down, the Review Board shall25

transfer all of its records to the Archivist for inclu-

BAG23A78 JDP

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42
1

sion in the Collection, and no record of the Review

2

Board shall be destroyed.

3
4
5

SEC.

ll08.

UNIDENTIFIEDANOMALOUS

PHENOMENA

RECORDS REVIEW BOARD PERSONNEL.

(a) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—

6(1) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 45 days

7

after the date of the enactment of this Act, the8

President shall appoint 1 citizen of the United

9States, without regard to political affiliation, to the10

position of Executive Director of the Review Board.

11

This position counts as 1 of the 9 Review Board

12

members under section ll07(b)(1).

13(2) QUALIFICATIONS.—The person appointed as

14

Executive Director shall be a private citizen of integ-

15

rity and impartiality who—

16(A) is a distinguished professional; and

17(B) is not a present employee of the Fed-18

eral Government; and19(C) has had no previous or current involve-

20

ment with any legacy program or controlling21

authority relating to the collection, exploitation,22

or reverse engineering of technologies of un-

23

known origin or the examination of biological24

evidence of living or deceased non-human intel-

25

ligence.

BAG23A78 JDP

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43
1(3) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—(A) A candidate

2

for Executive Director shall be granted all the nec-

3

essary security clearances and accesses, including to4

relevant Presidential and department or agency spe-

5cial access and compartmented access programs in6

an accelerated manner subject to the standard pro-7

cedures for granting such clearances.

8(B) A candidate shall qualify for the necessary

9security clearances and accesses prior to being ap-

10

pointed by the President.

11

(4)

12

shall—

13
14
15
16

FUNCTIONS.—The

Executive

Director(A) serve as principal liaison to the Executive Office of the President and Congress;(B) serve as Chairperson of the Review
Board;

17(C) be responsible for the administration18

and coordination of the Review Board’s review

19of records;

20(D) be responsible for the administration

21of all official activities conducted by the Review

22

Board;

23(E) exercise tie-breaking Review Board au-

24

thority to decide or determine whether any

BAG23A78 JDP

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44
1

record should be disclosed to the public or post-2

poned for disclosure; and3(F) retain right-of-appeal directly to the4

President for decisions pertaining to executive

5

branch6

records for which the Executive Director and7

Review Board members may disagree.

8(5) REMOVAL.—The Executive Director shall9

not be removed for reasons other for cause on the10

grounds of inefficiency, neglect of duty, malfeasance11

in office, physical disability, mental incapacity, or

12

any other condition that substantially impairs the13

performance of the responsibilities of the Executive

14

Director or the staff of the Review Board.

15(b) STAFF.—

unidentified

anomalous

phenomena

16(1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Board, without

17

regard to the civil service laws, may appoint and ter-18

minate additional personnel as are necessary to en-

19able the Review Board and its Executive Director to20

perform the duties of the Review Board.

21(2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Except as provided in

22

subparagraph (B), a person appointed to the staff of23

the Review Board shall be a citizen of integrity and24

impartiality who has had no previous or current in-25

volvement with any legacy program or controllingBAG23A78 JDP

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45
1

authority relating to the collection, exploitation, or2reverse engineering of technologies of unknown ori-

3

gin or the examination of biological evidence of liv-4

ing or deceased non-human intelligence.

5(3) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—(A) A candidate6

for staff shall be granted the necessary security

7

clearances (including all necessary special access8

program clearances) in an accelerated manner sub-9

ject to the standard procedures for granting such

10

clearances.

11(B)(i) The Review Board may offer conditional

12

employment to a candidate for a staff position pend-

13

ing the completion of security clearance background14

investigations. During the pendency of such inves-

15

tigations, the Review Board shall ensure that any

16such employee does not have access to, or responsi-

17bility involving, classified or otherwise restricted un-18

identified anomalous phenomena record materials.

19(ii) If a person hired on a conditional basis

20

under clause (i) is denied or otherwise does not qual-

21

ify for all security clearances necessary to carry out

22

the responsibilities of the position for which condi-

23

tional employment has been offered, the Review

24

Board shall immediately terminate the person’s em-

25ployment.

