The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022 is a massive spending bill that funds all federal agencies for fiscal year 2022 and includes emergency aid to Ukraine. Buried in the bill is a provision requiring the Defense Department and intelligence agencies to share data on unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP) with Congress every three months.
What does this bill fund?
The bill provides money for 12 major federal departments and agencies, from Agriculture to Transportation. It also includes emergency funding for Ukraine to help with food assistance, refugee support, military equipment, and economic aid following Russia's attack.
What's the UAP requirement?
Section 413 requires the Director of National Intelligence and Secretary of Defense to make sure every intelligence agency and Defense Department office with UAP data shares it immediately with the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force and the National Air and Space Intelligence Center. The task force must then report its findings to Congress at least every three months, starting within 90 days of the bill becoming law.
What must these reports include?
Each quarterly report must list all UAP-related events reported during that period, plus any earlier events that weren't included in previous reports. The reports go to congressional intelligence committees and the Armed Services committees of both the House and Senate. All reports are classified (secret).
What other intelligence changes does the bill make?
The bill extends several intelligence programs through 2025, establishes a chaplain corps at the CIA with up to 10 staff members, and requires the FBI to assess security risks before buying products or services from China. It also creates counterintelligence units at non-intelligence federal agencies like the Department of Agriculture.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force?
According to the bill, it is a task force established by the Department of Defense on August 4, 2020, to be led by the Department of the Navy under the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security.
the task force established by the Department of Defense on August 4, 2020, to be led by the Department of the Navy, under the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence and Security
How often must the task force report to Congress on UAP?
The task force must submit reports to Congress at least quarterly, with the first report due within 90 days of the bill becoming law.
Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than quarterly thereafter, the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force, or successor entity, consistent with the protection of intelligence sources and methods, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report
Which congressional committees receive the UAP reports?
The reports go to the congressional intelligence committees and the Committees on Armed Services of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.
Are the UAP reports public or classified?
The reports are submitted in classified form, meaning they are secret and not available to the general public.
Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in classified form.