The act has been signed!
Summary of some key points
- Office to “address” UAP must be established by 25 June 2022.
- Office must produce a report by 31 October 2022 (Halloween), and then annually on that date for the following four years.
- Report will be unclassified but may contain a classified annex.
- Report must contain all reports of UAP for the year.
- Report must provide analysis of each UAP event.
- Report must mention any work on “the ability to capture or exploit discovered unidentified aerial phenomena.”
- Office must make a classified briefing by 27 March 2022 to three committees in congress and then continue doing so twice a year until the end of 2026.
- There are implications for the UK as this act forces them to engage with allies on this subject.
- There is special interest in UAP activity around nuclear sites.
- There is recognition of “transmedium” objects that can travel in water and air.
- The threat element is present in terms of national security.
- There is mention of “adverse physiological effects” and “health-related effects”.
- The office must create a “science plan” to understand the technologies involved in UAP and how to replicate them.
Text of the act: S.1605 – National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022
The text below is copied from the congress website.
SEC. 1683. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE, ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE, AND
AUTHORITIES TO ADDRESS UNIDENTIFIED AERIAL PHENOMENA.
(a) Establishment of Office.–Not later than 180 days after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in
coordination with the Director of National Intelligence, shall
establish an office within a component of the Office of the Secretary
of Defense, or within a joint organization of the Department of Defense
and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, to carry out
the duties of the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force, as in
effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act, and such
other duties as are required by this section.
(b) Duties.–The duties of the Office established under subsection
(a) shall include the following:
(1) Developing procedures to synchronize and standardize the
collection, reporting, and analysis of incidents, including adverse
physiological effects, regarding unidentified aerial phenomena
across the Department of Defense and the intelligence community.
(2) Developing processes and procedures to ensure that such
incidents from each component of the Department and each element of
the intelligence community are reported and incorporated in a
centralized repository.
(3) Establishing procedures to require the timely and
consistent reporting of such incidents.
(4) Evaluating links between unidentified aerial phenomena and
adversarial foreign governments, other foreign governments, or
nonstate actors.
(5) Evaluating the threat that such incidents present to the
United States.
(6) Coordinating with other departments and agencies of the
Federal Government, as appropriate, including the Federal Aviation
Administration, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration,
the Department of Homeland Security, the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration, and the Department of Energy.
(7) Coordinating with allies and partners of the United States,
as appropriate, to better assess the nature and extent of
unidentified aerial phenomena.
(8) Preparing reports for Congress, in both classified and
unclassified form, including under subsection (i).
(c) Response to and Field Investigations of Unidentified Aerial
Phenomena.–
(1) Designation.–The Secretary, in coordination with the
Director, shall designate one or more line organizations within the
Department of Defense and the intelligence community that possess
appropriate expertise, authorities, accesses, data, systems,
platforms, and capabilities to rapidly respond to, and conduct
field investigations of, incidents involving unidentified aerial
phenomena under the direction of the head of the Office established
under subsection (a).
(2) Ability to respond.–The Secretary, in coordination with
the Director, shall ensure that each line organization designated
under paragraph (1) has adequate personnel with the requisite
expertise, equipment, transportation, and other resources necessary
to respond rapidly to incidents or patterns of observations
involving unidentified aerial phenomena of which the Office becomes
aware.
(d) Scientific, Technological, and Operational Analyses of Data on
Unidentified Aerial Phenomena.–
(1) Designation.–The Secretary, in coordination with the
Director, shall designate one or more line organizations that will
be primarily responsible for scientific, technical, and operational
analysis of data gathered by field investigations conducted
pursuant to subsection (c) and data from other sources, including
with respect to the testing of materials, medical studies, and
development of theoretical models, to better understand and explain
unidentified aerial phenomena.
(2) Authority.–The Secretary and the Director shall each issue
such directives as are necessary to ensure that the each line
organization designated under paragraph (1) has authority to draw
on the special expertise of persons outside the Federal Government
with appropriate security clearances.