BAG23A78 JDP

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46
1(4) SUPPORT FROM NATIONAL DECLASSIFICA-

2

TION CENTER.—The Archivist shall assign one rep-3

resentative in full-time equivalent status from the4

National Declassification Center to advise and sup-5

port the Review Board disclosure postponement re-6view process in a non-voting staff capacity.

7(c) COMPENSATION.—Subject to such rules as may

8 be adopted by the Review Board, without regard to the
9 provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing ap10 pointments in the competitive service and without regard
11 to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chap12 ter 53 of that title relating to classification and General
13 Schedule pay rates—
14(1) the Executive Director shall be compensated15

at a rate not to exceed the rate of basic pay for level

16

II of the Executive Schedule and shall serve the en-17

tire tenure as one full-time equivalent; and18(2) the Executive Director shall appoint and fix

19compensation of such other personnel as may be

20necessary to carry out this title.

21(d) ADVISORY COMMITTEES.—

22(1) AUTHORITY.—The Review Board may cre-23

ate advisory committees to assist in fulfilling the re-24

sponsibilities of the Review Board under this title.

BAG23A78 JDP

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47
1(2) FACA.—Any advisory committee created by

2

the Review Board shall be subject to chapter 10 of3

title 5, United States Code.

4(e) SECURITY CLEARANCE REQUIRED.—An indi-

5 vidual employed in any position by the Review Board (in6 cluding an individual appointed as Executive Director)
7 shall be required to qualify for any necessary security
8 clearance prior to taking office in that position, but may
9 be employed conditionally in accordance with subsection
10 (b)(3)(B) before qualifying for that clearance.
11

SEC. ll09. REVIEW OF RECORDS BY THE UNIDENTIFIED

12

ANOMALOUS PHENOMENA RECORDS REVIEW

13

BOARD.

14(a) CUSTODY OF RECORDS REVIEWED BY REVIEW

15 BOARD.—Pending the outcome of a review of activity by
16 the Review Board, a Government office shall retain cus17 tody of its unidentified anomalous phenomena records for
18 purposes of preservation, security, and efficiency, unless—
19(1) the Review Board requires the physical

20transfer of records for reasons of conducting an

21

independent and impartial review; or

22(2) such transfer is necessary for an adminis-

23

trative hearing or other official Review Board func-

24

tion.

BAG23A78 JDP

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48
1(b) STARTUP REQUIREMENTS.—The Review Board

2 shall—3(1) not later than 90 days after the date of its

4

appointment, publish a schedule in the Federal Reg-5

ister for review of all unidentified anomalous phe-6nomena records;

7(2) not later than 180 days after the date of8

the enactment of this Act, begin its review of un-

9identified anomalous phenomena records under this10

title; and11(3) periodically thereafter as warranted, but not

12less frequently than semiannually, publish a revised

13

schedule in the Federal Register addressing the re-14view and inclusion of any unidentified anomalous

15

phenomena records subsequently discovered.

16(c) DETERMINATIONS OF THE REVIEW BOARD.—

17(1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Board shall di-

18

rect that all unidentified anomalous phenomena

19

records be transmitted to the Archivist and disclosed

20

to the public in the Collection in the absence of clear

21

and convincing evidence that—

2223(A) a Government record is not an unidentified anomalous phenomena record; or

24(B) a Government record, or particular in-25

formation within an unidentified anomalousBAG23A78 JDP

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49
1

phenomena record, qualifies for postponement2of public disclosure under this title.

3(2) REQUIREMENTS.—In approving postpone-

4ment of public disclosure of a unidentified anoma-

5

lous phenomena record, the Review Board shall seek

6

to—

7

(A) provide for the disclosure of segregable

8parts, substitutes, or summaries of such a

9record; and

10(B) determine, in consultation with the11originating body and consistent with the stand-12

ards for postponement under this title, which of13

the following alternative forms of disclosure

14

shall be made by the originating body:

15(i) Any reasonably segregable par-16

ticular information in a unidentified anom-

17

alous phenomena record.
(ii) A substitute record for that infor-

18

mation which is postponed.

