Key Takeaways

• The Department of War has authorized current and former personnel and contractors to disclose protected UAP information directly to designated PURSUE representatives.
• The waiver overrides civil and administrative enforcement provisions in NDAs and Special Access Program Indoctrination Agreements for covered communications to PURSUE.
• The order does not amount to blanket public declassification — information disclosed through the channel remains subject to security review before any potential public release.

By Samuel López | USA Herald

WASHINGTON — In a significant development in the federal government's widening effort to examine and potentially release information concerning unidentified anomalous phenomena, the Department of War announced Monday that it has issued a targeted legal waiver allowing current and former personnel to disclose protected UAP information directly to authorized representatives of the government's PURSUE initiative.

The Department announced the action on its official website on September 14, 2026.

According to the Department, the waiver establishes a legally protected disclosure mechanism covering current and former service members, civilian personnel and contractors who hold — or previously held — access to UAP-related National Defense Information.

More importantly from a legal standpoint, the Department says the waiver supersedes civil and administrative enforcement provisions contained in Non-Disclosure Agreements and Special Access Program Indoctrination Agreements, or SAPIAs, when the information is provided through the authorized PURSUE channel.

That qualification matters.

This Is Not Permission to Publicly Release Classified Information

The announcement should not be interpreted as authorization for former officials, military personnel or contractors to publish classified UAP information, provide it indiscriminately to the media or disclose it on social media.

The waiver described Monday is specifically directed toward communications with official PURSUE representatives.

The Department said information received through that pipeline will undergo "systematic review, security evaluation, and potential declassification." In other words, disclosure to the government and disclosure to the public remain two separate legal steps.

The distinction is particularly important because Special Access Programs can impose security restrictions beyond those associated with ordinary classified information.

Federal Law Already Provides UAP Reporting Protections

Monday's action also sits against an existing statutory framework created by Congress.

Under 50 U.S.C. § 3373b, the government is required to maintain a secure mechanism for authorized reporting of UAP incidents and government or contractor programs involving UAP — including alleged material retrieval, material analysis, reverse engineering, research and development, testing, tracking and security activities.

Federal law further provides that an authorized disclosure made through that statutory mechanism is not subject to an individual's nondisclosure agreement and establishes protections against certain reprisals, including suspension or revocation of a security clearance.

The new Department of War action is nevertheless consequential because it expressly extends an authorized disclosure pathway to designated representatives of PURSUE — the Presidential Unsealing and Reporting System for UAP Encounters.

PURSUE was established following President Donald Trump's February 2026 directive calling for the identification and release of federal records concerning UAP, UFOs and information relating to possible extraterrestrial life.

According to the Department's official PURSUE portal, the government began releasing records on May 8, 2026 and has since published five separate tranches, with the fifth released on August 7. The Department says agencies are reviewing potentially tens of millions of records as part of the broader effort.

The portal also carries an important caveat: the records posted through PURSUE involve unresolved cases. The government's inability to identify an observed phenomenon does not, by itself, establish an extraterrestrial origin.

What Happens Next Could Matter More Than the Waiver Itself

For years, one of the central issues surrounding UAP disclosure has been whether people claiming first-hand knowledge of highly classified programs could speak without risking their careers, clearances or liability under secrecy agreements.

The Department now says that barrier has been removed for qualifying communications made directly to PURSUE.

What remains unknown is considerably more important: what those witnesses will actually disclose, what documentation exists to support their accounts, what the government will be able to verify — and ultimately what information survives security review and reaches the American public.

The waiver opens the door.

What comes through it will determine the significance of Monday's announcement.

Stay With USA Herald as the UAP Record Opens

If you have followed USA Herald's continuing coverage of UAP disclosure, government transparency and the legal battles surrounding classified information, this is a story that may move quickly. Join our readers for breaking developments, original legal analysis and reporting that goes beyond the headline through the USA Herald newsletter.

Follow USA Herald for breaking updates on X through RealUSAHerald.