H.R. 7900 is the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023. It funds and directs military activities for the coming year. One key section establishes a new system for reporting unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), which are objects or events that cannot be identified. The law protects people who report UAP from legal trouble, even if they signed agreements promising to keep quiet.
What is the new UAP reporting system?
The bill requires the Defense Department and intelligence agencies to set up a secure system where people can report UAP sightings and related government programs. The system must be easy to find and use. Reports go to cleared officials who work on UAP issues. Within 180 days, the Defense Department must tell Congress how the system works and post information about it online so the public knows how to use it.
Who can report UAP and what protection do they get?
Anyone can report UAP through the system, including military members, government workers, and contractors. The law says reporting is allowed even if someone signed a nondisclosure agreement (a legal document that says you cannot talk about something). People who report cannot be punished, fired, or have their security clearances taken away. If an employer breaks this rule, the person can sue in federal court for money damages.
What happens to the reports?
Cleared officials review reports and share information with analysts and scientists. If a report seems to describe a secret military or intelligence program that Congress already knows about, officials can keep it private. Otherwise, information moves through the system. The Defense Department must report to Congress each year about what reports came in and what was learned.
How is this system checked?
Inspectors General from the Defense Department and intelligence agencies must review the system within one year. They check whether it is working well and whether people are following the rules. They report their findings to Congress and congressional leaders.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the law say about nondisclosure agreements and UAP reporting?
The law says that reporting UAP through the new system is allowed even if someone signed a nondisclosure agreement or other legal document that normally prevents them from talking about something. Reporting in this way counts as following all rules about classified information.
Notwithstanding the terms of any written or oral nondisclosure agreement, order, or other instrumentality or means, that could be interpreted as a legal constraint on reporting by a witness of an unidentified aerial phenomena, reporting in accordance with the system established under subsection (b) is hereby authorized and shall be deemed to comply with any regulation or order issued under the authority of Executive Order 13526
What protection do people have if they report UAP?
The law protects reporters from legal trouble and from being punished at work. It is not a crime to report through the system. Employers cannot fire someone, take away their security clearance, or punish them in any other way for reporting. If an employer breaks this rule, the person can sue in federal court.
It shall not be a violation of section 798 of title 18, United States Code, or any other provision of law, and no cause of action shall lie or be maintained in any court or other tribunal against any person, for reporting any information through, and in compliance with, the system established pursuant to subsection (b)(1)
Who runs the UAP reporting system?
The Defense Department and intelligence agencies run the system together. Cleared employees and contractors who work on UAP issues manage it. The system must be easy to find and use, and people must be able to get help using it.
The system established pursuant to paragraph (1) shall be administered by designated and widely known, easily accessible, and appropriately cleared Department of Defense and intelligence community employees or contractors assigned to the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force or the Office
When must the Defense Department tell Congress and the public about the system?
Within 180 days after the law was signed, the Defense Department must submit a report to Congress explaining the system. The department must also post information on its website so the public knows how to access and use the system.
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