19(iii) A summary of a unidentified

20

anomalous phenomena record.

21
22

(3)

CONTROLLEDDISCLOSURECAMPAIGN

23

PLAN.—With respect to unidentified anomalous phe-24

nomena records, particular information in unidenti-

25

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1

nologies of unknown origin, and biological evidence

2

for non-human intelligence the public disclosure of3

which is postponed pursuant to section ll06, or

4

for which only substitutions or summaries have been5

disclosed to the public, the Review Board shall cre-6

ate and transmit to the President and to the Archi-

7

vist a Controlled Disclosure Campaign Plan, with

8classified appendix, containing—

9(A) a description of actions by the Review

10

Board, the originating body, the President, or

11

any Government office (including a justification

12of any such action to postpone disclosure of any

13

record or part of any record) and of any official

14

proceedings conducted by the Review Board

15

with regard to specific unidentified anomalous

16

phenomena records; and17(B) a benchmark-driven plan, based upon18

a review of the proceedings and in conformity

19with the decisions reflected therein, recom-

20

mending precise requirements for periodic re-21view, downgrading, and declassification as well22

as the exact time or specified occurrence fol-23

lowing which each postponed item may be ap-

24

propriately disclosed to the public under this25

title.

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51(4) NOTICE FOLLOWING REVIEW AND DETER-

1
2

MINATION.—(A)Following its review and a deter-

3

mination that a unidentified anomalous phenomena

4

record shall be publicly disclosed in the Collection or5

postponed for disclosure and held in the protected

6Collection, the Review Board shall notify the head of7

the originating body of the determination of the Re-8view Board and publish a copy of the determination

9in the Federal Register within 14 days after the de-10

termination is made.

11(B) Contemporaneous notice shall be made to

12

the President for Review Board determinations re-13

garding unidentified anomalous phenomena records

14of the executive branch of the Federal Government,

15

and to the oversight committees designated in this16

title in the case of records of the legislative branch

17of the Federal Government. Such notice shall con-18

tain a written unclassified justification for public

19

disclosure or postponement of disclosure, including

20

an explanation of the application of any standards

21

contained in section ll06.

22

(d)

PRESIDENTIAL

AUTHORITYOVER

REVIEW

23 BOARD DETERMINATION.—
24(1) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE OR POSTPONEMENT

25

OF DISCLOSURE.—After the Review Board has made

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521

a formal determination concerning the public disclo-2

sure or postponement of disclosure of an unidenti-

3

fied anomalous phenomena record of the executive

4

branch of the Federal Government or information

5

within such a record, or of any information con-6

tained in a unidentified anomalous phenomena

7

record, obtained or developed solely within the exec-

8

utive branch of the Federal Government, the Presi-

9dent shall—

10(A) have the sole and nondelegable author-

11

ity to require the disclosure or postponement of

12such record or information under the standards

13

set forth in section ll06; and

14(B) provide the Review Board with both an

15

unclassified and classified written certification

16

specifying the President’s decision within 30

17days after the Review Board’s determination18

and notice to the executive branch agency as re-19quired under this title, stating the justification

20

for the President’s decision, including the appli-

21

cable grounds for postponement under section

22

ll06, accompanied by a copy of the identi-

23

fication aid required under section ll04.

24(2) PERIODIC REVIEW.—(A) Any unidentified

25

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1

President shall henceforth be subject to the require-2

ments of periodic review, downgrading, declassifica-

3tion, and public disclosure in accordance with the4

recommended timeline and associated requirements

5

specified in the Controlled Disclosure Campaign

6Plan unless these conflict with the standards set

7

forth in section ll06.

8(B) This paragraph supersedes all prior declas-

9sification review standards that may previously have10

been deemed applicable to unidentified anomalous

11

phenomena records.