(e) Data; Intelligence Collection.–
(1) Availability of data and reporting on unidentified aerial
phenomena.–The Director and the Secretary shall each, in
coordination with one another, ensure that–
(A) each element of the intelligence community with data
relating to unidentified aerial phenomena makes such data
available immediately to the Office established under
subsection (a) or to an entity designated by the Secretary and
the Director to receive such data; and
(B) military and civilian personnel of the Department of
Defense or an element of the intelligence community, and
contractor personnel of the Department or such an element, have
access to procedures by which the personnel shall report
incidents or information, including adverse physiological
effects, involving or associated with unidentified aerial
phenomena directly to the Office or to an entity designated by
the Secretary and the Director to receive such information.
(2) Intelligence collection and analysis plan.–The head of the
Office established under subsection (a), acting on behalf of the
Secretary of Defense and the Director of National Intelligence,
shall supervise the development and execution of an intelligence
collection and analysis plan to gain as much knowledge as possible
regarding the technical and operational characteristics, origins,
and intentions of unidentified aerial phenomena, including with
respect to the development, acquisition, deployment, and operation
of technical collection capabilities necessary to detect, identify,
and scientifically characterize unidentified aerial phenomena.
(3) Use of resources and capabilities.–In developing the plan
under paragraph (2), the head of the Office established under
subsection (a) shall consider and propose, as the head determines
appropriate, the use of any resource, capability, asset, or process
of the Department and the intelligence community.
(f) Science Plan.–The head of the Office established under
subsection (a), on behalf of the Secretary and the Director, shall
supervise the development and execution of a science plan to develop
and test, as practicable, scientific theories to–
(1) account for characteristics and performance of unidentified
aerial phenomena that exceed the known state of the art in science
or technology, including in the areas of propulsion, aerodynamic
control, signatures, structures, materials, sensors,
countermeasures, weapons, electronics, and power generation; and
(2) provide the foundation for potential future investments to
replicate any such advanced characteristics and performance.
(g) Assignment of Priority.–The Director, in consultation with,
and with the recommendation of the Secretary, shall assign an
appropriate level of priority within the National Intelligence
Priorities Framework to the requirement to understand, characterize,
and respond to unidentified aerial phenomena.
(h) Annual Report.–
(1) Requirement.–Not later than October 31, 2022, and annually
thereafter until October 31, 2026, the Director, in consultation
with the Secretary, shall submit to the appropriate congressional
committees a report on unidentified aerial phenomena.
(2) Elements.–Each report under paragraph (1) shall include,
with respect to the year covered by the report, the following
information:
(A) All reported unidentified aerial phenomena-related
events that occurred during the one-year period.
(B) All reported unidentified aerial phenomena-related
events that occurred during a period other than that one-year
period but were not included in an earlier report.
(C) An analysis of data and intelligence received through
each reported unidentified aerial phenomena-related event.
(D) An analysis of data relating to unidentified aerial
phenomena collected through–
(i) geospatial intelligence;
(ii) signals intelligence;
(iii) human intelligence; and
(iv) measurement and signature intelligence.
(E) The number of reported incidents of unidentified aerial
phenomena over restricted air space of the United States during
the one-year period.
(F) An analysis of such incidents identified under
subparagraph (E).
(G) Identification of potential aerospace or other threats
posed by unidentified aerial phenomena to the national security
of the United States.
(H) An assessment of any activity regarding unidentified
aerial phenomena that can be attributed to one or more
adversarial foreign governments.
(I) Identification of any incidents or patterns regarding
unidentified aerial phenomena that indicate a potential
adversarial foreign government may have achieved a breakthrough
aerospace capability.
(J) An update on the coordination by the United States with
allies and partners on efforts to track, understand, and
address unidentified aerial phenomena.
(K) An update on any efforts underway on the ability to
capture or exploit discovered unidentified aerial phenomena.
(L) An assessment of any health-related effects for
individuals that have encountered unidentified aerial
phenomena.
