ODNI Issues Formal Guidance Waiving NDAs for UAP Whistleblowers

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence issued preliminary guidance, signed by Principal Deputy Director of National Intelligence Aaron Lukas and dated July 31, 2026, directing the Department of War and the wider Intelligence Community to establish a formal process letting current and former government employees and contractors disclose UAP-related information to designated government representatives 'notwithstanding prior non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), oaths, or commitments.' Disclosures must go through authorized channels — AARO or the PURSUE Task Force — and the guidance explicitly does not authorize public disclosure of classified information; every intelligence agency must designate a PURSUE representative within 30 days. The move implements President Trump's earlier directive ordering agencies to remove legal barriers preventing former officials with firsthand UAP knowledge from coming forward, and follows years of lawmaker and whistleblower complaints that secrecy obligations kept material witnesses silent.