Federal

AIR Act

Source: Congress.gov · 324 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill requires the Secretary of Defense (the head official of the U.S. military) to notify Congress when a foreign object enters U.S. airspace without permission and is capable of spying. The Secretary must send a written notification no later than 24 hours after the object enters the national airspace system.

Who It Affects

The Secretary of Defense, Congress, and potentially any person or entity operating foreign surveillance objects that enter U.S. airspace.

Key Provisions

• The Secretary of Defense must submit a written notification to Congress within 24 hours if a foreign surveillance object enters the national airspace system without prior approval (Sec. 2(a)) • A "foreign surveillance object" includes any airborne object like a balloon or unmanned aircraft that originated outside the U.S., does not have prior approval to enter airspace, and can conduct surveillance activities (Sec. 2(b))

What Changes

If this bill becomes law, the Secretary of Defense will be required by law to notify Congress within 24 hours when certain foreign objects enter U.S. airspace without permission.

Important Definitions

"Foreign surveillance object" means any airborne object (including a balloon or unmanned aircraft) that comes from outside the United States, lacks prior approval to enter the national airspace system, and is capable of carrying out surveillance activities.

Effective Date

Not specified in bill text

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 968 To require the Secretary of Defense to notify Congress of certain foreign airborne objects located in the national airspace system that are capable of carrying out surveillance activities. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FEBRUARY 9, 2023 Mr. TORRES of New York introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Armed Services A BILL To require the Secretary of Defense to notify Congress of certain foreign airborne objects located in the national airspace system that are capable of carrying out surveil- lance activities. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Aerial Intelligence-col- 4 lection Revelation Act of 2023’’ or the ‘‘AIR Act’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:15 Mar 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H968.IH H968 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB 2 •HR 968 IH SEC. 2. NOTIFICATION OF FOREIGN SURVEILLANCE OB- 1 JECTS. 2 (a) NOTIFICATION TO CONGRESS.—The Secretary of 3 Defense shall submit to Congress a written notification if 4 any foreign surveillance object that enters the national air- 5 space system without prior approval not later than 24 6 hours after such object enters such system. 7 (b) DEFINITION OF FOREIGN SURVEILLANCE OB- 8 JECT.—The term ‘‘foreign surveillance object’’ means any 9 airborne object, including a balloon or unmanned aircraft, 10 that— 11 (1) originated outside of the United States; 12 (2) is not a scheduled passenger or cargo air- 13 craft or any other airborne object with prior ap- 14 proval to enter the national airspace system; and 15 (3) is capable of carrying out surveillance ac- 16 tivities. 17 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:15 Mar 15, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H968.IH H968 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB

Important: This plain English summary was generated by AI and is provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice. Always consult the official bill text on Congress.gov or a qualified attorney for legal matters.