12(3) RECORDOFPRESIDENTIAL

POSTPONE-

13

MENT.—The Review Board shall, upon its receipt—

14(A) publish in the Federal Register a copy

15

of any unclassified written certification, state-

16ment, and other materials transmitted by or on

17

behalf of the President with regard to postpone-

18

ment of unidentified anomalous phenomena

19

records; and20(B) revise or amend recommendations in

21

the Controlled Disclosure Campaign Plan ac-

22

cordingly.

23(e) NOTICE TO PUBLIC.—Every 30 calendar days, be-

24 ginning on the date that is 60 calendar days after the date
25 on which the Review Board first approves the postpone-

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1 ment of disclosure of a unidentified anomalous phenomena
2 record, the Review Board shall publish in the Federal Reg3 ister a notice that summarizes the postponements ap4 proved by the Review Board or initiated by the President,
5 the Senate, or the House of Representatives, including a
6 description of the subject, originating agency, length or
7 other physical description, and each ground for postpone8 ment that is relied upon to the maximum extent classifica9 tion restrictions permitting.
10(f) REPORTS BY THE REVIEW BOARD.—

11(1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Board shall re-

12

port its activities to the leadership of Congress, the13Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental

14

Affairs of the Senate, the Committee on Oversight15

and Reform of the House of Representatives, the16

President, the Archivist, and the head of any Gov-

17

ernment office whose records have been the subject

18

of Review Board activity.

19(2) FIRST REPORT.—The first report shall be

20

issued on the date that is 1 year after the date of21

enactment of this Act, and subsequent reports every

22

1 year thereafter until termination of the Review

23

Board.

24
25(3) CONTENTS.—A report under paragraph (1)shall include the following information:

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55
1(A) A financial report of the expenses for2

all official activities and requirements of the3

Review Board and its personnel.

4(B) The progress made on review, trans-5

mission to the Archivist, and public disclosure

6of unidentified anomalous phenomena records.

7(C) The estimated time and volume of un-

8

identified anomalous phenomena records in-9

volved in the completion of the Review Board’s

10

performance under this title.

11(D) Any special problems, including re-12quests and the level of cooperation of Govern-

13

ment offices, with regard to the ability of the

14

Review Board to operate as required by this15

title.

16(E) A record of review activities, including

17

a record of postponement decisions by the Re-

18view Board or other related actions authorized

19

by this title, and a record of the volume of20

records reviewed and postponed.

21(F) Suggestions and requests to Congress

22

for additional legislative authority needs.

23(4) COPIES AND BRIEFS.—Coincident with the24reporting requirements in paragraph (2), or more25

frequently as warranted by new information, the Re-

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56
1

view Board shall provide copies to, and fully brief,2

at a minimum the President, the Archivist, leader-3

ship of Congress, and the Chairs and Chairmen, as

4

the case may be, and Ranking Members and Vice

5

Chairmen, as the case may be, of such other com-6

mittees as leadership of Congress determines appro-

7

priate on the Controlled Disclosure Campaign Plan,

8classified appendix, and postponed disclosures, spe-9cifically addressing—

10(A) recommendations for periodic review,

11

downgrading, and declassification as well as the12

exact time or specified occurrence following

13

which specific unidentified anomalous phe-14

nomena records and material may be appro-

15

priately disclosed;

16(B) the rationale behind each postpone-

17

ment determination and the recommended

18

means to achieve disclosure of each postponed

19

item;

20
21

(C) any other findings that the Review
Board chooses to offer; and22(D) an addendum containing copies of re-

23

ports of postponed records to the Archivist re-24

quired under subsection (c)(3) made since theBAG23A78 JDP

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57
1

date of the preceding report under this sub-2

section.

3(5) NOTICE.—At least 90 calendar days before

4completing its work, the Review Board shall provide

5

written notice to the President and Congress of its

6intention to terminate its operations at a specified

7

date.

8

(6) BRIEFING THE ALL-DOMAIN ANOMALY RES-

9

OLUTION OFFICE.—Coincident with the provision in

10paragraph (5), if not accomplished earlier under11

paragraph (4), the Review Board shall brief the All-12

domain Anomaly Resolution Office established pur-13

suant to section 1683 of the National Defense Au-

14thorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (50 U.S.C.

