Paradigm-Changing UFO Transparency Legislation Fails In Congress For Second Consecutive Year
Written by Christopher Sharp - 20 September 2024
An unprecedented Senate amendment aimed at increasing transparency on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP), introduced by U.S. Senators Mike Rounds and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, has been excluded from the Senate’s National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2025 (NDAA FY 2025) Manager’s Package.
It was seen as the final opportunity for the amendment to be considered for inclusion in law within the finalised version of the NDAA.
As a result, the amendment—known as the UAP Disclosure Act (UAPDA) —will not form part of any negotiations with the House of Representatives as they finalise the NDAA FY 2025, which is expected to be signed into law by President Joe Biden.
If passed, the UAPDA could have unleashed a process revealing that the U.S. Government and defense contractors possess retrieved crafts, which are, according to the Act, capable of trans-medium travel, instantaneous acceleration, hypersonic speeds, and positive lift.
Liberation Times has learned that the CIA —currently facing mounting criticism over alleged dishonesty regarding anomalous health incidents—along with the Department of Defense and Department of Energy, has consistently bypassed democratic oversight in retrieving advanced objects of unknown origin.
According to Liberation Times sources, these materials are subsequently sent to National Labs and select defense contractors, including Lockheed Martin.
Multiple programs are understood to be orchestrated by the CIA’s Directorate of Science and Technology and its Directorate of Operations alongside Department of Defense components.
Liberation Times has uncovered details of an alleged program focused on retrieving advanced crafts from beneath the sea, some reportedly of non-human or unknown origin. This alleged program draws on multiple agencies and departments' specialised assets and expertise to carry out these missions.
Among those involved are the Maritime Branch of the CIA’s Directorate of Operations, the U.S. Navy, the National Underwater Reconnaissance Office (jointly operated by the Navy and CIA), and United States Special Operations Command.
It is further understood that the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution has provided deep submergence vehicles to support these retrieval efforts.
Once recovered, these crafts are allegedly transferred to the Office of Naval Research, which subsequently hands them over to defense contractors for detailed analysis.
The global locations of the Office of Naval Research
If the Act had passed, the President would have appointed nine impartial citizens, to a newly established UAP Records Review Board, overseen by the Senate’s Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
This board would oversee the collection, review, and public disclosure of UAP records and has the authority to examine materials, solicit testimonies, and gather additional witnesses and whistleblowers.
The establishment of the Review Board would prevent government agencies and individuals accused of involvement with illegal UAP programs from investigating and exonerating themselves.
This board would eliminate their direct influence over the government's current UAP office, the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), a practice multiple sources have reported to Liberation Times.
Liberation Times understands the UAPDA was backed by the Senate’s Intelligence and Armed Services Committee.
The UAPDA’s inclusion within the Manager’s Package hinged upon support from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs - due to its potential oversight role and involvement in a controlled UAP disclosure campaign, should it have been passed.
However, sources state that the UAPDA failed to be included within the Manager’s Package, due to resistance from that Committee’s Republican ranking member, Senator Rand Paul. Liberation Times has requested comment from Senator Paul’s office.
25 September 2024 Update: After initially declining to comment on the record via email, a staffer from Senator Rand Paul’s office has now told Liberation Times through phone call that the Senator cleared the UAPDA to be included within the Manager’s Package. In a separate phone transcript obtained by Liberation Times, a staff member states:
“Senator Paul cleared that amendment, so any delay was not due to his actions.”
Notably, in 2021 Senator Paul implied that $22 million secured by the late Senator Harry Reid for a UAP program was a bad use of government money.
It marks the second successive failure for the UAPDA, which was gutted by NDAA FY 2024, due to opposition from multiple fronts, most notably Representative Mike Turner and other leaders within the House.
Of note, following its gutting from NDAA FY 2024, Senator Schumer, stated that multiple credible sources notified him and Senator Rounds that information on UAP has been withheld from Congress:
"We've also been notified by multiple credible sources that information on UAPs has also been withheld from Congress, which if true is a violation of laws requiring full notification to the legislative branch, especially as it relates to the four congressional leaders, the defence committees, and the intelligence committees."
Speaking with Liberation Times about the UAPDA’s second consecutive failure, Lester Nare, the founder of the UAP Caucus - a group dedicated to raising UAP awareness and advocating for action among congressional members - commented:
“The failure of the UAP Disclosure Act (UAPDA) in 2024 is disappointing but not entirely unexpected, given the complexities of the current election cycle, the political dynamics within the 118th Congress, and persistent pushback from institutional gatekeepers. While this setback is significant, it does not mark the end of our efforts towards greater transparency in UAP-related matters.
“We look forward to the forthcoming releases mandated by UAPDA provisions that did pass in the NDAA FY24, including intelligence assessments on the nature and origins of UAP. Looking ahead, we have been proactively developing legislative alternatives tailored for introduction in the 119th Congress.
“These new initiatives will be presented publicly, offering a fresh approach to achieving our goals of increased disclosure and accountability. It's important to note that this likely represents the final iteration of the UAPDA in its current form. Our future legislative efforts will build upon the lessons learned from this experience, adapting to the evolving political landscape and addressing the concerns that hindered the Act's passage.”
Yuan Fung of the UAP Disclosure Fund told Liberation Times:
“On behalf of the UAP Disclosure Fund, we express our deep disappointment that the UAP Disclosure Act (UAPDA) has not been included in the Senate’s FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act package.
“The UAPDA had garnered robust, bipartisan support and would have ushered in an unprecedented level of transparency and oversight over UAP records held by the Executive Branch. We commend Senators Mike Rounds, Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillibrand, and Martin Heinrich for championing this legislation for two consecutive years, and we are grateful to all those who worked behind the scenes to advocate for this critical cause.
“We remain hopeful that these senators and others will persist in their efforts to establish proper Congressional oversight of UAP matters, which raise serious concerns regarding the use of taxpayer funds and national security.
“While this setback is disappointing, it does not diminish our resolve. Our mission to advance UAP transparency and disclosure continues. In the months ahead, we will explore every available avenue to maintain pressure on the government to be truthful with the American people and the global community.
“Our work will focus on building political momentum for UAP disclosure and demanding the truth—because the public deserves nothing less.”
Despite repeated failures to pass the UAPDA, new UAP hearings expected in the coming months within both the Senate and House.
Furthermore, there is a potentially brighter future for AARO under the leadership of its new director, Dr. Jon T. Kosloski. The new move potentially provides the AARO with another opportunity to rigorously investigate allegations of retrieval and reverse engineering programs relating to materials and biologics of potential non-human intelligence.
Therefore, the fight for transparency from within the U.S. Government continues.
Furthermore, there are three other UAP provisions included within the NDAA FY 2025 Manager’s Package, including a Comptroller General review of the AARO, following the departure of its much-criticised former director, Dr Sean Kirkpatrick.
For now, news of the UAPDA’s apparent failure will be greeted positively by elements within the Department of Defense and the Intelligence Community, who continue to resist public and congressional transparency and accountability.
