Bring Our Heroes Home Act
- Bill Number
- S. 3226
- Origin Chamber
- Senate
- Congress
- 119th Congress, Session 1
- Policy Area
- Government Operations and Politics
- Status
- Introduced
- Latest Action
- 2025-11-19: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
- Last Updated
- 2026-06-03T11:03:23Z
AI-Generated Summary
Bring Our Heroes Home Act (S. 3226)
Purpose This legislation creates a dedicated collection of records at the National Archives related to missing U.S. Armed Forces and civilian personnel. It mandates the expeditious review, transmission, and public disclosure of these records, with a presumption of declassification, to support historical research and help families determine the fate of missing individuals. The Act applies to records from December 7, 1941, onward.
Key Provisions
- Collection Establishment: The Archivist must create the Missing Armed Forces and Civilian Personnel Records Collection within 90 days of a quorum of the Review Board. Government offices must identify, review, and transmit relevant records, including intelligence reports, POW debriefings, and status change documents.
- Review and Transmission Timelines: Agencies must complete reviews and begin transmissions within 270 days of the Review Board's quorum and finish within one year. Certifications under penalty of perjury are required.
- Review Board: An independent five-member board, appointed by the President with Senate confirmation (including one historian and one attorney), oversees determinations on records and postponements. It has subpoena power and can direct agencies to provide records or summaries. The board terminates after four years.
- Postponement Standards: Disclosure may be postponed only for narrow reasons, such as national security threats, intelligence sources, or personal privacy, with a requirement to demonstrate that harm outweighs the public interest. Older records face stricter "clear and convincing evidence" standards.
- Periodic Review and Automatic Disclosure: Postponed records undergo review every five years. All records must be fully disclosed after 10 years unless the President issues a written certification of continued need.
- Exemptions: The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency and certain casualty offices are exempt from declassifying active case files.
- Foreign and Sealed Records: The Act encourages the State Department to seek records from foreign governments and allows requests to release court-sealed or grand jury materials.
Significant Changes to Existing Law
- Establishes a new presumption of public disclosure for missing personnel records, overriding other laws (except the Internal Revenue Code) that might restrict transmission.
- Creates an independent Review Board with authority to challenge agency decisions, unlike standard declassification processes.
- Introduces specific 10-year automatic disclosure rules and periodic reviews not present in general classification executive orders.
- Requires agencies to justify withholdings with unclassified reports demonstrating articulated harm.
Potential Impacts
- Government Agencies: Executive agencies, the Department of Defense, and the National Archives must conduct extensive searches and reviews, potentially straining resources, though some offices receive exemptions for active cases.
- Citizens: Families of missing personnel gain improved access to records for personal closure; the public and researchers benefit from broader historical transparency.
- International Relations: The State Department is directed to request records from countries including Russia, China, and North Korea, which could affect diplomatic efforts.
Main Stakeholders Affected
- Families of missing Armed Forces and civilian personnel.
- Executive agencies and military departments holding records.
- The National Archives and the new Review Board.
- Congressional oversight committees (Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; Oversight and Government Reform).
- Veterans' organizations, historians, and researchers.
Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications
- The Act grants the President sole authority to override Review Board decisions on postponement within the executive branch but subjects those decisions to public reporting.
- It includes judicial review provisions and precedence over conflicting laws, raising questions about separation of powers in records disclosure.
- Bipartisan sponsorship reflects broad support for accountability regarding missing personnel, with ongoing congressional oversight built into the structure.
This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.
Sponsor
Cosponsors (12)
Sen. Shaheen, Jeanne [D-NH], Sen. Risch, James E. [R-ID], Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA], Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN], Sen. Duckworth, Tammy [D-IL], Sen. Rosen, Jacky [D-NV], Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH], Sen. Hirono, Mazie K. [D-HI], Sen. Schatz, Brian [D-HI], Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA], Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ], Sen. King, Angus S., Jr. [I-ME]
Recent Actions
- 2025-11-19: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
- 2025-11-19: Introduced in Senate
Bill Versions
- Bring Our Heroes Home Act — issued 2025-11-19 — PDF (54 pages)