(M) The number of reported incidents, and descriptions
thereof, of unidentified aerial phenomena associated with
military nuclear assets, including strategic nuclear weapons
and nuclear-powered ships and submarines.
(N) In consultation with the Administrator for Nuclear
Security, the number of reported incidents, and descriptions
thereof, of unidentified aerial phenomena associated with
facilities or assets associated with the production,
transportation, or storage of nuclear weapons or components
thereof.
(O) In consultation with the Chairman of the Nuclear
Regulatory Commission, the number of reported incidents, and
descriptions thereof, of unidentified aerial phenomena or
drones of unknown origin associated with nuclear power
generating stations, nuclear fuel storage sites, or other sites
or facilities regulated by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission.
(P) The names of the line organizations that have been
designated to perform the specific functions under subsections
(c) and (d), and the specific functions for which each such
line organization has been assigned primary responsibility.
(3) Form.–Each report submitted under paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.
(i) Semiannual Briefings.–
(1) Requirement.–Not later than 90 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act and not less frequently than semiannually
thereafter until December 31, 2026, the head of the Office
established under subsection (a) shall provide to the congressional
committees specified in subparagraphs (A), (B), and (D) of
subsection (l)(1) classified briefings on unidentified aerial
phenomena.
(2) First briefing.–The first briefing provided under
paragraph (1) shall include all incidents involving unidentified
aerial phenomena that were reported to the Unidentified Aerial
Phenomena Task Force or to the Office established under subsection
(a) after June 24, 2021, regardless of the date of occurrence of
the incident.
(3) Subsequent briefings.–Each briefing provided subsequent to
the first briefing described in paragraph (2) shall include, at a
minimum, all events relating to unidentified aerial phenomena that
occurred during the previous 180 days, and events relating to
unidentified aerial phenomena that were not included in an earlier
briefing.
(4) Instances in which data was not shared.–For each briefing
period, the head of the Office established under subsection (a)
shall jointly provide to the chairman and the ranking minority
member or vice chairman of the congressional committees specified
in subparagraphs (A) and (D) of subsection (k)(1) an enumeration of
any instances in which data relating to unidentified aerial
phenomena was not provided to the Office because of classification
restrictions on that data or for any other reason.
(j) Authorization of Appropriations.–There is authorized to be
appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out the work of the
Office established under subsection (a), including with respect to–
(1) general intelligence gathering and intelligence analysis;
and
(2) strategic defense, space defense, defense of controlled air
space, defense of ground, air, or naval assets, and related
purposes.
(k) Task Force Termination.–Not later than the date on which the
Secretary establishes the Office under subsection (a), the Secretary
shall terminate the Unidentified Aerial Phenomenon Task Force.
(l) Definitions.–In this section:
(1) The term “appropriate congressional committees” means the
following:
(A) The Committees on Armed Services of the House of
Representatives and the Senate.
(B) The Committees on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives and the Senate.
(C) The Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate.
(D) The Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the
House of Representatives and the Select Committee on
Intelligence of the Senate.
(2) The term “intelligence community” has the meaning given
such term in section 3 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50
U.S.C. 3003).
(3) The term “line organization” means, with respect to a
department or agency of the Federal Government, an organization
that executes programs and activities to directly advance the core
functions and missions of the department or agency to which the
organization is subordinate, but, with respect to the Department of
Defense, does not include a component of the Office of the
Secretary of Defense.
(4) The term “transmedium objects or devices” means objects
or devices that are observed to transition between space and the
atmosphere, or between the atmosphere and bodies of water, that are
not immediately identifiable.
(5) The term “unidentified aerial phenomena” means–
(A) airborne objects that are not immediately identifiable;
(B) transmedium objects or devices; and
(C) submerged objects or devices that are not immediately
identifiable and that display behavior or performance
characteristics suggesting that the objects or devices may be
related to the objects or devices described in subparagraph (A)
or (B).