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US Congress makes biggest move yet to uncover truth about UFOs by setting up new database to blow mystery wide open
CONGRESS has made one of its biggest moves yet to probe UFOs as lawmakers voted to create a secure database for reporting the mysterious encounters.
US officials will now set up a unified system for logging sightings as well as offering protection for any government whistleblowers who may wish to come forward about what they know about UFOs.
The House yesterday voted to create the new system in a bipartisan amendment to $850billion worth of plans National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
It comes as lawmakers have been pushing for more transparency on the typically fringe topic which has now become the talk of Washington DC.
And while it was once the realm of conspiracy theorists, now former servicemen, politicians, defence officials, and even former presidents are talking about UFOs.
The encounters even have a new name - Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP).
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The new amendment was described as potentially "opening the floodgates" to encourage people to come forward so the American people may finally know the truth about UFOs.
It was proposed by Reps Mike Gallagher and Ruben Gallego as they press the Pentagon to take the UFO issue more seriously and be more open.
Rep. Gallagher hammered home the national security threat posed by UFOs, saying he wants to ensure the "military and intelligence community are armed with the best possible information, capital, and scientific resources to defeat our enemies and maintain military and technology superiority".
He also added he wanted to increase Congress's ability to "prove or disprove the origin and threat nature of whatever seems to be flying in our skies".
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The new UFO reporting system would allow "immediate sharing" of information with scientists and analysts, according to the amendment.
And the plan to also allow the sharing of information "previously prohibited from reporting under any nondisclosures written or oral agreement”.
The idea is to provide "amnesty" to cover “any event relating to unidentified aerial phenomena" and “any government or government contractor activity or program related to unidentified aerial phenomena".
Much of the discussion around UFOs have been the stigma the traditionally polarising subject carriers, with some servicemen claiming they were even encouraged not to report due to the fears of reprisals such as losing clearances or even psych evaluation.
The Department of Defense inspector general will also have to provide an assessment of the compliance with the amendment one year after final passage.
The amendment was approved by a voice vote and there no floor debate - signalling little to no opposition for the plan.
Rep. Gallego said: "We need to empower our service members to be transparent and to drop the stigma surrounding Unidentified Aerial Phenomena."
And former Pentagon official turned whistleblower, Luis Elizondo - who ran the UFO programme AATIP, hailed the move.
He told Politico the amendment is one of the "greatest efforts in recent history to foster transparency on this topic".
Elizondo added: "This legislation may open the floodgates.”
The House amendment is expected to pass by the end of the week, but the final version will have to be matched with the bill as passed in the Senate.
US officials dismissed UFOs at the conclusion of Project Blue Book in the 1960s - stating there was nothing to see.
And yet now around five decades on the debate has returned and is now being treated as a serious national security issue.
The topic which was for decades considered a fringe and wacky damaging topic is now being openly spoken about by very senior figures, including former President Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.
US lawmakers commissioned the Pentagon UFO report after a stunning string of leaked videos that showed military encounters with objects such as the infamous "Tic Tac".
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Questions remain whether the objects being encountered by the US are previously unknown drones, natural phenomenon, black technology - or perhaps something more alien.
And last week, The Sun Online revealed one family's hunt for answers after a US pilot died in a crash while chasing a UFO.