153373), or its successor, as subsequently designated16

by Act of Congress, on the Controlled Disclosure

17

Campaign Plan, classified appendix, and postponed

18

disclosures.

19

SEC. ll10. DISCLOSURE OF RECOVERED TECHNOLOGIES20

OF UNKNOWN ORIGIN AND BIOLOGICAL EVI-

21

DENCE OF NON-HUMAN INTELLIGENCE.

22(a) EXERCISE OF EMINENT DOMAIN.—The Federal

23 Government shall exercise eminent domain over any and
24 all recovered technologies of unknown origin and biological
25 evidence of non-human intelligence that may be controlledBAG23A78 JDP

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1 by private persons or entities in the interests of the public
2 good.
3(b) AVAILABILITY TO REVIEW BOARD.—Any and all

4 such material, should it exist, shall be made available to
5 the Review Board for personal examination and subse6 quent disclosure determination at a location suitable to the
7 controlling authority of said material and in a timely man8 ner conducive to the objectives of the Review Board in ac9 cordance with the requirements of this title.
10(c) ACTIONS OF REVIEW BOARD.—In carrying out

11 subsection (b), the Review Board shall consider and render
12 decisions—13(1) whether the material examined constitutes

14

technologies of unknown origin or biological evidence

15

of non-human intelligence beyond a reasonable16

doubt;

17(2) whether recovered technologies of unknown

18

origin, biological evidence of non-human intelligence,19

or a particular subset of material qualifies for post-

20

ponement of disclosure under this title; and21(3) what changes, if any, to the current disposi-

22tion of said material should the Federal Government

23

make to facilitate full disclosure.

24(d) REVIEW BOARD ACCESS TO TESTIMONY AND

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59
1 testimony from unidentified anomalous phenomena wit2 nesses, close observers and legacy program personnel and3 whistleblowers within the Federal Government’s posses4 sion as of and after the date of the enactment of this Act
5 in furtherance of Review Board disclosure determination
6 responsibilities in section ll07(h) and subsection (c) of
7 this section.
(e) SOLICITATION OF ADDITIONAL WITNESSES.—

8

9 The Review Board shall solicit additional unidentified
10 anomalous phenomena witness and whistleblower testi11 mony and afford protections under section 1673(b) of the
12 James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for
13 Fiscal Year 2023 (50 U.S.C. 3373b(b)) if deemed bene14 ficial in fulfilling Review Board responsibilities under this
15 title.
16
17
18

SEC. ll11. DISCLOSURE OF OTHER MATERIALS AND ADDITIONAL STUDY.

(a) MATERIALS UNDER SEAL OF COURT.—

19(1) INFORMATION HELD UNDER SEAL OF A

20

COURT.—The Review Board may request the Attor-

21

ney General to petition any court in the United

22

States or abroad to release any information relevant

23

to unidentified anomalous phenomena, technologies

24of unknown origin, or non-human intelligence that is25

held under seal of the court.

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60
1(2) INFORMATION HELD UNDER INJUNCTION

2OF SECRETARY OF GRAND JURY.—(A) The Review

3

Board may request the Attorney General to petition4

any court in the United States to release any infor-

5

mation relevant to unidentified anomalous phe-6nomena, technologies of unknown origin, or non-7

human intelligence that is held under the injunction

8of secrecy of a grand jury.

9(B) A request for disclosure of unidentified

10

anomalous phenomena, technologies of unknown ori-

11gin, and non-human intelligence materials under this12

title shall be deemed to constitute a showing of par-13

ticularized need under rule 6 of the Federal Rules

14of Criminal Procedure.

15(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of the

16 Congress that—17(1) the Attorney General should assist the Re-

18view Board in good faith to unseal any records that19

the Review Board determines to be relevant and held

20

under seal by a court or under the injunction of se-21

crecy of a grand jury;

22(2) the Secretary of State should contact any

23foreign government that may hold material relevant

24

to unidentified anomalous phenomena, technologies

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of unknown origin, or non-human intelligence and2seek disclosure of such material; and3(3) all heads of Executive agencies should co-4operate in full with the Review Board to seek the5disclosure of all material relevant to unidentified

6

anomalous phenomena, technologies of unknown ori-

7gin, and non-human intelligence consistent with the8public interest.

910SEC. ll12. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.

(a) PRECEDENCE OVER OTHER LAW.—When this

11 title requires transmission of a record to the Archivist or
12 public disclosure, it shall take precedence over any other13 provision of law (except section 6103 of the Internal Rev14 enue Code of 1986 specifying confidentiality and disclo15 sure of tax returns and tax return information), judicial
16 decision construing such provision of law, or common law
17 doctrine that would otherwise prohibit such transmission
18 or disclosure, with the exception of deeds governing access
19 to or transfer or release of gifts and donations of records
20 to the United States Government.
21(b) FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT.—Nothing in

22 this title shall be construed to eliminate or limit any right
23 to file requests with any executive agency or seek judicial
24 review of the decisions pursuant to section 552 of title 5,
25 United States Code.

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62(c) JUDICIAL REVIEW.—Nothing in this title shall be

1

2 construed to preclude judicial review, under chapter 7 of
3 title 5, United States Code, of final actions taken or re4 quired to be taken under this title.
(d) EXISTING AUTHORITY.—Nothing in this title re-5

6 vokes or limits the existing authority of the President, any
7 executive agency, the Senate, or the House of Representa8 tives, or any other entity of the Federal Government to
9 publicly disclose records in its possession.
10(e) RULES OF THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REP-

11

RESENTATIVES.—To the extent that any provision of this

12 title establishes a procedure to be followed in the Senate
13 or the House of Representatives, such provision is adopt14 ed—
15(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of16

the Senate and House of Representatives, respec-17

tively, and is deemed to be part of the rules of each

18

House, respectively, but applicable only with respect

19

to the procedure to be followed in that House, and20

it supersedes other rules only to the extent that it

21

is inconsistent with such rules; and22(2) with full recognition of the constitutional

23

right of either House to change the rules (so far as

24

they relate to the procedure of that House) at any

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1

time, in the same manner, and to the same extent

2

as in the case of any other rule of that House.

3

SEC. ll13. TERMINATION OF EFFECT OF TITLE.

4(a) PROVISIONS PERTAINING

TO

THE

REVIEW

5 BOARD.—The provisions of this title that pertain to the
6 appointment and operation of the Review Board shall
7 cease to be effective when the Review Board and the terms
8 of its members have terminated pursuant to section
9 ll07(n).
10(b) OTHER PROVISIONS.—(1) The remaining provi-

11 sions of this title shall continue in effect until such time
12 as the Archivist certifies to the President and Congress
13 that all unidentified anomalous phenomena records have
14 been made available to the public in accordance with this
15 title.
16(2) In facilitation of the provision in paragraph (1),17 the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office established pur18 suant to section 1683 of the National Defense Authoriza19 tion Act for Fiscal Year 2022 (50 U.S.C. 3373), or its
20 successor as subsequently designated by Act of Congress,
21 shall develop standardized unidentified anomalous phe22 nomena declassification guidance applicable to any and all
23 unidentified anomalous phenomena records generated by
24 originating bodies subsequent to termination of the Review
25 Board consistent with the requirements and intent of theBAG23A78 JDP

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64
1 Controlled Disclosure Campaign Plan with respect to un2 identified anomalous phenomena records originated prior
3 to Review Board termination.
45

SEC. ll14. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

(a) IN GENERAL.—There is authorized to be appro-

6 priated to carry out the provisions of this title
7 $20,000,000 for fiscal year 2024.
8(b) INTERIM FUNDING.—Until such time as funds

9 are appropriated pursuant to subsection (a), the President
10 may use such sums as are available for discretionary use
11 to carry out this title.
12
13

SEC. ll15. SEVERABILITY.

If any provision of this title or the application thereof

14 to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remain15 der of this title and the application of that provision to
16 other persons not similarly situated or to other cir17 cumstances shall not be affected by the invalidation.